Current research interests
Phonology and its interface with morphology
Lexical Accent Systems: I have a general interest in morphologically-oriented accentuation, which is a central topic in my dissertation and several of my publications and conference talks that preceded or followed its publication. My dissertation is a comparative study of the stress systems of Greek, Russian, and a group of Salish dialects, broadly known as lexical accent systems (LAS) because their stress is considered to be largely determined in the lexicon. I argue that the complicated stress facts of LAS can be straightforwardly accounted for if one takes into consideration the structural position of lexically accented morphemes in a given morphological construction. [pdf, 4,27 MB, WinRAR] Some of the core ideas of my dissertation have been recently re-worked in the light of Goldrick’s (1998, 2000) TURBIDITY THEORY and van Oostendorp’s (2004) COLORED CONTAINMENT model [<2.9.>]
Evolution of lexical accents: In recent work with Baris Kabak (University of Konstanz), we present a hypothesis for the development of lexical accents in edgemost stress systems and propose a theory for their representation. The basic claim is that lexical accents emerge only in systems with conflicting directionality. More specifically, the directionality of different levels of prominence at the word and above-word level as well as morphologization work hand-in-hand for the development of various types of lexical accents, i.e., local and non-local(=pre-/post-accenting). We make a number of predictions with respect to whether, for instance, a system will develop lexical accents or not and what their original shape will be. Our predictions are substantiated by empirical evidence from approximately fifty edgemost stress systems. [<2.3>, Email me to send you a copy.] <Top>
Harmony: In the past few years, I got increasingly interested in contact-induced systems and, especially, varieties of Greek that have been in long-term contact with Turkish such as Asia Minor Greek. In particular, I am captivated by systems that show a transition from fusion to agglutination since they often reveal more transparently than others the effects of morphological change on phonology [<2.21>]. Another favorite research topic is the rather unique pattern of vowel harmony that some of these varieties of Greek developed, possibly under the influence of Turkish. Greek harmony and its interaction with epenthesis is investigated in collaborative work with Marc van Oostendorp [<2.11>, pdf, 368KB; <3.10>, pdf, 264] <Top>
Prosodic phonology: In collaborative work with Baris Kabak (University of Konstanz), we discuss the notion of recursivity (REC) in phonology and especially, at the level of the Prosodic Word. On the basis of evidence from clitic constructions, compounding and complex predicates, we argue that REC is not an inherent property of phonology but the result of its interface with morphosyntax. In particular, it arises primarily from a requirement to mirror recursive morphosyntactic (e.g., complex predicates, adjuncts, etc.) structures. Furthermore, we show that NonRecursivity as a constraint is problematic because: (a) it goes against the fundamental premises of linguistic theory, and (b) it does not do the job that it is supposed to do since recursive structures do not emerge from violation of this constraint but rather through the interaction of different constraint sets. [download <2.1>, paper, pdf, 325KB; <3.8>, pdf, 339KB; <3.5>, pdf, 349KB; <3.6>, handout, pdf, 339K]<Top>
The phonology of past in Greek: In recent work with V. Spyropoulos, we claim that, contra to traditional accounts, the antepenultimate (APU) stress pattern in past forms such as éγrafe 'she was writing' is not an exponent of the past, but the surface manifestation of a segmentally empty prefix with lexically-encoded accentual properties, e.g. o' (à la van Oostendorp 2007). We also show that this prefix, which is filed in with the default for Greek vowel e, stands in an allomorphic relation with a set of other exponents of the past (e.g. -ik). In previous analyses of Greek verb morphology (Warburton 1970; Babiniotis 1972; Ralli 1988, etc.), the exact details of the division of labor between phonology and morphology in the realization of the PAST have not been worked out thoroughly. In this paper, however, based on the investigation of certain complexities that have been either ignored or treated in parsimony, we seek to identify the exact function of each manifestation of the past morpheme and the proper conditioning that regulates its distribution. [download: handout, pdf, 328 KB; paper <2.4.>, pdf, 234KB]
The syntax-phonology interface
Clitic-doubled objects and subjects in Greek: A focal point of my research is the flow and processing of information between the components of Grammar and, especially, the question of whether phonology reflects differences in the processing of syntactic material. In recent work with Vassilis Spyropoulos, we investigate the consequences of the Multiple Spell-Out Hypothesis (Uriagereka 1999, Chomsky 2000, et seq.) for prosodic constituency based on evidence from the phrasing of clitic-doubled DP-objects and that of subjects in Greek. [<2.2>, pdf, 360KB; <2.7>, pdf, 244KB] Continuing this line of work on the syntax-phonology interface, we also propose a novel approach to the derivation of subjects in Greek, which explains their distribution as a result of the processing of the syntactic output by the Phonological Component after Spell-Out. [<2.5>, pdf, 429KB; pdf, 432KB] <Top>
