University research themes
At York, researchers collaborate across the University's seven interdisciplinary research themes to address the great scientific, social and environmental challenges of our times.
Language is part of one's identity, and language connects everyone. We use language to describe how we feel, and we evaluate others based on their language. We study all these aspects of language and its use.
Our department has particularly strong partnerships within three themes: Culture and Communication, Health and Wellbeing and Justice and Equality.
Culture and Communication
We study aspects of society, of nations, and of different cultures and cultural distinctions, through the forms of language, the use of language, and the global development of language.
Featured research
- Accent and Identity on the Scottish/English Border (AISEB)
- Multicultural London English
- Speech analysis to identify and eliminate crime suspects
- Intonational Variation in Arabic
- Combining Gender and Classifiers in Natural Language
- Meeting Darwin's last challenge: toward a global tree of human languages and genes
Health and Wellbeing
We apply our knowledge of the complexities of language and communication to promote greater personal and social wellbeing.
Featured research
Justice and Equality
The language we speak and the accent we have affects how others perceive us: these are important factors in our access to society, and in some cases, to justice.