Hello! My name is Marina, and I use they/them pronouns.
My main area of linguistic interest is sociolinguistics, particularly lavender linguistics and CMC, which I hope to pursue at doctoral level. In the past I have done work on creole linguistics, language and gender, and language policy. My MA thesis focussed specifically on decreolisation in Martinican Creole, and whether speakers had a perceptual preference for forms adopted into the language from French.
Outside of sociolinguistics, I am also interested in multimodality, as well as doing field work on understudied languages – in addition to the creole mentioned above, I have also done work on Fijian. I have a strong background in theoretical linguistics, and am interested in pragmatics. This especially includes relevance theory, and the debate around whether words have concepts.
When I am not doing linguistics, I enjoy watching and practising theatre (whether on the stage or back of house), reading modern literature, writing short stories and plays, making cocktails, and travelling.
Here is a copy of my CV. Please scroll down to find highlights of my work, as well as a way of contacting me.
Queen Mary, University of London | September 2015 – September 2017
MA Linguistics, Distinction
University College London | September 2010 – June 2014
BA Linguistics (International Programme), First Class Honours
Included an exchange year at Eberhard Karls University Tübingen, Germany
If you would like to send me an email, you can do so on marina.merryweather@ucl.ac.uk
I am always looking for like-minded linguists to add to my network!