Weak object pronouns (clitics) in Greek: I have worked independently and in collaboration with V. Spyropoulos on a cross-dialectal typology of pronominal object clitics. The focus is on determining the filtering role that phonology exercises on syntax, and on constructing a theory that brings together the prosodic and syntactic aspects of second position effects exhibited by clitics in certain dialectal varieties (e.g. Cypriot, Symi Greek, etc.). A welcome result of the cross-dialectal perspective of second position phenomena is that it unveils hidden aspects of diachronic change and, more specifically, the mechanisms that are involved in the shift from a second to a non-second position system of weak pronominals. [<2.6>;<2.7>, pdf, 244KB; <2.12>, <3.9>, pdf, 422KB ] <Top>
Co-phonologies and parallel grammars in language acquisition: I have also worked in collaboration with Marina Tzakosta (University of Crete) and Spyridoula Varlokosta (University of the Aegean) on (typical and atypical) phonological acquisition where my interest is mainly on the architecture of early grammars and the formal expression of learning paths as these are revealed in the speech of young learners of Greek. [relevant papers: <2.10>, pdf, 320KB; <2.14>, <2.18>, <2.18>]<Top>
Greek dialects: I have being doing research on the following dialects:
Ofitika/ Ofitic Pontic (OP) is a Greek dialect of Asia Minor (Black Sea area). After the Greek-Turkish population exchange in the late 1920s and afterward, it is spoken by refugees of the Ophis area who settled in Nea Trapezounta (Pieria, North Greece) and a few other areas such as in Paranesti Dramas and in Thessaloniki. It is still spoken in Ophis, Turkey. In May 2003, I started, together with Dr. Vassilis Spyropoulos and Maria-Anna Tiliopoulou, a research project for the collection and analysis of spoken data. The linguistic material was gathered during several fieldwork trips in the area and part of it has been organized into a corpus. This research is sponsored by the cultural society “Alexandros Ypsilantis” (Nea Trapezounta, Pieria). [A report on OP can be downloaded here. Handout of talk on OP, pdf, 0.98ΜB, sound files 113KB] <Top>
Symi Greek (SyG) is a Dodecanese variety that belongs to the south-eastern dialectal zone. It is spoken primarily in the island of Symi. It is characterized by some "archaic" features such as the postverbal position of clitics and the pronunciation of /z/ as [dz]. In August 2002, Dr. Vassilis Spyropoulos and I started a pilot project which aimed at the collection of raw speech material from the dialect of Symi. Since then, we continue conducting research on SyG and collecting written and spoken material from the dialect. Our investigation primarily focuses on word order and second position clitics. The first fieldwork trip to Symi was sponsored by the Second Community Support Framework and co-financed by the European Social Fund, the European Regional Development Fund (75%) and national resources (25%). [A report on SyG, WinRAR, 1.02 MB and the sound files can be downloaded here.] <Top>
Rhodian Muslim Greek (RMG) is a Greek variety spoken by the Muslims of Rhodes. M. Georgalidou, H. Kaili and V. Spyropoulos conduct research on this Greek-based pidgin variety with emphasis on the structural interference from Turkish. Moreover, they explore the impact of social networks on the variation and change observed in the codes used by the community. My contribution is on the phonological aspects of RMG that show interference from Turkish. [<2.3>, paper in Greek, pdf, 304KB, handout in English, pdf, 239KB; <2.4>, pdf, 156KB] <Top>
Research projects
PYTHAGORAS "A comparative study of Greek-Turkish: Grammatical analysis and acquisition of Turkish as a foreign language" (March 2004-August 2006), University of the Aegean.
Chief Co-ordinator: Spyridoula Varlokosta, Vice Co-ordinator: Anthi Revithiadou, Research team: Spyridoula Varlokosta, Anthi Revithiadou, Vassilios Spyropoulos, Despoina Papadopoulou (postdoc researcher), Sophia Prokou, Hasan Kaili, Katerina Frantzi, Kalomoira Nikolou
Aims: Despite the continuous contact between the people of Greece and Turkey the last decades, there is no systematic research till now regarding (a) the comparative study of the two languages, Greek and Turkish, (b) the development of acquisition and teaching methodologies of the two languages. The aim of the proposed project is to pursue: (a) the grammatical description of Turkish and its comparative study with Greek, (b) the study of the acquisition of Turkish by Greek learners, (c) the development of a software for learning and teaching Turkish as a foreign language.
Papers: <3.1>[paper in Greek, pdf, 304KB, handout in English, pdf, 239KB]; <3.7> [pdf, 774KB]; <3.2>, [pdf, 267KB]
Funding Agency: Operational Program for Reinforcement of Research Groups at Universities’, sponsored by the Second Community Support Framework and co-financed by the European Social Fund, the European Regional Development Fund (75%) and national resources (Greek Ministry of National Education and Religion, 25%) <Top>
Education of Muslim Students in Greece (2002-2004), Action: Grammar and Teaching ( http://www.ecd.uoa.gr/museduc/)
Head co-ordinator: Dr. Spyros Moschonas, National and Capodistrian University of Athens, Department of Early Childhood Education
I was a scientific advisor and researcher on issues of teaching the phonology of Greek as a second language (L2). Moreover, I wrote a scientific report on "The acquisition of super-segmental phonology by L2 speakers of Greek: stress, phrasal phonology and intonation".
Funding Agency: Operational Program for Education and Initial Vocational Training (O.P. "Education") sponsored by the Third Community Support Framework and co-financed by the European Social Fund, the European Regional Development Fund (75%) and national resources (Ministry of National Education and Religion, 25%) <Top>