Nicholas J. Figueroa

Dr. Nicholas J. Figueroa joined the Department of Latin American and Iberian Cultures as a Lecturer of Spanish in 2023. He received his Ph.D. in Spanish Linguistics from the State University of New York at Albany in 2017. Before beginning his journey with Columbia University, Dr. Figueroa taught various Spanish language and linguistic courses at Princeton University.  He has educated and coordinated numerous undergraduate and graduate-level Spanish language courses for diverse learners at differing competency levels within many universities and academic institutions.

His research focused on the U.S. Caribbean Heritage Spanish Speakers’ variable pronunciation of the liquid consonant /ɾ/ in the implosive position. He specializes in Spanish phonology and phonetics. His research/teaching interests consist of Spanish Linguistics with a concentration in Caribbean Phonology/Phonetics, Caribbean Heritage Studies, Dialectology, Contact Linguistics, Bilingualism, and Latin American/Caribbean Histories and Studies.