The Linguistics research department at the Austrian Centre for Digital Humanities (ACDH), an institute of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) – Austria’s leading non-university research and science institution – is offering a position as

Praedoc (Diss) (f/m/x) - Bavarian dialectology and dialectometry

(75%, 30 hours per week)

The position is embedded in the FWF-funded project "Bavarian Dialects in Austria and South Tyrol in the 20th Century – Quantitative Analyses Based on the WBÖ Corpus (BASyQ)”. The project uses dialectometric and geostatistical methods to investigate the geographic structure and dynamics of the Bavarian base dialects in Austria and South Tyrol. It draws on the historical source material of the Dictionary of Bavarian Dialects in Austria (WBÖ) — around three million citation slips, mostly from the first half of the 20th century, which are available as an XML/TEI database and publicly accessible via the Lexical Information System Austria (LIÖ). The central question is which geographic structures emerge across the linguistic levels of phonology, morphology, syntax, and lexicon, and how these relate to existing dialect classifications. The position offers the opportunity to pursue a PhD within the framework of the project.

Your Tasks

• Preparation and linguistic enrichment of the WBÖ corpus data (including lemmatization, PoS annotation) in collaboration with the technical development team
• Conducting dialectometric and geostatistical analyses (including cluster analysis, multidimensional scaling, factor analysis, interpolation/kriging)
• Comparative investigation of phonology, morphology, syntax, and lexicon with regard to their geographic structuring
• Data quality assurance and critical evaluation of the methods used
• Publishing research results in academic journals and presenting at workshops and conferences
• Collaborating within the ACDH’s Linguistics research department as well as with international project partners
• Writing a dissertation within the framework of the project

Your Profile

• Completed master’s degree (or equivalent) in German Studies/German Philology, Linguistics, or a related field with a focus on linguistics
• Knowledge of Bavarian-Austrian dialectology and dialect geography
• Experience with statistical analysis methods (e.g., R) and/or geographic information systems is an advantage
• Experience with NLP methods is an advantage
• Willingness to learn new methods and technologies and further develop them for the project data
• Very good German skills, very good English skills
• Ability to integrate and work in a team, independence, reliability, resilience, and flexibility

Our Offer

• Access to unique historical language material
• Collaboration with international experts in dialectology and dialectometry
• An international, diverse team in the heart of Vienna
• Flexible, family-friendly working hours
• Independent, self-directed work with room for your own ideas and initiative
• Open communication and corporate culture (open-door policy)
• Opportunity to pursue a PhD within an internationally networked, FWF-funded research project

The minimum annual gross salary for this position is EUR 53.140,92 (full-time based), in accordance with the collective agreement of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW). For part-time employment, the salary will be adjusted on a pro rata basis in line with the agreed working hours. A higher salary is negotiable depending on experience or academic qualification. The start of employment is planned for December 2026 and is limited to 4 years.

Interested? Please upload your application (including CV, statement of motivation and references of previous experience) via our ÖAW online platform. Deadline October 15th, 2026.

The Austrian Academy of Sciences (OeAW) pursues a non-discriminatory employment policy and values equal opportunities, as well as diversity. Individuals from underrepresented groups are particularly encouraged to apply.