Dr Marco Tamburelli
Reader in Linguistics
Additional Contact Information
Position: Reader in Linguistics (Bilingualism)
Email: m.tamburelli@bangor.ac.uk
Phone: ++44 (0)1248 382078
Location: Room 205b, 37-41 College Road
Qualifications
- PhD: Linguistics (Bilingualism)
University College London, - BA: Linguistics
University College London,
Teaching and Supervision
PhD supervision
- Conor Glackin: Intelligibility and communication in stressful social contexts. Started: 2017
- Judit Vari: Monitoring language vitality in autochthonous diglossic communities. 2017-2021.
- Mara Leonardi: Trilingualism and Diglossia among the Germanic-speaking group in South Tyrol (Italy). 2012-2016.
- Abigail Ruth Price: “Is ‘reversed diglossia’ coming to Wales? Investigating the linguistic habits of adolescents in Wales and beyond.” Fully funded studentship in bilingualism, Bangor University Anniversary Scholarship. 2013-2019.
- Lissander Brasca: Classification of Romance linguistic varieties. Started in September 2013 (P/T).
- Athanasia Papastergiou: the role of educational settings in bilingual acquisition. ESRC funded PhD. 2014-2016 (co-supervisor).
Teaching at Bangor
I teach courses on introductory linguistics, phonology, and bilingualism (from a social as well as a psycholinguistic perspective). For details, please consult the current timetable or send me a message.
- QXL1110 - Introduction to Language
- QXL2201 - Sounds and Sound Systems
- QXL33/4404 - Language Contact and Bilingualism
- QXL 1115 Intro to Phonetics and Phonology
- QXL 4432 Research Methods
- QXL33/4436 – Phonology in Bilingual Acquisition
I welcome enquiries from students interested in pursuing a PhD in the areas of:
Contested languages: intelligibility measurements and quantitative comparison of linguistic traits; intelligibility as a criterion of demarcation.
Bilingual first language acquisition: crosslinguistic interference in the acquisition of syntactic and phonological structures; bilingual acquisition in diglossic contexts.
Research Interests
My Research focuses on bi- and multi-lingualism, both from a mentalist/representational* perspective as well as from a sociolingusitic and comparative perspective.
Within a representational perspective, I have worked on Bilingual First Language Acquisition, particularly in relation to syntactic and phonological transfer effects in simultaneous bilinguals, but also on the acquisition and organisation of lexical properties, the nature of paradigms and of the mechanisms underlying lexical organisation (including the mapping of cross-modular information in the lexicon) and on lexical and phonological development in typically developing children and in children with SLI.
I also work on the more social and comparative aspects of bilingual development, particularly on regional and minority languages (language policy and maintenance), on issues of language diversity (the measurement of linguistic attitudes), and the diglossic/bilingual communities of Italy, but also on measuring phonetic distance in linguistic continua, and on the measurement and application of intelligibility rates as a criterion of demarcation between 'regional languages' and 'regional dialects'.
I am currently director of the International Research Network on Contested Languages.
*This approach to linguistics would often be called “cognitive” (with a small “c”) in the sense of “pertaining to the mind”, as it deals with linguistic knowledge and its mental representation, but the term is now less common due to it having become increasingly associated with the research paradigm known as “Cognitive Linguistics”.
Postgraduate Project Opportunities
Publications
2022
- E-pub ahead of printA study on the executive functioning skills of Greek-English bilingual children - a nearest neighbour approach
Papastergiou, A., Sanoudaki, E., Tamburelli, M. & Chondrogianni, V., 8 Jul 2022, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Bilingualism: Language and Cognition.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
2021
- PublishedAccepting a “new” standard variety: Comparing explicit attitudes in Luxembourg and Belgium
Vari, J. & Tamburelli, M., Sep 2021, In: Languages. 6, 3, e134.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review - PublishedContested Languages: The hidden multilingualism of Europe
Tamburelli, M. (ed.) & Tosco, M. (ed.), 21 Jan 2021, John Benjamins Publishing Company. 277 p. (Studies in World Language Problems )
Research output: Book/Report › Book › peer-review - PublishedContested languages and the denial of linguistic rights in the 21st century
Tamburelli, M., 21 Jan 2021, Contested Languages: The hidden multilingualism of Europe. Tamburelli, M. & Tosco, M. (eds.). Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company, p. 21-39 (Studies in World Language Problems).
