LibGuides: * Linguistics: Funding

Research Funding

Grant Name	Amount of Award	Deadline	Eligibility/Language Restrictions	Undergraduate/Graduate
Administration for Children and Families Native American Language Preservation and Maintenance – Esther Martinez Immersion	$100,000–$300,000	Late March	Project must focus on Native American languages.	Graduate
Administration for Children and Families Native American Language Preservation and Maintenance	$100,000–$300,000	Late March	Project must focus on Native American languages.	Graduate
American Philosophical Society Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research	Up to $5,000	Mid November	N/A	Doctoral
American Philosophical Society Phillips Fund for Native American Research	Up to $3,500	Early March	N/A	Graduate
Endangered Language Fund Language Legacies Grant	Up to $4,000	Mid-March	Project must focus on endangered languages.	All
Endangered Language Fund Native Voices Endowment Grant	$2,500–$10,000	Early November	Must be an enrolled tribal member, etc. (see link for details). Applicable to Native American languages.	All
Endangered Languages and Documentation Programme Documentation Grant	Varies	Early January	Only endangered languages applicable (see website).	Graduate
Endangered Languages and Documentation Programme Legacy Material Grant	Up to €10,000	Early January	Only endangered languages applicable (see website).	Graduate
The Explorers Club Grants	$500–$5,000	Varies	Must be conducting fieldwork.	All
Firebird Foundation for Anthropological Research Fellowships for the Documentation of Oral Literature and Traditional Ecological Knowledge	Up to $10,000	Twice annually, in mid-January & mid-June	Project must focus on oral traditions of indigenous communities.	Graduate
Firebird Foundation for Anthropological Research Laura W. R. and George N. Appell Fellowship for the Collection of Oral Literature and Traditional Ecological Knowledge	Up to $40,000	Twice annually, in mid-January & mid-June	Project must be long-term and focus on indigenous languages and communities.	Graduate
Foundation for Endangered Languages Grant	Up to $1,000	Unknown	Must be a Foundation member. Project must focus on an endangered language.	Graduate
The Jacob Research Funds	Up to $9,000	Early February	Must be studying aboriginal languages and cultures of the Americas.	Graduate
National Endowment for the Humanities/National Science Foundation Dynamic Language Infrastructure Documenting Endangered Languages Senior Research Grant	Up to $450,000	Mid-February	See website for applicable languages.	Graduate
National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Stipend	Up to $8,000	Late September	N/A	Graduate
National Geographic Level I Grant	Up to $20,000	Mid-April	Project start date should be at least 6 months after the submission deadline. If you are working on a project outside your home country or community, you must include at least one local collaborator on your team who is significantly involved in the project. You may submit a proposal as the project leader for only one project at a time. The individual responsible for carrying out the project should write the application and be listed as the project leader.	All
National Geographic Level II Grant	Up to $100,000	Mid-April	Project start date should be at least 6 months after the submission deadline. If you are working on a project outside your home country or community, you must include at least one local collaborator on your team who is significantly involved in the project. You may submit a proposal as the project leader for only one project at a time. The individual responsible for carrying out the project should write the application and be listed as the project leader.	All
National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates	Varies	Varies	N/A	Undergraduate
Seventh Generation Fund	Up to $50,000	Early November	Must be an indigenous person. Project must focus on indigenous languages.	Graduate
Sociological Initiatives Foundation Grant	$15,000–$20,000	Early March	N/A	Graduate
University of Rochester Discover Undergraduate Summer Research Grant	Up to $5,000	Early March	Internship/research opportunity secured before applying.	Undergraduate
University of Rochester River Campus Libraries Research Initiative Award for Undergraduates	Varies, usually up to $1,000	Late November	N/A	Undergraduate

Education, Conference & Travel Funding

Grant Name	Amount of Award	Deadline	Eligibility/Language Restrictions	Undergraduate/Graduate
Linguistic Society of America Committee on Ethnic Diversity in Linguistics Diversity Travel Award	$1,000	Mid-July	Eligible applicants include but are not limited to scholars from underrepresented racial/ethnic and gender groups, first-generation scholars, and those intending to study languages and varieties that are traditionally underrepresented in the discipline.	All
U.S. Department of State Critical Language Scholarship	Travel, room, board, instruction fees, etc.	Early November	Must be a U.S. citizen. Must have completed at least one year of university. See website for eligible languages.	All
Defense Language and National Security Education Office Boren Awards Scholarship	Up to $25,000	Late January	Must be a U.S. citizen	Undergraduate
Defense Language and National Security Education Office Boren Awards Fellowship	Up to $25,000	Late January	Must be a U.S. citizen	Graduate
Linguistic Society of America Bernard and Julia Bloch Fellowship for the Linguistic Institute	Up to $3,500 for tuition, room & board	Late February	Must be a Linguistic Society of America member. Biennial award.	All
Linguistic Society of America Ivan Sag Institute Fellowship	Up to $2,500 for tuition, room & board	Late February	Must be a Linguistic Society of America member.	All
Linguistic Society of America Ken Hale Student Fellowship for the Linguistic Institute	Up to $3,200 for tuition, room, board & travel	Late February	Must be a Linguistic Society of America member. Must be pursuing a course of study to document endangered languages and work with communities toward their preservation.	Graduate
Society for Linguistic Anthropology Undergraduate Paper Prize	Cash award (amount unspecified), certificate of accomplishment & small travel grant to attend the annual American Anthropological Association meeting	Mid-June	Must submit an original work (under 8,000 words for a thesis or under 4,000 words for a course paper) based on original research conducted by the author. Must be an undergraduate student in a degree-granting program when the paper was written, must be the sole author, and must submit the paper no more than 2 years after it was written	Undergraduate
Society for Linguistic Anthropology Gumperz Graduate Student Prize	Cash award (amount unspecified), small travel grant to present the winning paper at the annual American Anthropological Association meeting & invitation to submit the paper for consideration for publication in the Journal of Linguistic Anthropology	Early February	Must submit an original work (under 10,000 words) based on original research conducted by the author. Must be a graduate student in a degree-granting program when the paper was written, must be the sole author, and must submit the paper no more than 2 years after it was written	Graduate
University of Rochester Research Presentation Award	$500–$1500	Rolling, submit at least 14 days in advance of conference	Must have research already accepted for presentation, not on academic or disciplinary probation, up to two awards per academic year.	Undergraduate
U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship	Up to $5,000	Early March and October	Must be a U.S, citizen, must be receiving a Federal Pell Grant.	Undergraduate

Acknowledgements & Update Info

Thank you to Erin O'Malley for compiling this list as part of the Career Exploration in Librarianship and Mentoring program, first published in May 2018. Last updated in July 2025.