Joseph Chenard

PhD Student
joseph.chenard@mail.utoronto.ca

Fields of Study

  • Language and Literature

Areas of Interest

  • Comparative Semitics
  • Historical Linguistics
  • Hebrew Bible

Biography

Joseph is a PhD student interested in Comparative Semitics and the linguistic study of ANE languages. Originally planning to specialize in Indo-European linguistics, he decided to shift towards Semitics after taking an introductory course on Biblical Hebrew. His research is currently focused on the grammar of the ancient Aksumite inscriptions. Joseph is a recipient of a SSHRC doctoral fellowship and was a RA for a research project dealing with inheritance and inequality in first millennium B.C.E. Babylonia.

Education

  • M.A. in Semitics, University of Toronto (2023)
  • Honours B.A. in Linguistics, Western University (2020)

Current Supervisor(s)

Robert D. Holmstedt

Publications

  • “A Composite Giant – A Confusion of Myths in a Syriac Historical Chronical.” Journal of the Canadian Society for Syriac Studies 24-25 (2025), 31-49.

Teaching Experience

  • Course Instructor: NML380 - Introduction to Gǝʿǝz (Classical Ethiopic) (2025)
  • Teaching Assistant: NML250 - Introductory Biblical Hebrew (2025)
  • Teaching Assistant: NMC104 - The Biblical World (2024)