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › peer-review - PublishedTaking taxonomy seriously in Linguistics: intelligibility as a criterion of demarcation between languages and dialects.
Tamburelli, M., Jun 2021, In: Lingua. 256, 103068.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review - PublishedThe cost of ignoring degrees of Abstand in defining a regional language
Leonardi, M. & Tamburelli, M., 21 Jan 2021, Contested Languages: The hidden multilingualism of Europe. Tamburelli, M. & Tosco, M. (eds.). Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company, p. 87-103 (Studies in World Language Problems; vol. 8).
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › peer-review - PublishedWhat are contested languages and why should linguists care?
Tamburelli, M. & Tosco, M., Jan 2021, Contested Languages: The hidden multilingualism of Europe. Tamburelli, M. & Tosco, M. (eds.). John Benjamins Publishing Company, p. 3-17 (Studies in World Language Problems ; vol. 8).
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › peer-review
2020
- E-pub ahead of printStandardisation: bolstering positive attitudes towards endangered language varieties? Evidence from implicit attitudes
Vari, J. & Tamburelli, M., 7 Oct 2020, (E-pub ahead of print) In: Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development. p. 1-20 20 p.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review - PublishedWelsh-language prestige in adolescents: attitudes in the heartlands
Price, A. & Tamburelli, M., Jul 2020, In: International Journal of Applied Linguistics. 30, 2, p. 195-213
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
2018
- PublishedRevisiting the classification of Gallo-Italic: a dialectometric approach
Tamburelli, M. & Brasca, L., 1 Jun 2018, In: Digital Scholarship in the Humanities. 33, 2, p. 442-455
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
2016
- PublishedMinority language abandonment in Welsh-medium educated L2 male adolescents: classroom, not chatroom
Price, A. R. & Tamburelli, M., May 2016, In: Language Culture and Curriculum. 29, 2, p. 189-2016
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review - PublishedReview of Marcyliena H. Morgan, "Speech Communities"
Tamburelli, M., Oct 2016, In: Modern Language Review. 111, 4, p. 1119-21 3 p.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Book/Film/Article review
2014
- PublishedAcceleration in the bilingual acquisition of phonological structure: Evidence from Polish–English bilingual children
Tamburelli, M., Sanoudaki, E., Jones, G. & Sowinska, M., 18 Nov 2014, In: Bilingualism: Language and Cognition. 18, 4, p. 713-725
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review - PublishedUncovering the ‘hidden’ multilingualism of Europe: an Italian case study
Tamburelli, M., 9 Jan 2014, In: Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development. 35, 3, p. 252-270
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
2013
- PublishedGrammar in parsing and acquisition
Chondrogianni, V. & Tamburelli, M., 1 Jan 2013, In: Linguistic Approaches to Bilingualism. 3, 3, p. 289-295
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review - PublishedLesser languages in Modern Europe: the case of Italy
Tamburelli, M., 2013, Proceedings of the 4th ENIEDA Conference on Linguistic and Intercultural Education.
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution › peer-review
2012
- PublishedComputational modelling of phonological acquisition: Simulating error patterns in nonword repetition tasks
Tamburelli, M., Jones, G., Gobet, F. & Pine, J. M., 1 Jun 2012, In: Language and Cognitive Processes. 27, 6, p. 901-946
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review - PublishedDalla diglossia al bilinguismo: note sul mantenimento del patrimonio linguistico d’Italia
Tamburelli, M., 2012, L’enseignement des langues locales Institutions, méthodes, ideologies. Rome: Aracne. Agresti, G. & De Gioia, M. (eds.).
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution › peer-review - PublishedInvestigating the Relationship Between Nonword Repetition Performance and Syllabic Structure in Typical and Atypical Language Development
Tamburelli, M. & Jones, G., 28 Dec 2012, In: Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
2010
- PublishedLexical frequency in specific language impairment: accuracy and error data from two nonword repetition tests.
