Sharifa Bahri, PhD

Assistant Professor of Linguistics
| Bilingual Brain & Language Networks 🧠

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

Most people overestimate what they can do in a year but they underestimate what is possible in a lifetime.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

What I know for sure…

Yes, life is all about choices.
BUT BUT BUT
What runs even deeper than this is the fact that when you choose one thing, you also sacrifice something else.

If you choose to pursue your ambitions, for instance, you ought to be willing to sacrifice some of the immediate pleasures you would otherwise indulge in.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

The academic year has just come to a close. And for me, it was a year of taking on many new responsibilities.

I am truly grateful for the opportunities to teach, lead, and grow.
The classroom discussions, students’ questions, course coordination responsibilities, and research milestones have all contributed to a year that has been both demanding and deeply rewarding.

Now…
As the summer begins, I am looking forward to slowing down just enough to reflect, read, travel, and focus on research. My goal is to use these coming weeks to make meaningful progress on projects related to bilingualism, code-switching, and the bilingual brain—areas that continue to inspire my curiosity as a researcher.

Here’s to a summer worth remembering.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

@1iirena Congratulations, Rena. Best of luck on your journey.. 🎓🩺

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

The core cognitive challenge for bilinguals is not merely knowing two languages, but selecting one language for use at a time—an ongoing demand that carries structural consequences for the brain.

Because both languages remain simultaneously active, the brain must continuously engage control mechanisms to regulate activation, select the intended language, and suppress interference from the non-target language. Research suggests that the repeated engagement of these control processes may shape the brain itself, contributing to structural adaptations in regions supporting language processing and cognitive control.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

Bilinguals are not “switching languages” in the way we imagine.

They are constantly managing a system in which both languages are active in the brain.
— code-switching is simply the visible outcome.

Yet, behind every switch is a cognitive process:
- activation,
- competition,
- selection.

We need to start studying that process to better understand how code-switching actually occurs.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

“The beautiful thing about learning is that nobody can take it away from you.”

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

Last week, I served as Toastmaster of the Evening at Elite Toastmasters Club, and was honoured to be recognised with a “Winner” medal by a Distinguished Toastmaster.

It was my first time participating in a Toastmasters meeting.
The theme I chose was Travelling—and fittingly, the experience itself felt like one: leading a room, guiding transitions, holding attention, and shaping the energy of the evening.

Previously, most of my public speaking has taken place in two main spaces: academic settings, where I led research presentations, lectures, and discussions grounded in linguistics; and cultural and general-audience settings, particularly during my time as President of the Saudi Students Club during my graduate studies in the United States, where I navigated conversations between cultures and explained Saudi identity in a global context.

This experience felt different.
It was not about speaking within a space, but about leading the space itself—managing its flow, transitions, and energy.

This was a reminder that public speaking is not just about delivering words. It is about presence, structure, and the paralinguistic layer of communication—tone, pacing, and delivery—that allows you to move people from one moment to the next with clarity.

A different kind of journey—and a skill worth refining.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

The more I study language in the brain, the more I realise:
what feels “effortless” is often the result of long-term neural adaptation.

In neuroscience terms, what feels “effortless” is typically the result of repeated use leading to neuroplastic changes. With sustained exposure and practice, the brain strengthens certain neural pathways, making processing faster and more efficient. Over time, this reduces the conscious effort required.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

a pen.
a blank page.
& a mind full of reflections to unpack.

P.S. good morning ☀️

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

Why brain regions are not enough, even in linguistics?

It is tempting to say: “this area does X” and “that area does Y”. But the brain does not work in isolated parts. It works through connections.

Language, too, emerges from interactions between regions, not from single locations.

For example:
A region involved in word meaning and a region involved in speech production
must coordinate in real time.

Damage the region, and you affect function.
But disrupt the connection, and you may affect the entire system.

This is why white matter pathways matter.
They are the connections that allow different parts of the brain to communicate. Without them, the system cannot function as a whole.

Thus, to understand language in the brain, we need to shift focus:
- from “where is language?”
- to “how is language connected?”

Here, we study networks, not just nodes.
Because what matters is not only where activity happens, but how information flows between regions.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

Learn a new language to keep your brain young!

Research shows that those who speak at least one additional language are about half as likely to exhibit early signs of brain ageing.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

Not all bilinguals are the same—and that matters more than we think.

Research often treats bilinguals as a single group. As if “speaking two languages” is a uniform experience.

It is not.

Two bilingual speakers may differ in:
— when they learned each language
— how often they use them
— which contexts each language belongs to
— how balanced or dominant they are

These differences are not minor details. They shape how the brain organises and controls language.

For example:
A speaker who uses both languages daily will not process language the same way as someone who uses one language almost exclusively.

Yet many studies group them together.

This creates a problem:
We end up explaining behaviour at the group level, while ignoring the mechanisms at the individual level.

If we want to understand the bilingual brain, we need to move beyond labels like “bilingual” or “native speaker”.

The real unit of analysis is the individual—and their experience.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

If you find yourself overthinking, act.
Action cuts overthinking.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

In the brain 🧠
Language emerges from a network of regions that are active together—constantly interacting, coordinating, and adapting in real time.

Language is a system.
And understanding that system means asking different kinds of question:

NOT..
- “where” language is stored in the brain

BUT..
- “how” language is organised
- “how” different regions are connected
- “which” parts of the network are causally necessary for it to function

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

One persistent myth:
mixing languages = weak language ability

In reality, fluent bilinguals often switch more, not less.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

@LewisHowes Givig myself enough time to sleep—Uninterrupted.
Everything else falls into place once the mind gets its needed rest.

[Sharifa Bahri, PhD @Sharifa_Bahri]

In the first week back after the holiday, I found myself returning to a simple but important goal:
To make it clear to my students that their opinions on the material we cover in class matter.

I see it as my mission to cultivate a classroom where knowledge is examined, questioned, and reshaped. Their interpretations and critiques are not separate from learning—they are part of the learning process itself.

That is the standard I set in my classroom.