Title: The stellar kinematics of the Phoenix dwarf galaxy

Abstract:
The Phoenix dwarf galaxy is the nearest and most typical representative of the class of the so-called ``transition'' dwarf 
galaxies - i.e. dwarfs that show traits of dwarf spheroidal and irregular galaxies. Phoenix shows low-level recent star formation 
on top of a predominantly old and intermediate-age population (e.g., Hidalgo et al. 2009). Most interestingly, a small cloud of 
neutral gas seems to be physically associated to the stellar body (e.g., Young et al. 2007). To investigate the evolution of this 
paradigm dwarf galaxy, we have obtained medium- and high-resolution spectroscopy of more than a hundred member stars 
using FORS2, FLAMES and UVES at the ESO VLT. We present here precise velocity measurements from high-resolution 
spectroscopy allowing us to study the stellar kinematics and estimate the internal velocity dispersion and dark matter content 
of Phoenix.  Our new results better constrain the physical and morphological evolution of this intriguing galaxy.