List of linguists
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A linguist in the academic sense is a person who studies natural language (an academic discipline known as linguistics). Ambiguously, the word is sometimes also used to refer to a polyglot (one who knows several languages), a translator/interpreter (especially in the military), or a grammarian (a scholar of grammar), but these uses of the word are distinct (and one does not have to be multilingual in order to be an academic linguist).[1] The following is a list of notable academic linguists.
In the list, the description is presented as:
surname, forename (country, year of birth–year of death), main achievement
A
- Abbott, Barbara (United States, 1943–), pragmatics, semantics
- Abel, Carl (Germany, 1837–1906), comparative lexicography
- Abdul Haq, Maulvi (India, 1870–1961), Urdu language
- Abrams, Lise (United States), psycholinguistics
- Abramson, Arthur S. (United States, 1925–2017), phonetics
- Adamou, Evangelia (France), language contact
- Adams, Douglas Q. (United States), English language, comparative linguistics, Tocharian language
- Adler, George J. (Germany/United States, 1821–1868), lexicography, German language, English language
- Aijmer, Karin (Sweden, 1939–), pragmatics, semantics
- Aikhenvald, Alexandra Yurievna (Russia, 1957–), syntax, typology, Amazonian languages, Papuan languages, Hebrew language, Russian language
- Aitken, Adam Jack (UK, 1921–1998), lexicography
- Ajduković, Jovan (Serbia, 1968–), Slavic languages, sociolinguistics, contact linguistics, Russian language, Serbian language
- Albright, William Foxwell (United States, 1891–1971), Semitic languages
- Alexiadou, Artemis (1969–), Greek language, syntax
- Al-Khalil ibn Ahmad al-Farahidi (Oman, 718–786 CE), Arabic prosody
- Al-Kisa'i (Iraq, d. 804), Arabic grammar
- Allan, Keith (Australia, 1943–), semantics
- Allen, Shanley (1964–), psycholinguistics, Inuktitut
- Alleyne, Mervyn Coleridge (Trinidad and Tobago/Jamaica, 1933–2016), creole language
- Ameka, Felix (Ghana, Australia, Netherlands, 1957–), pragmatics, semantics
- Amerias (Greece, 3rd century BC), Ancient Macedonian language, lexicography
- Anagnostopoulou, Elena (1967–), Greek language, theoretical linguistics
- Anderson, Gregory D.S. (United States), Munda languages
- Anderson, Stephen (United States, 1943–), morphology and history of linguistics
- Aoun, Joseph (Lebanon/United States, 1953–), Arabic language, syntax
- Aquilina, Joseph (Malta, 1911–1997), Maltese language
- Ariel, Mira (Israel), Accessibility Theory, pragmatics
- Arisaka Hideyo (Japan, 1908–1952), Japanese language
- Aristar, Anthony (South Africa/United States, 1948–), linguistic infrastructure
- Armstrong, Lilias (UK, 1882–1937), phonetics
- Aronoff, Mark (Canada, 1949–), morphology
- Ascoli, Graziadio Isaia (Italy, 1829–1907), substrata, Ladin language
- Austin, John Langshaw (UK, 1911–1960), philosophy of language, speech act
- Awobuluyi, Oladele (Nigeria, 1937–), African languages
- Ayres-Bennett, Wendy (UK), history of French and history of linguistic thought
- Azad, Humayun (Bangladesh, 1947–2004), Bengali language
- Al-Harbi, Abdul Aziz (Saudi Arabia, 1965–)
- Al-Mubarrad (Basra, c. 826–c. 898)
B
- Babiniotis, Georgios (Greece, 1939–), Greek language
- Babych, Nadiya (Ukraine, 1943–2021), phraseology
- Bach, Emmon (United States, 1929–2014), syntax, phonology, Haisla language
- Baker, Mark (United States, 1959–), Mohawk language, generative grammar
- Bally, Charles (Switzerland, 1865–1947), French language, phraseology
- Barbara, Leila (Brazil, 1938–2024), systemic functional linguistics
