Bright was an authority on the native languages and cultures of California, and was especially known for his work on Karuk, a Native American language from northwestern California. His study of the language was the first carried out under the auspices of the Survey of California and Other Indian Languages.[2] He was made an honorary member of the Karuk tribe—the first outsider to be so honored—in recognition of his efforts to document and preserve their language which led to its revival. Bright was also known for his research on the Native American languages Nahuatl, Kaqchikel, Luiseño, Ute, Wishram, and Yurok, and the South Asian languages Lushai, Kannada, Tamil, and Tulu. Of particular note are his toponymic contributions to knowledge about Native American place-names and their linguistic importance for tribes and California bands.
william, bright, evangelist, campus, crusade, christ, founder, bill, bright, other, uses, william, bright, disambiguation, william, oliver, bright, august, 1928, october, 2006, american, linguist, toponymist, specialized, native, american, south, asian, langua. For the evangelist and Campus Crusade for Christ founder see Bill Bright For other uses see William Bright disambiguation William Oliver Bright August 13 1928 October 15 2006 was an American linguist and toponymist who specialized in Native American and South Asian languages and descriptive linguistics 1 William BrightBorn 1928 08 13 August 13 1928Oxnard California United StatesDiedOctober 15 2006 2006 10 15 aged 78 Louisville Colorado United StatesKnown forStudy of linguistics California Indian languages Academic backgroundAlma materUniversity of California Berkeley B A Ph D Doctoral advisorMary HaasAcademic workDisciplineLinguistics Anthropology Native American Studies South Asian studiesInstitutionsUniversity of California Los Angeles University of Colorado BoulderNotable studentsLyle Campbell Contents 1 Biography 2 Personal life 3 Bibliography 4 References 5 External linksBiography editBright earned a bachelor s degree in linguistics in 1949 and a doctorate in the same field in 1955 both from the University of California Berkeley He was a professor of linguistics and anthropology at UCLA from 1959 to 1988 He then moved to the University of Colorado at Boulder where he remained on the faculty until his death Bright was an authority on the native languages and cultures of California and was especially known for his work on Karuk a Native American language from northwestern California His study of the language was the first carried out under the auspices of the Survey of California and Other Indian Languages 2 He was made an honorary member of the Karuk tribe the first outsider to be so honored in recognition of his efforts to document and preserve their language which led to its revival Bright was also known for his research on the Native American languages Nahuatl Kaqchikel Luiseno Ute Wishram and Yurok and the South Asian languages Lushai Kannada Tamil and Tulu Of particular note are his toponymic contributions to knowledge about Native American place names and their linguistic importance for tribes and California bands Bright was editor of Language the journal of the Linguistic Society of America from 1966 to 1988 and of Language in Society from 1993 to 1999 He was the founding editor of Written Language and Literacy which he edited from 1997 until 2003 He served as president of the Linguistic Society of America in 1989 Personal life editBright was the father of author Susie Bright From 1986 he was married to fellow linguist Lise Menn He died of a brain tumor 1 Bibliography editNative American Placenames of the United States University of Oklahoma 2004 1 500 California Place Names Their Origin and Meaning University of California 1998 The World s Writing Systems co editor with Peter T Daniels Oxford University Press 1996 A Coyote Reader University of California 1993 International Encyclopedia of Linguistics editor Oxford University Press 1992 Language variation in South Asia Oxford University Press 1990 American Indian Linguistics and Literature Mouton 1984 Discovered tongues Poems by linguists editor Corvine Press 1983 Haiku journey To the North Coast Copper Canyon Press 1983 Bibliography of the languages of Native California including closely related languages of adjacent areas Scarecrow Press 1982 References edit a b Fox Margalit October 23 2006 William Bright 78 Expert in Indigenous Languages Is Dead The New York Times via NYTimes com Shipley William 1988 In Honor of Mary Haas City Walter de Gruyter amp Co ISBN 3 11 011165 9 External links editBill Bright 1928 2006 at Language Log The William O Bright Papers at the American Philosophical Society Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title William O Bright amp oldid 1191620020, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
