Dr Rodrigo Hernaiz Gomez

I am a Lecturer in Languages and Linguistics at The Open University and a Fellow of the HE Academy.

My primary interest lies in the world's linguistic diversity and the dynamics of language evolution across time and space. This overarching area of study has led me to focus on various subdisciplines, particularly historical (socio-)linguistics, typology and language documentation, while maintaining a strong interest in relevant insights from fields beyond linguistics.

Complementing and informing such broad questions, I am interested in specific in-depth studies analysing the complex processes behind lingusitic diversity in synchronic and diachronic perspectives. To this end, I am enaged in research emcompassing both ancient and present-day linguistic landscapes, with a particular focus on the long-documented Akkadian language and the fascinating diversity of languages spoken in New Guinea.

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-7672-4893 

Academic and professional biography

My first degree was in Humanities (focus on history and related subjects, from (paleo)anthropology to archaeology) at the University of Burgos (Spain). I then went on to specialize with a Licenciatura in Linguistics (Autónoma University of Madrid, Spain).

Additionally, I have pursued an MA in Ancient Languages and a Master in Assyriology (University of Barcelona, Spain), as well as a Certificate of Higher Education in Data Analysis (The Open University, UK).

After completing my degree in linguistics, I took advanced postgraduate courses on linguistic typology and on historical sociolinguistics, before completing my PhD at the Philipps-University Marburg (Germany).

Before joining the OU, I worked as researcher at the Faculty of Philology of the University of Barcelona (Spain), and taught language courses at the Philipps-University Marburg (Germany) and the University of Bedfordshire (UK).​

Research biography

My PhD dissertation, Studies on linguistic and orthographic variation in Old Babylonian letters, examined data from one of the longest-documented languages: Akkadian. Using quantitative and historical-sociolinguistic methods, I analysed variation in ACCOB (Annotated Corpus of Correspondence in Old Babylonian), a corpus comprising ca.1800 letters that I compiled and annotated for bespoke grammatical features and extralinguistic metadata.

I have carried out cross-linguistic comparative studies on clausal complementation, grammaticalisation and historical morphosyntax.

From a broader perspective, I am interested in language diversification and insights from phylogenetic analyses and 'genetic' classifications. At a more focused level, I am conducting a project to document, preserve and describe Thuntai, a lesser-described language of the Yam family spoken by a few hundred speakers in a highly multilingual and linguistically diverse region of Papua New Guinea.

Teaching interests

Linguistic diversity, language variation and change, typology and grammatical description.

At the Open University, I have worked in the production of the following courses/modules:

Impact and engagement

Academic consultant for the BBC Ideas video "Can saving languages save nature?" (Can saving languages save nature? - BBC Ideas, released 17 April 2023).

Academic consultant for the BBC Ideas video "The ancient secrets revealed by deciphered tablets" (The ancient secrets revealed by deciphered tablets - BBC Ideas, released 23 December 2021).

International links

Member of the Societas Linguistica Europaea (The Linguistic Society of Europe).

Member of the International Association of Assyriology.

Member of the Philological Society (PhilSoc).

Member of Abralin (Brazilian Linguistics Association).