Elliott Moreton

Elliott Moreton is a Professor in the Department of Linguistics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He serves as the Director of Graduate Admissions (since 2005) and Director of Graduate Studies (since 2009) for the linguistics department. Dr. Moreton teaches a wide range of undergraduate and graduate courses including Phonology, Linguistic Phonetics, Language Evolution, and Textual Data Analysis with R.

Dr. Moreton's research focuses on phonology, phonetics, and the cognitive processes underlying language learning and perception. His work particularly examines how speakers learn and process phonological patterns, with emphasis on implicit versus explicit learning mechanisms, phonotactic constraints, and the interface between phonology and other linguistic domains. He has made significant contributions to understanding English diphthong raising phenomena across different dialects, especially in Southern American English.

His laboratory work involves experimental phonetics and laboratory phonology, utilizing the department's soundproof chamber in Dey Hall. Dr. Moreton has developed computational models of phonological learning and has created educational software tools like 'Baton,' which transforms ordinary computers into functional phonetics laboratories. His research methodology combines experimental work, computational modeling, and theoretical analysis.

Dr. Moreton has mentored numerous undergraduate honors students and supervised over twenty graduate theses and dissertations at UNC-Chapel Hill. His students have pursued research on diverse topics including Turkish vowel harmony, Sgaw Karen phonology, Mandarin tone acquisition, and phonological aspects of language change. His advising spans both theoretical and experimental approaches to linguistic research.