I am a language researcher interested in understanding how human language works, in which ways it can (and maybe cannot) vary, how it may be mentally represented and how it is socially conceptualised.
My research to date has been mostly in formal linguistics, more specifically syntactic and morphological theory, from a comparative perspective. That means that I have been aiming to contribute to a better understanding of the underlying system of knowledge and language structures determining the possible (and impossible) arrangement of words or sub-parts of words in a given language. Comparing the differences and commonalities between closely and not so closely related languages helps us getting a clearer idea of the range and limits of variation between human languages, providing the empirical basis for a better understanding of the characteristics of the human Faculty of Language. In addition to my formal inclinations, I am fascinated by the construction of identities (particularly the special significance assigned to national ones), the role language can play in it and how that interacts language ideology and impacts (or doesn’t) political situations. A slightly more detailed outline of my research, as well as my publications and presentations can be found in the Research section.
I obtained my PhD in Theoretical and Applied Linguistics at the Department of Theoretical and Applied Linguistics at the University of Cambridge (King’s College). Until autumn of 2024 I was working as lecturer/researcher (Akademischer Rat) at the Department for General Linguistics (Sprachwissenschaftliches Seminar) of the Georg-August University Göttingen. I have previously also been working in linguistic research and/or teaching at Humboldt University Berlin and the universities of Wuppertal, Bielefeld and Hertfordshire.
Like most people I am fascinated by the current rapid developments in language technology and the various questions they raise from linguistic, philosophical and ethical perspective. I also enjoy assembling, modifying and fixing computers and similar devices (or at least trying to do so) and I’ve gathered some experience with some non-standard compact gear that has been useful for work when travelling for conferences or research. Maybe I’ll write some of that down in the future, but for the time being people who are interested can gladly reach out to me for pointers. My preferred software environment involves Linux (currently endeavourOS), the tiling window manager/compositor Sway, an editor (I use gedit), the typesetting engine LaTeX and also pandoc, a great universal tool for converting various document formats into each other (e.g. for using simple Markdown to create generate simple websites like this one or properly typeset pdf documents/presentations via LaTeX). I’ve also been using R and R Studio for statistical analysis and visualisation.
In my spare time I practice Capoeira Angola with Grupo Vadiação (mestre Rosalvo) at Academia Jangada in Berlin and have been awarded the title of treinel in 2014. I’ve also had the pleasure of training, teaching and playing Capoeira with great people at various other places in Germany, the UK, Greece, Russia and Ukraine.
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Research interests
- comparative syntax and syntactic theory
- morphological theory (Distributed Morphology)
- nominal structure
- adnominal person
- (nominal) modification/attribution
- context sensitivity
- linearity effects in morphology
- language contact and minority languages
- applying corpus data in linguistic research
- Modern Greek, Basque, German
- Greek varieties of southern Italy
- Mabia/Gur languages
- nationalism(s) and identity
Languages
- fluent: German, English, Modern Greek, Russian
- intermediate: (Brazilian) Portuguese
- basic knowledge: Spanish, Yiddish, French, Arabic, Greko (Calabrian Greek), Tok Pisin, Classical Greek, Latin
- research exposure (a.o.): Basque, Italian, Bulgarian, Pomak, Aromanian, Mooré, Dagara, Cypriot Maronite Arabic
Education
- 2017: PhD University of Cambridge (King’s College)
- 2012: MRes in Linguistics with specialisation in Syntax, University College London
- 2011: BSc Linguistics, University of Potsdam