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Joseph Bauman

Joseph Bauman
Teaching Professor of Spanish
Director of Undergraduate Studies

Biography

I completed my undergraduate education right here at Penn State, earning a B.A. in Integrative Arts and a B.A. in Spanish and then worked as a goldsmith for several years before returning to earn my Ph.D. in Spanish Linguistics in 2013. After teaching numerous courses as a graduate student, I took a position as a lecturer to explore my growing passion for teaching.

I now teach a wide range of courses in the Spanish Department and the Program in Linguistics, including Spanish grammar, phonology, and the history of Spanish. My research interests include language variation and historical language change, especially in the evolution of Spanish. I am fascinated by the gradual process of linguistic change, as it illustrates how language is not static; rather it is constantly evolving. In addition, as the Director of Undergraduate Studies for Spanish, I advise students on their course plans and help to prepare Spanish students to study abroad.

Education

Ph.D., Spanish Linguistics, Penn Stae

Courses Regularly Taught

300 Level

3 Credits

Spring 2026 Semester

SPAN 314 Spanish Sounds
This course covers Spanish phonetics and phonology. In SPAN 314, we will discuss the inventory of consonants and vowels in Spanish, how they are articulated, and the phonological contexts in which they appear. Time will be spent on overcoming common pronunciation challenges faced by English-speaking learners of Spanish. We will also consider various dialects of Spanish with respect to how they differ in their pronunciation and the particular sounds that make them distinct.

Class Times

Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays from 2:30 p.m.-3:20 p.m.


Prerequisite

SPAN 215


400 Level

3 Credits

Spring 2026 Semester

SPAN 497-001 Living, breathing language
There are more than 7,000 languages spoken in the world today. How did human language first develop and where did all those different languages come from? How are they all different? How are they similar? What happens when they die? What happens when a language like Spanish comes into contact with other varieties? This course will explore linguistic diversity and historical change through the lens of evolutionary biology. Using examples from Spanish and recent scientific evidence, we will learn how language can be metaphorically characterized as a living, growing, changing organism.

Class Times

Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays from 12:20 p.m.-1:10 p.m.