Jones, G., Tamburelli, M., Watson, S. E., Gobet, F. & Pine, J. M., 1 Dec 2010, In: Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research.. 53, 6, p. 1642-1655
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review - PublishedThe vanishing languages of Italy: Diglossia, bilingualism, and shift
Tamburelli, M., 2010, Philologica Wratislaviensia: Acta et Studia. Proceedings of the Conference Languages in Contact 2010. Chruszczwski, P. (ed.).
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution › peer-review
2008
- PublishedInvulnerable domains in Romance-Germanic bilingualism.
Tamburelli, M., 1 Jan 2008, In: Arena Romanistica. 1, p. 144-173
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review - PublishedThe role of paradigm formation in lexical acquisition: towards a unifed account of overgeneralization and transfer effects.
Tamburelli, M., 1 Jul 2008, In: Language Acquisition. 15, 3, p. 130-182
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
2007
- PublishedLexical Acquisition and Simultaneous Bilingualism
Tamburelli, M., 2007, Two or More Languages: proceedings of the 9th Nordic Conference on Bilingualism, University of Joensuu, Finland. Nikolaev, A. (ed.). Vol. 41.
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution › peer-review
2006
- PublishedParadigms, Acquisition and Bilingualism
Tamburelli, M., 2006, Proceedings of the Fourth Cambridge Post-Graduate Conference in Language Research.
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution › peer-review - PublishedRemarks on Richness
Tamburelli, M., 2006, UCL Working Paper Linguistics, 18.
Research output: Contribution to specialist publication › Article
2005
- PublishedThe Importance of Paradigm Formation in Bilingual Acquisition: evidence from Italian.
Tamburelli, M., 2005, UCL Working Paper Linguistics, 17.
Research output: Contribution to specialist publication › Article
Activities
2022
- 'Attitudes reversed: how Ausbau-centric approaches hinder the maintenance of linguistic diversity and why we must rediscover the role of Abstand relations
12 Sep 2022
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Language Contestation as a Route to Endangerment
19 Jun 2022
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Contested Languages: Challenges and opportunities
invited talk at the Laz Institute, Istanbul, Turkey.
17 May 2022
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker)
2021
- Myth busters: Online platforms and emerging ideological shift among Lombard speakers
Plenary talk at the conference "New Contexts for the Use of Minoritized Languages", University of Zadar, Croatia.
27 May 2021
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Hidden multilingualism: measuring linguistic diversity in Europe
Invited talk at the Center for languages and Literature, Lund University, Sweden.
14 May 2021
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker)
2020
- Regional Language Maintenance and the Importance of Digital Domains
Invited talk at the The Alfried Krupp Institute for Advanced Study, University of Greifswald, Germany.
11 Dec 2020
Links:
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker)
2019
- An introduction to language planning: present & future
An introduction to language planning concepts, ideas and activities for members of a non-profit organisation working towards the recognition, maintenance and development of the Venetan language, which is currently denied recognition by the Italian government.
31 Mar 2019
Links:
Activity: Consultancy (Consultant) - Bilingualism and local communities.
Popularisation event.
Audience: general public, 3rd sector organisations, local policy makers.
Content: An overview of how the benefits of bilingualism apply to local communities.
30 Mar 2019
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Regional Bilingualism: implementing models in Europe
Popularisation event.
Audience: secondary school pupils.
Content: An overview of how regional bilingualism is implemented across Europe.
30 Mar 2019
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Bilingual advantage and home language use: the case of minority languages
Talk given at the 2019 Multilingual Learning Conference
1 Mar 2019
Links:
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker)
2018
- The complexities of phonological complexity: evidence from bilingualism
Invited talk at the Centre for Literacy and Multilingualism, University of Reading.
28 Nov 2018
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Wales at the forefront: how the Welsh experience is shaping regional bilingualism in Italy.
Knowledge Exchange event, reporting on how experiences from Welsh language policy are informing developments in Lombardy and in Italy more broadly.
21 Jun 2018
Activity: Oral presentation (Speaker) - Lombard Language: regional languages in modern Europe
Awareness raising event for the general public. Discussing the current position of Lombard and comparing it to more successful regional language situations in Europe.