- Bardovi-Harlig, Kathleen (United States, 1954–), second-language acquisition, tense and aspect, pragmatics
- Bar-Hillel, Yehoshua (Israel, 1915–1975), machine translation, categorial grammar
- Barker, (Philip) Muhammad Abd-al-Rahman (United States, 1930–2012), Urdu language, Indian languages
- Barlow, Robert Hayward (United States, 1918–1951), Nahuatl language
- Barnhart, David K. (United States, 1941–), lexicography, English language
- Barnhart, Robert (United States, 1933–2007), lexicography, English language
- Barsky, Robert (Canada), discourse analysis
- Barthes, Roland (France, 1915–1980)
- Bartlett, John Russell (United States, 1805–1886)
- Basbøll, Hans (Denmark, 1943–), phonology, Danish
- Baudouin de Courtenay, Jan Niecisław (Poland, 1845–1929), phonology, Polish language
- Bauer, Robert Stuart (United States, 1946–), syntax, phonology, Sino-Tibetan languages (especially Cantonese)
- Baugh, John (United States, 1949–), sociolinguistics, linguistic profiling, forensic linguistics
- Beckman, Mary E. (United States, 1953–), phonetics, phonology
- Beckwith, Christopher (United States, 1945–), Asian languages, Tibetan language
- Beddor, Patrice (United States), Phonetics, speech perception
- Bedirxan, Celadet Alî (Syria, 1893–1951) Kurdish language
- Beeken, Jeannine (Belgium, 1961–), lexicography, syntax, Dutch language
- Beekes, Robert S. P. (Netherlands, 1937–2017), historical linguistics, Indo-European linguistics, Greek linguistics
- Bello, Andrés (Venezuela, 1781–1865), Spanish language, philology
- Bellugi, Ursula (United States, 1931–2022), sign language, neurolinguistics
- Ben-Yehuda, Eliezer (Israel, 1858–1922), lexicography, Revival of the Hebrew language
- Bender, M. Lionel (United States, 1934–2008), African languages
- Benedict, Paul K. (United States, 1912–1977), Sino-Tibetan languages, Tai–Kadai languages, historical linguistics
- Benveniste, Émile (France, 1902–1976)
- Berez-Kroeker, Andrea L. (United States, 1972–), language documentation
- Berlitz, Charles Frambach (United States, 1914–2003), language acquisition
- Berlitz, Maximilian Delphinius (United States, 1852–1921), language acquisition
- Bhartrihari (India, 450–510), Sanskrit
- Bickel, Balthasar (Switzerland, 1965–), language typology, Kiranti languages
- Bickerton, Derek (United States, 1926–2018), creole languages, origin of language
- Bleek, Wilhelm Heinrich Immanuel (Germany, 1827–1875), languages of Africa
- Bloch, Bernard (United States, 1907–1965), Japanese language
- Bloch, Jules (France, 1880–1953), languages of India
- Bloomfield, Leonard (United States, 1887–1949), structural linguistics
- Blust, Robert (United States, 1940–2022), Austronesian languages
- Boas, Franz (United States, 1858–1942), indigenous languages of the Americas
- Bœck, Égide de (Belgium, Belgish Congo, 1875–1944), Bangala language, Lingala
- Boersma, Paul (Netherlands, 1959–), phonetics
- Boiagi, Mihail G. (Habsburg monarchy, 1780–uncertain), Aromanian grammar
- Bohn, Ocke-Schwen (Germany, 1953–), phonetics, second-language acquisition
- Bolinger, Dwight Le Merton (United States, 1907–1992), semantics, Spanish language
- Bomhard, Allan R. (United States, 1943–), Nostratic languages, historical linguistics
- Ester Bonet (Spain, born 1950), sports terminology
- Bopp, Franz (Germany, 1791–1867), Indo-European languages, comparative linguistics
- Boullón Agrelo, Ana Isabel (Spain, born 1962), Galician language toponymy, Galician–Portuguese philology
- Bowerman, Melissa (1942–2011), psycholinguistics, language acquisition
- Bowern, Claire, historical linguistics
