Jian Cui

PhD Candidate, Harvard Linguistics

Email: jiancui@fas.harvard.edu

CV: here

[More about me]

Research interests:

• Phonology
• Tonology
• Morphology
• Morphology-phonology interface
• Language acquisition [Tonal acquisition]
• Syntax [Voice and argument structure]

Academic history

• (2022-now) Ph.D. in Linguistics, Harvard University
• (2020-2022) MPhil. in Linguistics, Philology and Phonetics, University of Oxford
• (2015-2019) B.A., Southwest University (Major in English)

Affliations:

• Harvard SnedekerLab
• Harvard WOLFLab
• Harvard PhonLab

Publications

• Cui, J & Rabinovitch, J. "Two Voices Calling Out as One: A Split Voice Analysis of Javanese Passives". Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of LSA 2024.
• Saha, A, Sağ, Y, Cui, J & Davidson, K. “Mandarin Demonstratives as Strong Definites”. Proceedings of Semantics and Linguistic Theory (SALT) 34.

Projects:

• Learnability in Tone-segment Asymmetry
  [The following presentations report incremental stages of this research project]
  • [Upcoming] (Nov 2025) Exploring Tone–Segment Asymmetry in Phonological Counting: Evidence from a Learnability Study
    The 50th Annual Boston University Conference on Language Development (BUCLD 50). Poster.
  • [Upcoming] (Sept 2025) Investigating the Tone-Segment Asymmetry in Phonological Counting: A Learnability Experiment
    The Annual Meeting on Phonology (AMP) 2025. Talk.
  • (April 2025) Investigating the Tone-Segment Asymmetry in Phonological Counting: A Learnability Experiment
    PhPhoNE @ MIT. Talk.
• Scalar Tone Shift in Guébie
  • (May 2025) Scalar Tone Shift as Downstep: A Reanalysis of Guébie
    The 31th Manchester Phonology Meeting (MfM). Talk. With Nik Rolle.
• Focus on Demonstratives: Experiments in Mandarin Chinese
  [Collaborative project with Ankana Saha, Yağmur Sağ, and Prof. Kathryn Davidson]
  • (June 2024) Mandarin Demonstratives as Strong Definites: An Experimental Investigation
    Experiments in Linguistic Meaning (ELM) 2024. Talk.
  • (April 2024) Mandarin Demonstratives as Strong Definites
    The 34th meeting of Semantics and Linguistic Theory (SALT 34). Poster.
• Morpho-syntax of Javanese passives
  [The following presentations report incremental stages of this research project]
  • (Jan 2024) Two Voices Calling Out as One: A Split Voice Analysis of Javanese Passives
    LSA Annual Meeting 2024. Talk. With Jack Rabinovitch.
  • (Oct 2023) Indices in the Voice Domain: A Unified Analysis of Javanese Passives
    30th Meeting of the Austronesian Formal Linguistics Association (AFLA). Talk. With Jack Rabinovitch.
• Front-back Asymmetry in Bantu Vowel Harmony
  • (Oct 2023) Front-back Asymmetry in Bantu Vowel Harmony: An Instance of Coronal Asymmetry
    MorrisHalle@100. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Poster.
  • (May 2023) Front-back Asymmetry in Bantu Vowel Harmony: Representations and Constraints
    The 30th Manchester Phonology Meeting (MfM). Talk.

Latest update: September 2025