معرفی
Overview
Pocholo Umbal is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Linguistics at the University of Toronto, located on the Downtown Toronto (St. George) campus. His research focuses on sociolinguistics, particularly language variation and change in heritage language communities and multilingual contexts. He specializes in sociophonetic analysis of Tagalog and Canadian English, with additional interests in linguistics pedagogy and equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) initiatives in academia.
Education
- PhD in Linguistics, University of Toronto
- MA in Linguistics, Simon Fraser University
- BSc in Cell Biology and Linguistics, Simon Fraser University
Research Interests
Dr. Umbal investigates bilingual language contact phenomena, focusing on phonetic variation in Heritage Tagalog and Canadian English ethnolects. His work explores how sociocultural factors influence linguistic behavior, particularly among Asian North American communities. He collaborates with scholars like Dr. Andrew Cheng and Dr. Nathan Sanders on projects addressing EDI in linguistics education, developing tools like the Diverse Names Database to promote inclusive teaching practices.
Collaborations
He participates in interdisciplinary teams studying Asian North American English variation and co-leads efforts to reform linguistics teaching through equity-centered frameworks. His research also addresses gender and language norms, challenging traditional linguistic prescriptivism.
