Language, Communication, and Society in an Era of Disruptive Technologies

Human society is passing through a period of rapid technological change. Artificial intelligence, social media, machine learning, automated translation, digital publishing, virtual communication and other emerging technologies are changing how people communicate, learn, work, create knowledge and relate with one another. These technologies are also changing the ways languages are used, taught, documented, translated and preserved.

Language is at the centre of these changes. New technologies depend heavily on language for human–machine interaction, while people increasingly use digital platforms to create new forms of expression, identity and social relationships. Artificial intelligence can now generate texts, translate languages, imitate human conversation and process large amounts of linguistic information. At the same time, digital communication is producing new language practices involving shortened forms, emojis, memes, multimodal texts, code-switching and other emerging forms of expression.

These developments present important opportunities. Digital technologies can support language teaching and learning, documentation of endangered languages, translation, research, knowledge production and wider access to information. They can give greater visibility to indigenous languages and cultures and provide new tools for researchers in linguistics, literature, communication, humanities, education and related disciplines.

However, technological change also presents serious challenges. Many indigenous and less-resourced languages remain poorly represented in digital technologies and artificial intelligence systems. The growing use of AI raises questions about authorship, originality, academic integrity, intellectual property and the future of human creativity. Social media and other digital platforms have also increased the speed at which misinformation, hate speech, harmful narratives and manipulated information can circulate across societies.

These transformations extend beyond technology itself. Language and communication continue to play important roles in governance, security, conflict resolution, peacebuilding, education, health, religion, climate action, environmental sustainability and social development. Understanding contemporary society therefore requires greater interaction between linguistics and other fields concerned with human communication, culture and social life.

It is against this background that the Department of Languages & Linguistics, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, convenes the 4th EBSULING International Conference 2026, with the theme “Language, Communication, and Society in an Era of Disruptive Technologies.”

The conference adopts a language-centred interdisciplinary approach. It brings together scholars, researchers, teachers, students, professionals, writers, journalists, translators, technology practitioners and other stakeholders to examine the changing relationships among language, communication, technology and society.

The conference welcomes theoretical, empirical, applied and interdisciplinary contributions. While disruptive technologies provide the immediate context of the conference, papers need not be restricted to technology. Contributions addressing language structure, linguistic theory, literature, discourse, communication, culture and other areas relevant to the broad conference tracks are equally welcome.