We are happy to announce that CogLing Days 2026 will take place in Leuven on 10 and 11 December 2026. CogLing Days is the biannual conference of the Cognitive Linguistics Association of Belgium and the Netherlands (BeNeCLA). The conference is first and foremost intended to spark local collaborations, foster the exchange of new ideas, and provide a place to present the latest research conducted in the Low Countries.

The theme of CogLing Days 2026 is ‘the role of meaning in language variation and change’. Though we welcome all contributions in cognitive linguistics or related fields, we particularly encourage papers related to the dynamic and multidimensional nature of meaning in language. Topics of interest include but are not limited to:
– variation of meaning synchronically and/or diachronically
– variation and change in iconic form-meaning correspondences
– meaning in usage-based grammar
– variation and change in multimodal meaning
– the impact of non-referential (e.g. social, interactional) meaning on language variation and change
– challenges related to studying meaning in empirical data
…

Call for papers
We welcome papers related to cognitive linguistics in general, or related fields such as sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics or cognitive science. We particularly invite proposals related to the central theme of the conference. Starting and early-career researchers are especially encouraged to submit.
All talks will take the standard format of 20 minutes presentation, plus 10 minutes discussion time. Authors can submit only one abstract as a first author, but they can be co-author of multiple submissions.
Abstracts must not exceed 500 words, excluding references and figures, and should mention the main research question(s), methodology, data and (expected) results. You can submit your abstract in English, Dutch, French, Frisian or German, but the language of the abstract should be the same as the language in which you will give your talk. Please anonymize your abstract sufficiently. Format your reference list according to the unified style sheet for linguistics: https://langsci-press.org/unifiedstylesheet
Please submit your abstract via https://forms.office.com/e/9qqL0Fge36. While the abstract text should be anonymous, be sure to mention all author names and their affiliations in the submission form.

The deadline for submission is 21 June 2026.

Plenary speakers
We are pleased to announce our first plenary speaker, Bodo Winter (University of Birmingham). A second plenary speaker will be announced shortly.

Important dates:
Submission deadline: 21 June 2026
Notification of acceptance: 15 September 2026
Deadline for registration: 31 October 2026
Conference dates: 10-11 December 2026

Organizing committee
Karlien Franco (KU Leuven)
Isabeau De Smet (KU Leuven)
Alek Keersmaekers (KU Leuven)
Toon Van Hal (KU Leuven)
Thomas Van Hoey (KU Leuven)

Contact: coglingdays2026@kuleuven.be