Gyula Zsombok
Assistant Professor of French & Francophone Studies

- Office
- Le Chateau 103
- Tel
- (802) 443-3044
- gzsombok@middlebury.edu
- Office Hours
- Fall 2025: Mondays 2:15-3:15 pm; Tuesdays 9:00 am-11:00 am and by appointment
Gyula Zsombok joined Middlebury College in 2020 as an Assistant Professor in French and Francophone Studies. He earned his Ph.D. in French Linguistics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Professor Zsombok’s research explores the interplay of language ideologies and authority in French, particularly within the contexts of France and Québec. He focuses on the social dynamics of top-down language interventions, examining how these efforts influence borrowings, lexical innovation, and inclusive writing. His research methods employ computational and statistical analysis of diverse textual data, including social media, newspaper articles, survey responses, web-scraped content, and more.
In English, his name is approximately pronounced as “JOO-lah ZHOM-bok” or IPA /’dʒula ‘ʒombok/.
Courses Taught
FREN 0101
Beginning French Part One
Course Description
Intensive Beginning French
For students who have not previously studied French, an introduction to listening, speaking, reading, and writing in French, providing the syntactic and semantic foundation of the French language in a concentrated program of grammar presentation, drills, laboratory work, and discussion. Primary emphasis will be placed on the student's active use of the language, and weekly attendance at the French language table will be required. This course does not fulfill the foreign language distribution requirement. Students are expected to continue with FREN 0102 in the winter term after successfully completing FREN 0101, and with FREN 0201in the spring. 6 hrs. lect./disc.
Terms Taught
FREN 0102
Beginning French Part Two
Course Description
Beginning French
This course is a continuation of FREN 0101, dealing with more complex French. Oral skills are stressed and students participate in the French language table at lunch. This course does not fulfill the foreign language distribution requirement. (FREN 0101)
Terms Taught
Requirements
FREN 0105
Upcoming
Accelerated Beginning French
Course Description
Accelerated Beginning French
This intensive course is a condensation of FREN 0101 and 0102 for students who have never before studied French. We will focus on the development of all four communicative skills in an immersion-style environment. Primary emphasis will be placed on increased oral proficiency through audiovisual, conversational, and drill methods. Upon successful completion of this course students will be prepared for second-year French in the fall. Weekly attendance at the French language table will be required. 6 hrs. lect./disc./1 hr. drill
Terms Taught
FREN 0203
Intermediate French II
Course Description
Intermediate French II
An active and intensive review of French grammar for students having had good beginning-level training in French. We will work not only to perfect mastery of the structures of the language with practice of writing and reading, but also to develop oral comprehension and production skills. (FREN 0103 or FREN 0105 or placement) 5 hrs. lect./disc.
Terms Taught
Requirements
FREN 0205
Current
Toward Liberated Expression
Course Description
Toward Liberated Expression
A course designed to increase and perfect the ability to express oneself in spoken and written French. Emphasis on precision, variety, and vocabulary acquisition. Sections limited to 15 students. (FREN 0201, 0203 or placement) This requirement for the major and the minor may be satisfied by placement at a higher level. 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Terms Taught
Requirements
FREN 0209
Self&Society Writing in French
Course Description
Self and Society: Effective Writing in French
In this course, students will deepen their knowledge of the French language and French-speaking cultures while developing their reading and writing skills through examination of a variety of texts and media. This course facilitates the transition from language-oriented courses (FREN 0205) to content-oriented courses (such as FREN 0220 and FREN 0230) by introducing students to strategies for interpretation and discussion, with a focus on effective writing. Course materials may include essays/articles, theater, fiction, poetry, videos, and films. (FREN 0205 or by placement) 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Terms Taught
Requirements
FREN 0232
French in North America
Course Description
French in North America
In this course we will focus on French varieties in North America, including those found in Québec, historic Acadia, New England, Louisiana, and the Caribbean. We will survey the impact of French colonialism on the linguistic landscape of North America and the sociolinguistic dynamics of French-speaking communities. We will study language revitalization and maintenance in local newspapers, social media, literature, and film. This course is intended to facilitate the transition between introductory and advanced-level classes with an emphasis on developing written and oral expression in French. (FREN 0209) 3 hrs. lect.
