Hyter to study and compare languages of African origin

Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology Professor Yvette Hyter’s spring 2016 sabbatical leave project will focus on the relationship between two languages of African origin, Wolof and African American English. This topic emerged over the 12 summers that Hyter has worked and studied in Senegal, West Africa.

Wolof plays an important role in Senegal as the lingua franca or common language between speakers whose first languages are not the same. It also plays a significant connecting role in the areas of art, culture, economics and politics. African American English is a language variation spoken in the United States, primarily, but not only, by persons of African descent. Like Wolof, African American English has cultural and political importance in the U.S., serving as a marker of identity for its speakers.

Hyter’s primary goals for the sabbatical are to increase her knowledge about and strengthen her speaking, writing, and reading skills in using French, Senegal’s "official" language, and Wolof, the lingua franca. Among the objectives she has developed to enable the accomplishment of these goals is a collaboration with the top linguist at the University of Cheikh Anta Diop in Dakar, Senegal to study Wolof and to prepare a manuscript explaining the comparative study between the structure, content and functions of Wolof and African American English.

Achievement of her sabbatical goals and objectives will contribute to Hyter’s overall research program and enhance her local and global teaching and research activities. It is her intention that this sabbatical will also send a clear message to potential students that WMU values global engagement in a manner that is sustainable and that collaborates with members of the host communities in which faculty are involved.