My research is primarily in syntax, with an empirical focus on the so-called Altaic languages. Across my syntactic projects, I investigate what morphological case reveals about underlying syntactic structure and how case marking interacts with other grammatical dependencies.

I also occasionally work on semantics, with particular interests in evidentiality, modality, and aspect.

See the brief summaries below to learn more about my research projects.

* = co-first authors

Ellipsis

I investigate sluicing-like constructions in Turkish, Khalkha Mongolian, and Korean. My work uses case (dis)connectivity under ellipsis to probe the interaction between ellipsis licensing, syntactic identity, and case assignment.

Nominalizations

My research on nominalizations investigates the relationship between clausal structure and case assignment. I argue that genitive case arises through distinct mechanisms across nominalization types in Turkish: configurational case assignment in full-clausal nominalizations and local structural licensing in partially clausal ones. Evidence comes from their differing nominal properties and case connectivity under sluicing.

Copular Clauses

I investigate the syntax of copular constructions in Turkish, particularly pseudo-clefts. My work examines the structure of cleft clauses, their relationship to free and light-headed relative clauses, and the restrictions governing the distribution of cleft pivots.

Evidentiality, Modality, and Aspect

I explore the interaction between aspect/modal markers and evidentiality in Turkish. Building on my second qualifying paper, this ongoing project examines the evidential restrictions associated with the aorist and how they distinguish it from the imperfective. Previously, I have worked on the emergence of perfect-like interpretations through temporal modification in Turkish.