M.T. de Vos (Machteld) MPhil

Machteld de Vos started her PhD project 'Spread the new(s)! Understanding standardization of Dutch through 17th-century newspapers' in January 2020, at both Radboud University and the Dutch Language Institute, under the supervision of prof. dr. Nicoline van der Sijs and prof. dr. Helen de Hoop. Within this project, Machteld investigates what (socio)linguistic factors are decisive in the functional implementation of a standard language, hypothesizing that newspapers played a crucial role in the expansion of the Dutch standard language, as the first mass medium read by all social classes.

Machteld studied Dutch language and culture (BA) and Philosophy (BA) at the University of Amsterdam and at University College Dublin (through an Erasmus exchange), and received a HSP Talent Scholarship for a research master in European Literature and Culture (MPhil) at the University of Cambridge. After her graduation, she worked as a PR officer and editor at various publishing houses (Wereldbibliotheek, Bas Lubberhuizen, Nieuw Amsterdam, Van Gennep) and as a researcher and projectmanager in market research (Motivaction).