Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences - Institute of Asian and African Studies

As an expert in linguistics with a focus on African languages, I specialize in language documentation, particularly in documenting endangered or understudied languages in Nigeria. My research and publications, including my PhD thesis, have contributed to the description and analysis of Kam, a Niger-Congo language spoken in Central-Eastern Nigeria. My recent work has emphasized natural interaction and community-driven ethnographic documentation, reflecting my commitment to collaborative and community-based approaches to language documentation.

My expertise in remote fieldwork methods for language documentation, including planning and conducting remote fieldwork, has resulted in courses and training for students preparing for fieldwork and for native speaker collaborators in Nigeria, particularly for speakers of Kam.

In addition to my expertise in African languages, I contribute to linguistic typology through my work on typological databases like Grambank. My publications have highlighted gaps in grammatical descriptions and the insights that can be gained from using typological databases for cross-linguistic comparison.

Furthermore, my current research explores linguistic approaches to studying the history and dispersal of words and concepts in sub-Saharan Africa, with a focus on the spread of words for 'iron'. I use this topic, among others, to explore the challenges and opportunities of interdisciplinary research that aims to understand the human past.