Professor Dr. Elena Benedicto

Biography

Professor Benedicto, with a Ph.D. in Linguistics from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and a Ph.D. in Classics from the University of Barcelona, specializes in formal theoretical linguistics, particularly the syntax-syntax-semantics interface. She directs the Indigenous Endangered Languages Lab at Purdue University, focusing on research related to indigenous, endangered minority languages, sign languages, and language acquisition. Her research encompasses critical issues in the framework of generative grammar and explores morpho-syntactic phenomena and their correlation with syntactic architecture across diverse languages. Notable projects include studies on the Mayangna language and various sign languages, as well as work on bare nouns in Catalan and English. As a member of the Linguistics Program, she emphasizes the importance of internationalization for undergraduate students, actively integrating research projects into her courses on Syntax and Native American languages. Additionally, she collaborates with the Latino Latin American Program and the Women's, Gender, Sexuality Program at Purdue, fostering an interdisciplinary approach to linguistics education.

Research Interests