Michael Marinaccio

Semitic morphology

My master’s research posited a derivation of the Maltese broken plural that utilized aspects from both Distributed Morphology and Optimality Theory. This dual-framework approach suggested that a single constraint ranking could interact with two morphs, the consonantal root and the vocalic melody, to predict the correct broken plural form for a given input. Please feel free to read my dissertation here.

The Maltese diaspora in North America

It is estimated that there are nearly 100,000 people of Maltese descent living in the United States and Canada, yet the status of the Maltese language in North America is virtually unknown. I am embarking on an independent research project that seeks to shed light on the Maltese language situation in North America. If you have a Maltese ancestor and live outside of Malta, please consider filling out this anonymous questionnaire. You do not need to speak Maltese to complete it.

Language and dialect contact in Liberia

For the past five years, Dr. John Victor Singler, Dr. Allison Shapp, and I have been working with large corpora of interviews conducted in Liberia in the 1980s. These interviews highlight two varieties of English spoken in Liberia: Kolokwa and Liberian Settler English. Our research has been presented at NWAV 49, NWAV 50, and GURT 2022. Our research was included in the proceedings of GURT 2022, which can be found here.