- Boyd, Julian Charles (United States, 1931–2005), English language
- Bresnan, Joan (United States, 1945–), syntax
- Bright, William (United States, 1928–2006), Native American languages, South Asian languages
- Brinton, Laurel J. (Canada, 1953–), grammaticalization, discourse markers
- Brody, Michael (Hungary, 1954–), syntax
- Broselow, Ellen (United States, 1949–), second language acquisition, phonology
- Browman, Catherine (United States, 1945–2008), phonetics, phonology
- Brugmann, Karl (Germany, 1849–1919), Indo-European languages, Sanskrit, comparative linguistics
- Bucholtz, Mary (United States, 1966–), sociolinguistics
- Burgess, Anthony (UK, 1917–1993), English language, phonetics
- Burling, Robbins (United States, 1926–2021), languages of India
- Burridge, Kate (Australia), Germanic languages
- Butt, Miriam (Germany, 1966–), syntax, South Asian languages
- Butzkamm, Wolfgang (Germany, 1938–), applied linguistics, English language
- Byington, Cyrus (United States, 1793–1868), translated English religious text into Choctaw language
- Badawi, El-Said (Egypt, 1929–2014), Arabic
C
- Caland, Willem (Netherlands, 1859–1932), historical linguistics, Sanskrit
- Campbell, Lyle (United States, 1942–), Native American languages, historical linguistics
- Canger, Una (Denmark, 1938–), Mesoamerican languages
- Canonge, Elliott D. (United States, 1921–1971), Comanche, Inuit
- Capell, Arthur (Australia, 1902–1986), Australian languages, Austronesian languages, Papuan languages
- Cardona, George (United States, 1936–), Indo-European studies
- Carnap, Rudolf (Germany, 1891–1970), syntax, constructed languages
- Carnie, Andrew (Canada, 1969–), syntax
- Caro Baroja, Julio (1914–1995), Basque language
- Caro, Miguel A. (Colombia, 1843–1909), Spanish language, Colombian Spanish
- Carpenter, William Henry (United States, 1853–1936), Icelandic language
- Cart, Théophile (France, 1855–1931), Esperanto
- Carter, Hazel (UK, 1928–2016), Bantu languages
- Catford, J. C. (UK, 1917–2009), phonetics
- Chadwick, John (UK, 1920–1998), Linear B
- Chafik, Mohamed (Morocco, 1926–), writer and specialist in the Berber or Amazigh languages, dialects, and literature
- Chafe, Wallace (United States, 1927–2019), cognitive linguistics, semantics
- Chao Yuen Ren (China, 1892–1982), Chinese language
- Chakrabarti, Byomkes (India, 1923–1981), Santali language, Bengali language, comparative linguistics
- Champollion, Jean-François (France, 1790–1832), Egyptian hieroglyphs
- Chambers, Jack (Canada, 1938–), sociolinguistics
- Chatterji, Suniti Kumar (India, 1890–1977), Bengali language
- Chelliah, Shobhana, Tibeto-Burman languages
- Chierchia, Gennaro (Italy, 1953–), semantics, pragmatics
- Choijinzhab (PR China, 1931–2022), Mongolian language
- Chomsky, Noam (United States, 1928–), syntax, universal grammar
- Choueiri, Lina (Lebanon), syntax, Lebanese Arabic
- Chyet, Michael L. (United States, 1957–), Kurdish language
- Clark, Eve V. (UK/United States, 1942–), psycholinguistics, language acquisition
- Clyne, Michael George (Australia, 1939–2010), Germanic languages
- Cohen, Paul S. (United States), 1942–), phonology, etymology
- Cohen, Maurice Abraham (Australia), 1851–1923), Urdu
- Collitz, Hermann (Germany/United States, 1855–1935), historical linguistics
- Comrie, Bernard (UK, 1947–), typology
- Cook, Guy (UK, 1951–), applied linguistics
- Cook, Vivian (UK, 1940–2021), applied linguistics
- Corder, Stephen Pit (UK, 1918–1990), applied linguistics
- Coşeriu, Eugen (Romania/Germany, 1921–2002), Romance languages
- Couper-Kuhlen, Elizabeth (1943–), interactional linguistics
- Cowgill, Warren (United States, 1929–1985), Indo-European studies
