Gérard Diffloth (13 February 1939 – 14 August 2023) was a French linguist known as a leading specialist in the Austroasiatic languages. As a linguistics professor, he was employed at the University of Chicago and Cornell University. He received his Ph.D. from UCLA, after a dissertation on the Irula language. He was an advocate of immersion fieldwork for linguistic research.[2]
Gérard Diffloth | |
|---|---|
| Born | 13 February 1939 |
| Died | 14 August 2023 (aged 84) Surin, Thailand |
| Nationality | French |
| Occupation | Linguist |
| Partner | Wongjaroen "Som" Somruan[1] |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | University of California, Los Angeles |
| Academic work | |
| Institutions | EFEO |
| Main interests | Austroasiatic languages |
Diffloth was known for his widely cited 1974 and 2005 classifications of the Austroasiatic languages.
Diffloth was a consulting editor of the journal Mon-Khmer Studies.[3]
Gérard Diffloth died on 14 August 2023, at the age of 84, in Surin, Thailand.[4]
Selected bibliography
edit- Diffloth, Gérard. A History of the Khmer Language. [in preparation].
- Diffloth, Gérard. The Dvaravati Old Mon Language and Nyah Kur. Monic language studies, vol. 1. Bangkok, Thailand: Chulalongkorn University Print. House, 1984. ISBN 974-563-783-1
- Diffloth, Gérard. The Wa languages. Berkeley: Dept. of Linguistics, University of California, 1980.
- Diffloth, Gérard. An Appraisal of Benedict's Views on Austroasiatic and Austro-Thai Relations. Kyoto: Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University, 1976.
- Diffloth, Gérard, and Zide, Norman H. Austroasiatic Number Systems. 1976.
- Diffloth, Gérard. Proto-Mon–Khmer Final Spirants. Kyoto: Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University, 1976.
- Diffloth, Gérard. The Irula Language, a Close Relative of Tamil. Doctoral thesis, University of California, Los Angeles, 1968.
References
edit- ^ Sidwell, Paul, ed. (2024). Austroasiatic Linguistics, in honour of Gérard Diffloth (1939-2023) (PDF). Chiang Mai: Myanmar Center, Faculty of Humanities, Chiang Mai University.
- ^ Diffloth, Gérard. 2001. Les expressifs de Surin, et où cela conduit. Bulletin de l’Ecole française d’Extrême-Orient 88(1). 261–269. doi:10.3406/befeo.2001.3516 Page 262
- ^ Mon–Khmer Studies Journal editors Archived 7 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ "Death of Gérard Diffloth (1939 – 2023)". EFEO. Retrieved 27 August 2023.