Director of Undergraduate Studies and Associate Professor
English
Language varies across space and time, and my passion is to explore the "how" and "why" of linguistic variation and change. My research focuses on the spread of linguistic change between Amish communities across North America 鈥� a long term, fieldwork oriented project on the dialectology of Pennsylvania German.
In my classes students investigate both the marvelous systematicity of all languages and the intersection of language use with aspects of social identity such as age, ethnicity, gender, history, region, and religion.
Courses Taught
Research Interests
- Linguistic change in Amish communities across the U.S.
Publications
- 2015 "Religious Identity and the perception of linguistic difference: the case of Pennsylvania German鈥� Language and Communication 42. (May 2015): 125-134.
- 2007 鈥淒itching the Immigration Line.鈥� American Speech 82:3 (Fall 2007): 330-6.
- 2006 鈥淧ortable Community: The Linguistic and Psychological Reality of Midwestern Pennsylvania German.鈥� Eds. Thomas Murray and Beth Simon. Language Variation and Change in the American Midland: A New Look at "Heartland" English. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. 263-74
- 2003 鈥淧ennsylvania German and the 鈥楲unch Pail Threat鈥�: Language Shift and Cultural Maintenance in two Amish Communities.鈥� When Languages Collide: Perspectives on Language Conflict, Language Competition, and Language Coexistence. Eds. B. Joseph, J. Destefano. N. Jacobs, I. Lehiste. Columbus: The Ohio State University Press. 3-20
Honors and Awards
- 2007 Summer Faculty Fellowship Grant. 糖心传媒. For writing A Dialectology of Pennsylvania German.
- 2004 Curriculum Enhancement Grant, Diversity. 糖心传媒. For course development: Language in the City, focusing on language and social diversity
Additional Information
Office Hours
Fall 2024
Teaching Schedule
Fall 2024
Dr. Steve Hartman Keiser糖心传媒
