Tihomir Rangelov

Tihomir Rangelov is a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Linguistic and Cultural Evolution at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany. He is a member of the Comparative Oceanic Linguistics (CoOL) group. His work focuses on language documentation, description, and revitalization of endangered Oceanic languages, particularly Ahamb spoken in Vanuatu. His research integrates historical linguistics, phonetics, and typology to explore sound systems and grammatical structures.

• Education:
  • PhD in Linguistics (2020), University of Waikato, New Zealand (Thesis: A Grammar of Ahamb)
  • MA in Computational Linguistics (2013), University of Iceland/Reykjavík
  • BA in Icelandic Studies (2008), University of Iceland
  • MA in Scandinavian Studies (2007), Sofia University

Research Interests

Rangelov’s research emphasizes:

• Documenting endangered languages of Vanuatu, especially Ahamb
• Phonetic analysis of rare sounds like prenasalized bilabial trills
• Historical linguistics and Oceanic language phylogeny
• Community-driven language revitalization strategies

Publications Trends

His articles explore:

• Unusual phonetic phenomena (e.g., bilabial trills)
• Grammatical structures in Austronesian languages
• Technological tools for language maintenance
• Comparative methods in Oceanic linguistics

Advising & Grants

Rangelov has led fieldwork projects in Vanuatu and participated in international conferences. His work is supported by the Max Planck Society and collaborative grants with institutions like the University of Waikato.

Lab/Team

Active member of the CoOL group, focusing on comparative analyses of Oceanic languages and their typological features.