While the spotlight shone on the Indian contingent at the just concluded Olympics in Paris, young Indian linguists were also making their mark at the 21st International Linguistics Olympiad (IOL) held in Brasília, Brazil, recently.
Competing against 51 teams from 38 countries at the IOL, India’s young linguists showcased their exceptional problem-solving skills and language proficiency, bringing home a total of four medals.
The standout performers were Animikha Dutta Dhar, who clinched a silver medal, and Shrilakshmi Venkatraman and Faraz Ahmed Siddiqui, both of who secured bronze medals. Ananya Agarwal further contributed to the team’s success by receiving an Honourable Mention.
India’s journey in the IOL began in 2009, and the country has produced remarkable results since. With a total of 31 medals, 1 bronze trophy, 9 best-solution prizes, and 16 ‘honourable mentions’, India has firmly established itself as a force to be reckoned with in the field of linguistics.
“The IOL is not just a competition; it’s a platform that fosters linguistic diversity and encourages young minds to explore the intricacies of human language. The problems presented at the Olympiad require participants to analyse linguistic patterns, decipher ancient scripts, and solve complex language-related puzzles,” said a computational linguist at the International Institute of Information Technology (Hyderabad).
“India’s success at the IOL is a reflection of the growing interest in linguistics among the country’s youth. With continued support and nurturing, these young linguists are poised to make even greater strides in the years to come,” he added.
“The Linguistics Olympiad has a very special role to play in IIITH’s academic structure,” said Prof. P J Narayanan, Director of IIITH, referring to the Dual Degree programme that offers a BTech in Computer Science and an MS by Research in Computational Linguistics (CLD).