AmericanLinguistLexicographerProfessor

Robert Blust

Robert Andrew Blust was a prominent American linguist, lexicographer, and ethnologist who specialized in Austronesian languages.

1. Early Life and Education

Robert A. Blust's early life and educational journey laid the foundation for his distinguished academic career.

1.1. Birth and Early Life

Blust was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on May 9, 1940. He spent his formative years in California, having moved to Long Beach, California at the age of four, where he was raised.

1.2. Education and Early Career

Blust pursued his higher education at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, where he earned both his Bachelor of Arts degree in anthropology in 1967 and his PhD in linguistics in 1974. His early academic focus included the study of the English language. Following his doctoral studies, he taught at Leiden University in the Netherlands from 1976 to 1984. He then returned to the Department of Linguistics at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, where he remained for the rest of his career. During his tenure at Mānoa, he served as the department chair from 2005 to 2008. Blust was also recognized as a Fellow of the Linguistic Society of America.

2. Academic Career and Contributions

Robert A. Blust's academic career was marked by groundbreaking research and extensive contributions to the understanding of Austronesian languages and related cultural phenomena.

2.1. Research on Austronesian Languages

Blust was renowned for his profound expertise in the Austronesian language family, one of the largest language families in the world. His work significantly advanced the field of Austronesian linguistics. Until 2018, he served as the review editor for Oceanic Linguistics, an academic journal dedicated to the study of Austronesian languages.

2.2. Fieldwork

His dedication to linguistic research led him to undertake extensive fieldwork, during which he studied 97 different Austronesian languages. These studies were conducted in diverse locations, including Sarawak in Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, and Taiwan. In Taiwan, he focused particularly on Formosan languages, conducting in-depth research on languages such as Thao, Kavalan, Pazeh, Amis, Paiwan, and Saisiyat. His comprehensive dictionary of the Thao language, which is a highly endangered language, spans over 1,100 pages and is considered one of the most complete dictionaries ever compiled for a Formosan language.

2.3. Major Works and Publications

Blust authored several seminal works that became foundational texts in Austronesian linguistics. His notable publications include the comprehensive Austronesian Comparative Dictionary (published in 1995), which remains a crucial resource for scholars. He also produced a detailed Thao-English Dictionary in 2003, a significant contribution to the documentation and preservation of the endangered Thao language. Another of his highly acclaimed works is The Austronesian Languages, published in 2009. This book stands out as the first single-authored volume to meticulously cover all major linguistic aspects of the entire Austronesian language family, including its phonology, syntax, morphology, sound changes, and classification.

2.4. Other Research Interests

Beyond his core linguistic research, Blust maintained unique and abiding interests in other areas. He explored the linguistic and cultural aspects of rainbows and dragons, delving into their significance across various cultures and languages. His 2023 book, The Dragon and the Rainbow: Man's Oldest Story, reflects this particular research interest.

3. Personal Life and Death

Robert A. Blust died in Honolulu, Hawaii, on January 5, 2022, at the age of 81. His death followed a 13-year battle with cancer.
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4. Legacy and Influence

Robert A. Blust's extensive body of work left a lasting impact on the field of Austronesian linguistics. His rigorous comparative methods, meticulous fieldwork, and comprehensive publications significantly advanced the understanding of the history, structure, and diversity of Austronesian languages. His efforts, particularly in documenting endangered languages like Thao, contributed immensely to the preservation of global linguistic diversity. He is widely regarded within the scholarly community as one of the most influential and prolific scholars in Austronesian studies. His Austronesian Comparative Dictionary and The Austronesian Languages continue to be indispensable resources for researchers worldwide.

5. Selected Publications

  • Blust, Robert. 1974. The Proto-North-Sarawak vowel deletion hypothesis. PhD dissertation. University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
  • Blust, Robert. 1977. "The Proto-Austronesian pronouns and Austronesian subgrouping: a preliminary report." University of Hawaiʻi Working Papers in Linguistics 9 (2): 1-15.
  • Blust, Robert. 1988. Austronesian Root Theory: An Essay on the Limits of Morphology. [https://books.google.com/books?id=dJuojnJP79gC John Benjamins Publishing].
  • Blust, Robert. 1993. "*s* metathesis and the Formosan/Malayo-Polynesian language boundary." In Øyvind Dahl (ed.), Language, a Doorway Between Human Cultures: Tributes to Dr. Otto Chr. Dahl on His Ninetieth Birthday. [https://books.google.com/books?id=eD0AQAAIAAJ Novus Forlag].
  • Blust, Robert. 1995. "The position of the Formosan languages: method and theory in Austronesian comparative linguistics." In Paul Jen-kuei Li et al. (eds.), Austronesian Studies Relating to Taiwan, Vol. 3: 585-650. [https://www.ling.sinica.edu.tw/item/en?act=publish_book&code=view&bookID=122 Academia Sinica].
  • Blust, Robert. 1996. "Some Remarks on the Linguistic Position of Thao." Oceanic Linguistics 35 (2): 272-294. University of Hawaiʻi Press.
  • Blust, Robert. 1999. "Notes on Pazeh Phonology and Morphology." Oceanic Linguistics 38 (2): 321-365. University of Hawaiʻi Press.
  • Blust, Robert. 2003. "Three Notes on Early Austronesian Morphology." Oceanic Linguistics 42 (2): 438-478. University of Hawaiʻi Press.
  • Blust, Robert. 2003. Thao Dictionary. [http://www.ling.sinica.edu.tw/Files/LL/UploadFiles/MonoFullText/Thao%20Dictionary.pdf Institute of Linguistics (Preparatory Office), Academia Sinica].
  • Blust, Robert. 2003. A short morphology, phonology and vocabulary of Kiput, Sarawak. Pacific Linguistics, Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, Australian National University.
  • Blust, Robert A. 2005. "Must sound change be linguistically motivated?" Diachronica 22 (2): 219-269. John Benjamins.
  • Blust, Robert. 2006. "The Origin of the Kelabit Voiced Aspirates: A Historical Hypothesis Revisited." Oceanic Linguistics 45 (2): 311-338. University of Hawaiʻi Press.
  • Blust, Robert. 2009. The Austronesian Languages. [https://books.google.com/books?id=uYspAQAAIAAJ Pacific Linguistics, Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies, The Australian National University].
  • Blust, Robert, and Stephen Trussel. The Austronesian Comparative Dictionary. [https://www.trussel2.com/acd/ Online edition].
  • Blust, Robert. 2023. The Dragon and the Rainbow: Man's Oldest Story. [https://brill.com/display/title/68234?language=en Brill, Leiden].