The Department of Linguistics and English Language is delighted to announce that Professor Jason Rothman joined Lancaster University on September 1, 2024.

Professor Rothman is one of the world’s leading researchers in the scientific study of bilingualism and multilingualism. His work employs a wide range of behavioural and neuroimaging methods to investigate how children and adults acquire and process languages across the lifespan as well as how our cognitive systems and the very structure and functions of the brain adapt to meet the demands of managing more than one language in a single mind. A fellow of the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters, Professor Rothman is a pioneering contributor to the contemporary theoretical landscape of multilingualism research and the language sciences more broadly.

Professor Rothman said: “It is truly an honour for me to join this globally leading research environment for language sciences. Together with colleagues here at LU, our goal is to lead Lancaster and the Northwest more generally into its rightful place as an internationally leading epicentre for cutting edge research on the cognitive science of multilingualism.”

The Department of Linguistics and English Language is currently ranked 3rd for Linguistics in the 2024 QS World University Rankings and 2nd in the UK for Linguistics research (REF2021). It is a dynamic community of scholars producing world-leading insights across a wide spectrum of research and impact activities. With 38 academics, it has the size and diversity to foster a vibrant research culture that stimulates research synergies.

Professor Luke Harding, the Head of the Department of Linguistics and English Language added: “Professor Rothman’s arrival in the Department of Linguistics and English Language is a cause for great excitement. His planned programme of research perfectly complements the renowned expertise of other colleagues and paves the way for Lancaster to become a world-leading centre for the study of bilingualism and multilingualism.”