Rolf Piene Halvorsen

Rolf Piene Halvorsen is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Language and Literature within the Faculty of Humanities at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). His research focuses on linguistics, Norwegian Sign Language, visual anthropology, and language ecology. He has contributed to studies on language acquisition in hearing-impaired populations, cross-sensory communication in youth culture, and the sociolinguistic dimensions of sign languages.

Key publications include analyses of iconicity in Norwegian Sign Language and investigations into how language knowledge impacts educational opportunities for deaf children. Halvorsen has also published on theater and cultural documentation through reports on Teater Manu, a Norwegian theater company.

His teaching includes courses on language and communication (TEGN1106) and a bachelor’s thesis in Norwegian Sign Language (TEGN2010). He has presented at academic conferences such as the NORKOG Cognitive Summer Seminar (2014) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Sprachwissenschaft (2011), addressing topics like gesture lexicalization and tactile communication.