Jerold Alan Edmondson (born 1941) (Chinese name: 艾杰瑞 Aì Jiéruì) is an American linguist whose work spans four subdisciplines: historical and comparative linguistics, Asian linguistics, field linguistics, and phonetics. He is a leading specialist in Tai–Kadai languages of Asia, especially the Kam–Sui and Kra branches.
Jerold A. Edmondson | |
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Born | Jerold Alan Edmondson 1941 Plainfield, Indiana |
Nationality | American |
Occupation | Linguist |
Academic background | |
Alma mater | University of California, Los Angeles |
Academic work | |
Institutions | University of Texas at Arlington |
Main interests | Languages of Southeast Asia |
Edmonson was born in Plainfield, Indiana. He earned his PhD in Germanic Languages from UCLA in 1973 and a Habilitation in General Linguistics from the Technical University Berlin in 1979. He was an Assistant Professor of English and General Linguistics at the Technical University Berlin from 1976-1980. He joined the faculty of the University of Texas at Arlington in 1981 and went on to attain the rank of Professor, becoming a Professor Emeritus in 2011. As founding director of the Program in Linguistics from 1991-1999, he shepherded its growth into the current Department of Linguistics and TESOL. Edmondson earned many accolades while at UT Arlington, including the Outstanding Research Award, the Distinguished Record of Research Award,[1] the Alicia Wilkerson Smotherman Faculty Award,[2][3] and induction into the Academy of Distinguished Scholars.[4] In 2012, he established the Jerold A. Edmondson Research Endowment in Linguistics, proceeds of which generate research grants for students at UTA, with a priority given to projects focusing on field linguistics and endangered languages.[5]
Edmondson specializes in studying the Tai–Kadai languages, especially the Kam–Sui and Kra branches. He was one of the researchers who documented the En language during a linguistic field expedition in the late 1990s. In 1996, he received a National Science Foundation grant to study the minority languages spoken along the Vietnam and China borders.[6] He tracked down two previously undocumented languages, Xa Pho and Nung Ven, in northern Viet Nam.[7] Edmondson has performed field investigations of many Southeast Asian languages such as various Loloish languages, Bai, Kháng, and Pa-Hng, as well as languages spoken on other continents, such as Triqui and Dinka.
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