LACITO is a branch of the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), the principal network of researchers in France.

Created in 1976 by André-Georges Haudricourt, LACITO is specialized in the description, documentation and analysis of under-documented languages of the world.

The main perspective adopted by LACITO’s researchers is that of language typology, as linguistic structures are compared in search of universals, yet with special attention to their diversity.

An important contribution of LACITO is the Pangloss Collection, for the preservation of valuable audio archives in the world's endangered languages.

Linguistic research at LACITO involves fieldwork in various language families, including:[1]