My main research program has three aims: to account for the nature of phonological domains (e.g. definition, relation to syntax), speakers’ use of said domains, and the production of the phonological patterns within those domains. I pursue these issues using a mix of theoretical, experimental, and computational methods. My research draws from fieldwork on two endangered languages -- Kiowa and Saulteaux Ojibwe -- adding language documentation and preservation to my work.
Theory: The core of my dissertation evaluates four different approaches to delimiting phonological domains: the Phenomenon-Based Approach, Relational Mapping, Syntax-Driven Mapping, and the Syntactic Spell-Out Approach. Funded by the Jacobs Research Funds and University of Delaware, I conducted fieldwork on Kiowa in Carnegie, Oklahoma and on Saulteaux Ojibwe in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Subsequent analysis of these data exposes problems for each of the four interface approaches. For example, Syntax-Driven approaches run into major issues with Kiowa, since neither edge of the Kiowa verb complex correspond with a phonological word edge. Thus, referring to the X0 in mapping the phonological word fails completely. Based on these results, I am now working towards a new mapping approach: Tri-P Mapping or Prosodic Phonology by Phase.
Documentation: In Fall 2018, I launched the Kiowa Online Dictionary project alongside Dr. Amber Neely (Kansas State) and in consultation with Dane Poolaw (University of Oklahoma). Through coordinated fieldwork during summer 2019 by Neely's Anthropology Field School and my own funded through SUNY Oswego, a pilot dictionary will be available in Fall 2019. The pilot dictionary will consist of terms found in a collection of Kiowa bedtime stories, allowing for immediate use in classroom lessons, as well as terms found in the new Poolaw Glossary. This glossary was compiled by Dane Poolaw as a part of the Kiowa Tribe's ANA education grant, focusing mainly on digitizing and adapting previous work by Parker McKenzie.