Projects

Mapping Heritage Language Structure Through Sociolinguistic Cues: A Case Study of Swiss Tamil - a collaborative research project with Prof. Anita Auer, University of Lausanne, Switzerland. Funded by Indian Council of Social Science Research and Swiss National Science Foundation. In the field of heritage linguistics, a prominent theory known as the "simplification hypothesis" posits that the linguistic structure of heritage languages, or minority languages in societies where language acquisition occurs primarily at home during childhood, is less complex and more straightforward than the same language spoken by native communities in their country of origin. By conducting a methodical linguistic comparison between Swiss Tamil and Tamil spoken in southern India and northern Sri Lanka, the study aims to examine the validity of this hypothesis from a cross-linguistic perspective.

Grammar and diversity among the indigenous tribal communities of India: Funded by Indian Insitiute of Technology Jodhpur as part of the Research Initiation Grant. India’s demography and social geography are multilingual. Apart from the major languages included in the 8th schedule of the constitution, India has as many different endangered, minority, and tribal languages. Giving importance to minority communities’ languages is one way to preserve the diversity and richness of different cultures.The proposed study aims to systematically elicit and document the grammatical patterns of these communities, providing reference points and resource material for policymaking and implementation.