'HSE students are among the very best linguistics students in the world'

Eitan Grossman, an associate professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, talks about his participation in TyLex summer school on typology and lexicon organized by HSE. 

What was the most exciting and impressive for you in the TyLex summer school?

For me the most exciting and impressive part of TyLex would have to be meeting the upcoming generation of young typologists and descriptive linguists. I also enjoyed meeting old friends and meeting new ones.

How do you find Voronovo campus?

The Voronovo campus was really ideal for the summer school. It was perfectly designed to help create a feeling a community between the students and the teachers, so we could enjoy the classes but also relaxed conversations around the clock. Incidentally, some of these conversations went until the very small hours of the night!

What do you think about cultural program?

The cultural program was great. I especially enjoyed the klezmer band, but I also loved watching everyone dance in the evenings. 

What could you say about HSE students?

I think it is no longer a secret that HSE students are among the very best linguistics students in the world. I can't say enough good things about them. First of all, their training is excellent, thanks to the very hard work of Ekaterina Rakhilina and the rest of the HSE teachers. I especially admire the openmindedness and desire to expose students to all theoretical approaches, and of course, the 'expedition' tradition is one of the very strong points of the program. I wish every linguistics program had such a commitment to fieldwork from the very beginning. 

I am always amazed to discuss linguistics with HSE students: they are very knowledgeable and smart, but they also know how to ask excellent questions and hold a very spirited argument, while remaining polite and respectful!  

How do you find Moscow?

I love Moscow. The first time I was there was for the Winter School organized by the HSE, and I came with several students of mine: Rammie Cahlon, Haim Dubossarsky, and Maya Inbar. Since the Winter School program began around noon each day, we had plenty of time to explore the city and to discover its charms. From museums and galleries to restaurants and bars, from parks to escape rooms, from long meandering walks to metro trips, we really got to see quite a bit of the city, but I am sure we didn't begin to even scratch the surface.