Dr Yuni Kim

Biography

I am originally from the United States and came to the UK in 2009, where I was a lecturer at Manchester before moving to Essex in 2017. My research focuses on the phonological and morphological analysis of understudied languages and dialects. Some particular interests of mine are morphophonology, tone systems, subsegmental representations, phonetic description, inflection class systems, and patterns of allomorphy; as well as the broader enterprises of whole-language description and endangered language revitalisation. I work mainly on two Mesoamerican languages: Huave, an isolate (also the topic of my 2008 PhD thesis); and Amuzgo, from the Oto-Manguean family. Previously I did research on Fenno-Swedish dialects as a Fulbright scholar at the University of Helsinki, and I maintain an interest in Swedish and Finnish, alongside personal connections with Korean and Brazilian Portuguese. I have a side interest in ethnobotany as a crucial perspective on language and culture in traditional societies, and am currently pursuing a postgraduate qualification in Biological Recording through Manchester Metropolitan University.

Qualifications

• AB summa cum laude Harvard University (2002)

• PhD University of California, Berkeley (2008)

Appointments

University of Essex

• Lecturer, Language and Linguistics University of Essex ( 3/7/2017 - present )

Other academic

• Lecturer, University of Manchester ( 1/1/2009 - 30/6/2017 )