Exploring the structure of nominal expressions in Chuj (Mayan)

This research project as three main objectives: (1) to research and document Chuj, an underdocumented Indigenous Mayan language spoken in Guatemala and Mexico by approximately 45,000 speakers; (2) to conduct fieldwork in a Chuj speaking community in Mexico where I will learn more about Chuj language and culture; and (3) to meet with and learn from professors and students at the Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Superiores de Antropología Social, in San Cristobal de las Casas, which hosts some of the leading researchers on Mayan language and culture. All research and fieldwork will contribute toward documentation efforts, including the ongoing writing of a Chuj grammar sketch, and the archiving of Chuj in two linguistic documentation databases (www.app.dative.ca and www.aillia.utexas.org). I will moreover use my research to corroborate and challenge existing theories on the structure of nominal expressions in both Mayan languages and cross-linguistically.

Faculty Supervisor:

Jessica Coon

Student:

Partner:

Centro de Investigaciones y Estudios Superiores en Antropología Social

Discipline:

Sociology

Sector:

University:

McGill University

Program:

Globalink Research Award