Planning a Multimodal Mambilabase: Preliminary Notes for Mambila Multimodal Research

Speaker: Prof. David Zeitlyn, University of Oxford

About Prof. David Zeitlyn: David Zeitlyn has been working on various aspects of Mambila clture since 1985, visiting Cameroon most years since then. He has published conversation analytic approaches to Mambila spider divination as well as discussing divination and the construction of futures more widely. He works on Mambila sociolinguistics with the phonetician Bruce Connell and colleagues in Cameroon. He runs an online journal Vestiges: Trace of Record co-edited in Caameroon.

Abstract:

I will consider some of the problems in planning and creating a Multimodal database of Mambila. As well as issues about the lack of documentation there are more general ethical issues to consider: how to structure and restrict access? Who can control what is accessible? Who should?

How much can we discuss the topic without violating taboos which may cause health issues?