In 2010 the Institute celebrates 100 years since its foundation. The Institute was founded by Lacon Threlford (later Sir Lacon), with the first Council meeting being held on 15 April 1910. The founding purpose of the Institute was stated as:

To further the study of modern languages and to unite in corporation teachers, scholars, men of letters, interpreters or foreign correspondents who desire to co-operate in the endeavour.

To grant certificates of qualification to candidates who pass practical tests for admission to the Institute.

To hold conferences and meetings for the reading of papers and discussion thereon.

This anniversary provides an opportunity not only to commemorate, but also to review where we are and what the Institute stands for. It is a platform for renewal and revitalisation as well as celebration, and should involve the rich variety of elements that make up the Institute. The events and activities being organised are based firmly on this triple purpose, and there will be a full page in each issue of The Linguist throughout the year providing details and reports.

While the motivation is commemorative, the events and activities being planned for 2010 will be most definitely in the present. The Institute is organising a bigger and better Members’ Day, on 25 September 2010. This is the day before the European Day of Languages and therefore a most appropriate date for the occasion. Members’ Day has included the Threlford Lecture for some years now and we are delighted to announce that Professor David Crystal has agreed to give the lecture in our centenary year. The event will be held at a venue in London.

The Divisions and Regional Societies have been working for some time on their centenary events, and these will take place throughout the year – more information will be available via the Divisions and Regional Societies in the usual way, and also via the regular page in The Linguist mentioned above and on the Institute’s website.

Activities in the course of the year include the Critical Link 6 conference. The Institute has been a regular contributor to this important triennial conference series promoting research and practice in public service interpreting. Critical Link 6, “Interpreting in a Changing Landscape”, will take place at Aston University on 26-30 July 2010.

Please click on this link for more information on the Critical Link 6 conference.

The history of the Institute from 1910 to 1970 and 1970 to 2000 has been published in the past in two series in The Incorporated Linguist (the name of the Institute’s journal up to 1985) vols. 9 and 10, and The Linguist, vols. 42 and 43. The history is being brought up to date to the full one hundred years, and a feature of the centenary will be the publication of the history in an attractively presented volume. It is hoped that many members will want to purchase a copy.

The Institute will also be producing a number of other commemorative items that members may want to purchase, from memory sticks to mugs and bookmarks.

The Institute is organising a special reception on 15 April (the anniversary of the first Council meeting), hosted by the Institute’s Royal Patron, HRH Prince Michael of Kent. This will be an opportunity to commemorate key individuals who have made a significant contribution to the Institute over the years and it will also provide an opportunity for the Institute to bring into its celebration people in government, education, the public services, finance and business who are important to our role and development.

It would be wonderful to be able to bring all the members of the Institute together, but this is clearly impractical. Nevertheless, we hope that as many as possible will take part in Members’ Day, as well as in the activities organised by the Divisions and Regional Societies.

The above gives an outline of the activities that will take place during the year. Information and reports will be published in The Linguist, and regular updates will be posted on this website.

Promoting excellence

In the second of a series of articles to mark the Institute’s first 100 years, Karen Stokes explains the significance of the central theme of the Centenary celebrations

Arguably one of the great strengths of our Institute is that it is a ‘broad church’ of linguists of all descriptions: translators, interpreters, modern foreign language educationalists and those whose language skills are a critical part of their work in business, the professions and government. Our four Divisions represent this diversity in our members’ professional backgrounds, whilst our Regional Societies reflect the Institute’s geographical spread: both rightly inspire affection and loyalty. Nevertheless, what unites us all is our shared interest in languages and how they are used, whatever our specific skills as practitioners. As we approach our Centenary year, it is perhaps worth reminding ourselves of the Institute’s mission statement, according to which our aims are to:

promote the learning and use of modern languages
improve the status of all professional linguists
establish and maintain high standards of work
serve the interests of all linguists
ensure professional standards amongst language practitioners through the Code of Professional Conduct.

Summing up the huge variety of activities the Institute’s members and its subsidiary companies are involved in is no easy task: the Institute of Linguists Educational Trust (IoLET), Language Services Ltd and the National Register of Public Service Interpreters (NRPSI) all focus on different aspects of the Institute’s areas of interest. Our Divisions and Societies rely on the commitment of members who volunteer enormous amounts of their time and energy. Ably supported by the Membership Department at Saxon House, they run an impressive series of training and professional networking events throughout the year, as well as hosting lively discussion forums where members pool their knowledge and expertise on matters ranging from tricky terminology to challenging ethical issues. So what, in all of this, unites us? The answer can be found in the motto on the Institute’s crest: “Universal Understanding”. The way to realising that aspiration, surely, is through ‘excellence’ and it is with this in mind that the team coordinating the Centenary celebrations has agreed on “Promoting Excellence in Languages” as the strapline for the year’s events.

Centenary 1910-2010