23 May 2018
Activity: Types of Public engagement and outreach - Public lecture/debate/seminar (Speaker) - Regional Languages and Bilingualism
Awareness raising event for the general public. Discussing the current position of regional languages in Italy and the advantages that bilingualism could bring.
23 May 2018
Activity: Types of Public engagement and outreach - Public lecture/debate/seminar (Speaker) - Lombard Language: regional languages in modern Europe
Awareness raising event for the general public. Discussing the current position of Lombard and comparing it to more successful regional language situations in Europe.
20 May 2018
Activity: Types of Public engagement and outreach - Public lecture/debate/seminar (Speaker) - Reversing the history of Lombard
Awareness raising event (research impact)
May 2018
Activity: Types of Public engagement and outreach - Schools engagement (Speaker) - Lombard Language: regional languages in Modern Europe
Awareness raising event for the general public. Discussing the current position of Lombard and comparing it to more successful regional language situations in Europe.
19 Apr 2018
Activity: Types of Public engagement and outreach - Public lecture/debate/seminar (Speaker) - Contested Languages FAQ
co-authored with Mauro Tosco, University of Turin
2018
Activity: Oral presentation (Speaker) - Contested Languages in the Old World 3
2018
Activity: Participation in workshop, seminar, course (Organiser)
2017
- Contested Languages: between scientific definition and political recognition
2017
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Finding languages: from an old problem to a modern challenge
Plenary address
2017
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Issues in Romance classification: the case of Gallo-Italic
Cambridge Romance Linguistics Seminars, University of Cambridge.
2017
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Mother-tongue use in the Classroom
Keynote address
2017
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Multilingual Classrooms and Regional Languages: Practices and Approaches for the Maintenance of Linguistic Diversity
2017
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Speaking Lombard: on language and identity ("Parlare lombardo per riscoprire chi siamo")
Linked to the impact case study "Reversing the history of Lombard: An Impact Case Study" (linked to the IAA project “Supporting maintenance, use, and development of newly recognised regional languages”).
2017
Activity: Types of Public engagement and outreach - Public lecture/debate/seminar (Contributor) - The hidden multilingualism of Italy: issues and challenges
Talk organised by the Cambridge Group for Endangered Languages and Cultures (CELC), University of Cambridge.
2017
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - The persistence of linguistic discrimination in Italy: causes, effects, and potential solutions.
2017
Activity: Oral presentation (Speaker)
2016
- Contested Languages and the Denial of Linguistic Rights in the 21st Century
2016
Activity: Oral presentation (Speaker) - Contested Languages in the Old World 2
2016
Activity: Participation in workshop, seminar, course (Organiser) - External Examiner
Evaluating undergraduate programmes in Linguistics, University of Brighton.
2016 – 2020
Activity: Examination (Examiner) - International Conference on Bilingualism in Education, Bangor University
2016
Activity: Participation in conference (Participant)
2015
- Linguistic advisor
to the Regional Government of Lombardy (Italy). Advising on the development of language maintenance policy and activities, including the drafting of new laws on cultural and linguistic heritage and providing support in popularisation meetings and events. This activity is linked to the Impact Case Study “Reversing the history of Lombard”.
18 Oct 2015 →
Activity: Consultancy (Consultant) - Bilingual acquisition of phonological structure: issues and challenges
2015
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Finding Languages: From Old Linguistic Problems to Modern Challenges
2015
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker) - Languages and dialects in Italy: a global perspective
2015
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker)
2014
- Intelligibility rates and regional bilingualism in Europe
2014
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker)
2013
- Committee for Philology of the Polish Academy of Sciences. (External organisation)
Member of the Committee
6 Jun 2013 →
Activity: Membership of committee (Chair) - CRASSH conference on Language Endangerment
2013
Activity: Participation in conference (Speaker) - Contested Languages in the Old World
This international conference will bring together linguists, political scientists, legal experts, writers, activists and other scholars working on the current status and future prospects of such ‘contested’ languages, as well as on issues of corpus and status planning and how these impact on both the speaker communities and the academic world.