Terms Taught
Requirements
FREN 0233
Upcoming
History of the French Language
Course Description
History of the French Language
In this course we will study how French has evolved into a global language. We will survey its development from a Latin dialect spoken in ancient Gaul to its present-day diversity in the French-speaking world, with a focus on comparative analysis. Specific topics may include linguistic variation over time, gender and language change, phonological history, spelling reforms, and language use on social media. Students will engage with historical and contemporary texts, art, and audiovisual sources. (FREN 0209, or by waiver. No previous knowledge of linguistics is required.) 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Terms Taught
Requirements
FREN 0335
Lang Ideolog in Francophonie
Course Description
Language Ideologies in the Francophone World
Is French really in danger? Does it need to be defended? Language ideologies have prevailed in France since the foundation of the French Academy in 1635. New waves of language defenders emerged in the 20th century especially against English in the technological and entertainment industry. In this course, we will examine the history of French language ideologies in the Francophone world from the 17th to the 21st century in order to better understand French attitudes toward the “bon usage”. In addition to theoretical works, we will explore language laws, newspaper articles, social media posts, radio news, and documentaries. (FREN 0220, 221, 222, 224, 230) 3 hrs. sem.
Terms Taught
Requirements
FREN 0337
French Language and Society
Course Description
French Language and Society
In this course we will study the relationship between the French language and French-speaking societies. Sociolinguistic approaches will be used to explore how geography, class, ethnicity, and gender influence dialectal, lexical, and phonological variation. We will examine how language contact with regional and minority languages affects language use and development. Materials will include scholarly publications, speech samples, social media, and films. Students will learn how to build and analyze surveys, and will practice presenting their research at professional venues. (At least two FREN courses above 0209, or by waiver. No previous knowledge of linguistics is required.) 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Terms Taught
Requirements
FREN 0500
Current
Upcoming
Independent Projects
Course Description
Independent Project
Qualified students may be permitted to undertake a special project in reading and research under the direction of a member of the department. Students should seek an advisor and submit a proposal to the department well in advance of registration for the term in which the work is to be undertaken. (Approval required)
Terms Taught
FREN 0605
Current
Upcoming
Senior Work
Course Description
Senior Work
For this one-semester course, majors are required to complete Senior Work (FREN 0605) consisting of a significant research paper of at least 30-40 pages. Majors should consult about their project with a faculty member before registering for FREN 0605. (Approval required.)
Terms Taught
FREN 0700
Current
Upcoming
Senior Honors Thesis
Course Description
Senior Honors Thesis
Qualified senior majors who wish to be considered for Honors in French must submit a proposal well in advance of registration for the term in which the work is to be undertaken. This project will consist of a significant research paper of at least 50-60 pages to be competed over two consecutive semesters. (Approval required.)
Terms Taught
FREN 0701
Upcoming
Senior Honors Thesis
Course Description
Senior Honors Thesis
Qualified senior majors who wish to be considered for Honors in French must submit a proposal well in advance of registration for the term in which the work is to be undertaken. (Approval required; see requirements above.)
Terms Taught
FYSE 1103
Current
Language in Motion
Course Description
Language in Motion
Languages are dynamic systems, constantly evolving and adapting. What factors motivate language variation? How does a language become a powerful political tool? This course explores the social dynamics of linguistic change through the example of French. We will investigate the global reach of French as a first and second language before examining its highly diverse varieties. We will also discuss strategies for language preservation in our interconnected world. Throughout the semester, we will identify parallels between the evolution of French and the status of English in the United States. This course will be taught in English.
Terms Taught
Requirements
IGST 0702
Upcoming
EUS Senior Thesis
Course Description
European Studies Senior Thesis
(Approval Required)
Terms Taught
LNGT 1230
DataScience Across Disciplines
Course Description
Data Science Across Disciplines
In this course, we will gain exposure to the entire data science pipeline—obtaining and cleaning large and messy data sets, exploring these data and creating engaging visualizations, and communicating insights from the data in a meaningful manner. During morning sessions, we will learn the tools and techniques required to explore new and exciting data sets. During afternoon sessions, students will work in small groups with one of several faculty members on domain-specific research projects in Anthropology, Biology, Classics, Political Science, and Statistics. This course will use the R programming language. No prior experience with programming is necessary.
