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Linguistics Department Staff

Head of Department

Prof Peter Sells

Undergraduate Tutor (1st years) and Admissions Tutor

Dr Noriko Iwasaki

Undergraduate Tutor (years 2, 3 and 4)

Dr Kirsty Rowan

MA in Applied Linguistics and Language Pedagogy Tutor and Admissions

Dr Noriko Iwasaki

MA in Linguistics/Language Documentation and Description Tutor and Admissions

Dr Irina Nikolaeva

MA in Theory and Practice of Translation Tutor and Admissions

Dr Defeng Li

MPhil/PhD Tutor and Admissions

Prof Peter Sells

Academic Staff

Peter Austin
Marit Rausing Chair in Field Linguistics
Director, Endangered Languages Academic Programme
Peter Austin

Typology, morpho-syntax, language documentation and description, historical linguistics, Lexical-Functional grammar, computer-aided linguistic analysis, Austronesian languages, Australian Aboriginal languages

Gerardo Barbera
Researcher in Language Documentation
Gerado Barbera

Gerardo Barbera is a Researcher in Language Documentation Dialectology, historical linguistics, lexicography, cognitive linguistics (image schemas and lexical semantics), language documentation and description, Iranian (especially the dialects of the Persian Gulf region), Tocharian


Oliver Bond
Researcher in Language Documentation
Oliver Bond

Typology, morpho-syntax, language documentation and description, historical linguistics, negation systems, agreement systems, cognate objects, Niger-Congo languages, Oceanic languages, Eleme (Rivers State, Nigeria)

Wynn Chao
Lecturer in Linguistics
Wynn Chao

Formal and comparative syntax; semantics; the syntax-semantics interface; language universals and typology; psycholinguistics; Chinese; Romance languages


Monik Charette
Senior Lecturer in Linguistics
Monik Charette

Phonology, morpho-phonology, stress systems, vowel harmony, syllabic structure, word-structure, Altaic languages, Turkish, French

Maria Flouraki
Teaching Fellow
Maria Flouraki

Syntax, syntax-semantics interface, formal semantics, lexical semantics, constraint-based frameworks (LFG and HPSG), lexical aspect, negation, argument structure, Romance languages, Greek, South-Asian languages


Noriko Iwasaki
Lecturer in Language Pedagogy
Staff Silhouette

Second language acquisition (grammatical development, impact of study abroad), psycholinguistics (language production, cognition and language), language testing, Japanese

Shin-Sook Kim
Newton International Fellow
Staff Silhouette

Syntax-semantics interface, Korean linguistics, comparative syntax


Defeng Li
Reader in Translation Studies
Defeng Li

Cognitive approach to translation process, corpus-based translation studies, translation curriculum and material development, specialized translation (commercial, financial and journalistic), second language acquisition and teaching, experimental translation studies, qualitative research methodology

Friederike Lüpke
Lecturer in Language Documentation and Description
Friederike Luepke

Language documentation and description, contact linguistics, anthropological linguistics, syntax-semantics interface, argument structure, Ajami writing in Africa, Niger-Congo languages, Mande languages, Atlantic languages, Jalonke (Fuuta Jalon, Guinea), Bainouk (Casamance, Senegal)


Stuart McGill
Researcher in Language Documentation
Staff Silhouette

Discourse pragmatics, noun class/gender systems and agreement, language documentation and description, technology and language documentation, typology, phonology, Cicipu language (Kainji, Nigeria), Kainji languages, Benue-Congo languages

Irina Nikolaeva
Lecturer in Language Documentation and Description
Irina Nikolaeva

Syntax, morphology, information structure, typology, lexicalist theories of grammar, Construction Grammar, documentation of endangered languages, Palaeosiberian linguistics, Uralic languages, Altaic languages, Tundra Nenets (northwestern Siberia)


Kirsty Rowan
Senior Teaching Fellow
Kirsty Rowan

Comparative and theoretical phonology, writing systems, ancient African languages

Itesh Sachdev
Professor of Language and Communication
Staff Silhouette

Social psychology of language and intergroup relations, intercultural communication, identity (minority and majority), bi-multilingualism, multiculturalism, language attitudes and motivations


Julia Sallabank
Research Fellow in Language Support and Revitalisation
Julia Sallabank

Sociolinguistics, language support, language policy, revitalisation methods, literary practices in endangered languages, Guernesiais

Peter Sells
Professor of Linguistics
Peter Sells

Korean and Japanese grammar and linguistic theory, negation and modality in Korean, Japanese historical syntax, the syntax-semantics interface, the morphology-syntax interface


Endangered Languages Archive Staff

David Nathan
Endangered Languages Archivist
David Nathan

Digital preservation and mobilisation, language documentation and pedagogy methodology, multimedia

Tom Castle
Endangered Languages Archive Technician
Tom Castle

Technical support for the Endangered Languages Archive (ELAR)


Edward Garrett
Software Developer
Staff Silhouette

Developing software enabling linguists, community members, and others to populate, administer, query, and re-purpose the Endangered Languages Archive.

Support Staff

Alison Kelly
ELAP Administrator
Alison Kelly

Administrative support for the Endangered Languages Academic Programme (ELAP)

  • Tel: 020 7898 4578
  • Email: ak69@soas.ac.uk
  • Room: 364
  • Office Hours: 9am-1pm & 2pm-5pm
Bernard J Howard
Technician
Bernard Howard

Technical and audio-visual support for the Department of Linguistics


Research Associates

Emmon Bach
Professorial Research Associate
Emmon Bach

Model theoretic semantics, syntax, morphology; grammar and semantics of polysynthetic languages, Germanic languages, Wakashan languages, especially Haisla, Nuuchahnulth, Algonquian,Western Abenaki

Seongsook Choi
Research Associate
Seongsook Choi

Syntax, syntax-lexicon/semantics interface, lexical semantics, event semantics, lexical aspect, complex predicates, multiple verb constructions, argument structure, Korean, West African languages, South Asian/Oceanic languages.


Aslı Göksel
Research Associate
Staff Silhouette

Word structure, morphology-syntax interface, prosody-syntax interface, information structure, Altaic languages, Turkish, Turkish Sign Language

Ruth Kempson
Professorial Research Associate
Staff Silhouette

Syntax, semantics, Dynamic Syntax, diachronic syntax, modelling of dialogue in formal theories of language


Nicholas Ostler
Research Associate
Nicholas Ostler

Language dynamics and endangerment, Chibchan languages of Colombia, language contact in Asia, language histories, especially Latin, Sanskrit, Japanese