Doctoral Dissertation Research: Nominal and deverbal morphology in an endangered language

This doctoral dissertation project investigates the grammar of an endangered language spoken in two Indigenous communities. In an era of accelerated language extinction, this project presents a unique opportunity to document the intricate features of a language that exhibits some relatively rare grammatical properties while it is still actively used. The project focuses on the interface between phonology (the system of sounds) and morphology (the structure of words), offering insights into the characteristics of the language, contributing to linguists' collective knowledge of linguistic diversity, and enhancing scientists' understanding of human linguistic capacity. The project supports the communities with tools for language documentation, contributing to the preservation and revitalization of their language. It also aids in the creation of pedagogical resources for the language, facilitating its future learning and use. The study examines typologically rare features of the language's structure, focusing on its nominal domain — an area of the language that pertains to objects, people, and ideas. This research will illuminate specific linguistic processes tied to individual elements of the language, and the expression of plural forms through unusual sound alterations. The project involves collecting linguistic data during a field trip to communities where the language is spoken. The findings challenge existing theories about how elements of language are represented and interact with each other, contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of the complexities of human language systems. The collected data are made accessible to the global research community, supporting further studies into language structure and diversity. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.