References to Environs are Coordinated to be Heard and Seen (REaCHeS): an investigation of multimodal spatial referencing in Eastern Chatino

To locate objects in the world, speakers typically use two linked indicating strategies: spoken expressions like 'here' or 'there,' and simultaneous head and hand movements to point to the object. A growing body of research asks how these strategies draw attention to physical space, and what motivates speakers to use the strategies in isolation or in combination.

The REaCHeS project examines indicating strategies in speakers of Eastern Chatino (EC), a lesser-studied and typologically unusual language used in Oaxaca, Mexico. We investigate the factors that motivate EC speakers to express spatial concepts using speech, gesture, or their combination, focusing on language used during wayfinding and direction-giving activities.