2013
Activity: Participation in workshop, seminar, course (Organiser) - Identifying regional bilingualism in modern Europe: the role of intelligibility rates.
2013
Activity: Invited talk (Speaker)
Projects
-
01/08/2021 – 31/01/2025 (Active)
-
Santander Scholarship donation
01/04/2012 – 30/09/2015 (Finished)
Other Information
Recent presentations
- Tamburelli, M. (2016) “Contested Languages and the Denial of Linguistic Rights in the 21st Century”. Oral presentation at CLOW #2 (Contested Languages in the Old World), University of Turin, Italy
- Alomeri, H, Sanoudaki, E., Tamburelli M., Kotzoglou, G. (2016) “Diglossia and EFL: The case of Arabic prepositions” Oral presentation at the Bangor International Conference on Bilingualism in Education, Bangor University, Bangor, UK.
- Tamburelli, M. (2015) “Languages and dialects in Italy: a global perspective ”. Invited talk at the British Academy event "Language in Italy in the 21st Century", London (November 2015).
- Tamburelli, M (2015) "Bilingual acquisition of phonological structure: issues and challenges". Invited talk at the UCL Laboratory for Language and Speech Diversions, London (November 2015).
- Tamburelli, M. (2015) “Finding Languages: From Old Linguistic Problems to Modern Challenges”. Invited talk at the Centre for Language and Linguistic Studies, University of Kent.
- Tamburelli, M. (2014) “Intelligibility rates and regional bilingualism in Europe”. Invited talk at the Department of English, Liverpool Hope University.
- Tamburelli, M. (2013). "Finding Languages: Can linguistic criteria inform language policy?" Oral presentation at the CRASSH conference on Language Endangerment: Language Policy and Planning, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
- Tamburelli, M. (2013) “Identifying regional bilingualism in modern Europe: the role of intelligibility rates”. Invited talk at the Department of Applied Linguistics, University of Groningen.
- Tamburelli, M. & L. Brasca (2013). “Writing in a contested language: Issues & Challenges.” Oral presentation at the CLOW conference on Contested Languages, Bangor University, Bangor, Wales, UK.
- Sanoudaki, E., M. Tamburelli, G. Jones, & M. Sowinska (2012). “Consonant cluster puzzles: evidence from Polish-English bilingual acquisition”. Oral presentation at the 20th Manchester Phonology Meeting, Manchester, UK.
- Tamburelli, M., E. Sanoudaki, G. Jones, & M. Sowinska (2012). “Acceleration in the bilingual acquisition of consonant clusters: evidence from Polish-English bilingual children”. Oral presentation at the conference 'Bilingual and Multilingual Interaction', Bangor, UK.
- Tamburelli, M. (2011) “Lesser languages in modern Europe: the case of Italy”. Invited talk at the Institute for the Galician Language, University of Santiago de Compostela.
Invited talks
- Tamburelli, M. (2017) “Finding languages: from an old problem to a modern challenge.” Plenary address at UPCEL Language in Society, 20-22 September 2017, University of Madrid, Spain.
- Tamburelli, M. (2017) “Mother-tongue use in the Classroom”. Invited talk at the UWC English Language Learning Support Conference, 21-23 June 2017, St Donat's, UK.
- Tamburelli, M. (2017) “Multilingual Classrooms and Regional Languages: Practices and Approaches for the Maintenance of Linguistic Diversity". Invited talk at the ESL and Mother Tongue Conference, Copenhagen, Denmark (March 2017).
- Tamburelli, M. (2017) “Contested Languages: between scientific definition and political recognition.” Invited talk at CILVE1 (First International Conference on the Venetan Language), Padua, Italy (February 2017).
- Tamburelli, M. (2017) ‘The hidden multilingualism of Italy: issues and challenges’ Invited talk at ‘Endangered and Minority Languages of Italy’, Cambridge Group for Endangered Languages and Cultures (CELC), University of Cambridge, UK (January 2017).
- Tamburelli, M. (2017) “Issues in Romance classification: the case of Gallo-Italic” Invited talk at the Cambridge Romance Linguistics Seminars, University of Cambridge, UK (January 2017).