ANTH/LNGT 1230: In this section we will explore indigenous political voice in unexpected places. The data we will analyze will consist of bilingual Apache-English and Maidu-English stories, songs and speeches originally recorded by anthropological linguists in the early twentieth century as examples of traditional culture. Students will use R to search this corpora for how indigenous contributors were also making claims on the future in their address to the researcher and to wider anticipated audiences.
BIOL/ECSC 1230: In this section we will work with data collected by elephant seals equipped with oceanographic instruments in the Southern Ocean. Depending on your interests, you can approach the project from different angles: students focusing on biology will explore where the seals travel and what drives their movements, while those interested in earth science will investigate the temperature and salinity profiles gathered during their dives. Working in teams, you’ll combine these perspectives to build a fuller picture of both seal ecology and the oceanographic processes that shape their environment. Along the way, you’ll practice manipulating and visualizing different types of data including maps of seal tracks, temperature and salinity profiles, and cross-sections of ocean properties. We will also bring in satellite and autonomous float data to place seal activity and the data they collect in a broader context. By the end, you’ll have a sense of how these different data sources fit together and what unique insights we gain from using seals as oceanographers.
CLAS 1230: In this section students will gain hands-on experience with a variety of natural language processing and text mining techniques by exploring the writings of the ancient historian Plutarch, who lived during the first and second centuries AD. We will focus on the biographies of "great men" in Plutarch’s Lives, which chronicles the history, morals, and virtues of major figures who played parallel roles in ancient Greek and Roman society. The public domain English translation from Project Gutenberg will serve as our main corpus; however, students with a background or interest in Ancient Greek can work with the text in the original language. Using the R programming language, students will transform unstructured text into quantitative data for statistical analysis and morphosyntactic parsing. We will also apply machine learning models to our data to reveal underlying patterns in large amounts of text. No prior experience with R is necessary.
PSCI 1230: Who votes in elections? Who attends protests? Why? In this section we will use the tools of data science to explore these and other questions about political participation in the Americas. We will examine engagement in different forms of participation and the demographic, economic, social, and other factors that shape participation. The class will introduce students to the basics of survey research and the study of political participation. Students will complete a final group project showcasing the concepts and tools learned in class.
STAT 1230: In this section students will dive into the world of data science by focusing on invasive species monitoring data. Early detection is crucial to controlling many invasive species; however, there is a knowledge gap regarding the sampling effort needed to detect the invader early. In this course, we will work with decades of invasive species monitoring data collected across the United States to better understand how environmental variables play a role in the sampling effort required to detect invasive species. Students will gain experience in the entire data science pipeline, but the primary focus will be on data scraping, data visualization, and communication of data-based results to scientists and policymakers.
Terms Taught
Requirements
MATH 0118
Introduction to Data Science
Course Description
Introduction to Data Science
In this course students will gain exposure to the entire data science pipeline: forming a statistical question, collecting and cleaning data sets, performing exploratory data analyses, identifying appropriate statistical techniques, and communicating the results, all the while leaning heavily on open source computational tools, in particular the R statistical software language. We will focus on analyzing real, messy, and large data sets, requiring the use of advanced data manipulation/wrangling and data visualization packages. Students will be required to bring alaptop (owned or college-loaned) to class as many lectures will involve in-class computational activities. (formerly MATH216) 3 hrs lect./disc. (Not open to students who have taken BIOL 1230, ECON 1230, ENVS 1230, FMMC 1230, HARC 1230, JAPN 1230, LNGT 1230, NSCI 1230, MATH 1230, SOCI 1230, LNGT 1230, PSCI 1230, WRPR 1230, or GEOG 1230.)
Terms Taught
Requirements
Publications
Zsombok, G., & Tarjanyi, P. (2023). When iel broke the Internet: A social media study on the reception of non-binary pronouns. Contemporary French Civilization, 48(3), 239–256.
Zsombok, G. (2022). Official new terms in the age of social media: The story of hashtag on French Twitter. Journal of French Language Studies, 32(2), 145–164.
Zsombok, G. (2021). Prescribing French: A corpus-linguistic approach to official terminology in French newspapers. Journal of French Language Studies, 31(3), 270–293.