- Cowper, Elizabeth (Canada, 1952–), syntax
- Creissels, Denis (France, 1943–), syntax, phonology, Niger–Congo languages, Nakh-Daghestanian languages
- Croft, William (United States, 1956–), syntax, cognitive linguistics
- Crystal, David (UK, 1941–), English language, language death, applied linguistics
- Cuervo, Rufino José (Colombia, 1844–1911), Spanish language, Colombian Spanish
- Culicover, Peter W. (United States), syntax, language change
- Culioli, Antoine (France, 1924–2018), general linguistics
- Cumakunova, Gülzura (Kyrgyzstan, 1954–), Turkic languages
- Curme, George Oliver, Sr. (United States, 1860–1948), German language, English language
- Curzan, Anne (United States), English language, Descriptivism, Prescriptivism, lexicography
- Calvet, Louis-Jean (France, 1942-), Sociolinguistique
D
- Dal, Vladimir (Russia, 1801–1872), lexicography, Russian language
- Dahl, Östen (Sweden, 1945–), tense and aspect in linguistic typology
- Darzi, Ali (Iran, 1959–), generative syntax, minimalist program
- Das, Khudiram (India, 1916–2002), Bengali and Santali language
- Dani, Ahmad Hasan (Pakistan, 1920–2009), South Asian languages
- Daniels, Peter T. (United States, 1951–), writing systems
- Davies, Shaun (Australia), Yugambeh language
- Dayal, Veneeta (United States, 1956–), semantics, syntax
- Deacon, Terrence (United States, 1950–), language change, origin of language, cognitive linguistics
- Dehkhoda, Ali-Akbar (Iran, 1879–1959), lexicography, Persian language
- De Houwer, Annick (Belgium, 1958–), early child bilingualism
- Delbrück, Berthold (Germany, 1842–1922), Indo-European languages, syntax, comparative linguistics
- DeLancey, Scott (United States, 1949–), Tibeto-Burman languages, linguistic typology, historical linguistics
- Dempwolff, Otto (Germany, 1871–1938), Austronesian languages
- Diderichsen, Paul (Denmark, 1905–1964), Danish
- Diffloth, Gérard (United States, 1939–2023), Mon–Khmer languages
- van Dijk, Teun Adrianus (Netherlands, 1943–), pragmatics, discourse analysis, text linguistics
- Dik, Simon (the Netherlands, 1940–1995) Functional Grammar, theoretical linguistics
- Dixon, Robert Malcolm Ward (Australia, 1939–), syntax, typology, Australian languages, Amazonian languages
- Dobrovský, Josef (Czech Republic, 1753–1829), Slavic languages, Czech language, lexicography
- Dobson, Veronica Perrule (Australia, 1944–), Arrernte language
- Doke, Clement Martyn (South Africa, 1893–1980), Bantu languages, Lamba language
- Dolgopolsky, Aharon (Russia/Israel, 1930–2012), Nostratic languages
- Dorian, Nancy (United States, 1936–2024), language death, Scottish Gaelic
- Dougherty, Ray C. (United States, 1940–), transformational grammar, computational linguistics
- Dowty, David (United States, 1945–), semantics, syntax
- Dozier, Edward P. (United States, 1916–1971), Native American languages, languages of the Philippines
- Dressler, Wolfgang U. (Austria, 1939–), phonology, morphology, text linguistics
- van Driem, George (Netherlands, 1957–), Tibeto-Burman languages, symbiosism, Dzongkha language
- Dryer, Matthew (United States), typology, syntax, language documentation
- Duden, Konrad (Germany, 1829–1911), lexicography, German language
- Dunn, John Asher (United States,1939–2017), Tsimshian language
- Dušková, Libuše (Czech Republic, 1930–), English language, functional linguistics
E
- Eckert, Penelope (United States, 1942–), sociolinguistics, language and gender
- Edmondson, Jerold A. (United States, 1941–2023), Tai–Kadai languages, languages of Southeast Asia
- Edwards, Jonathan, Jr. (United States, 1745–1801), North American languages, historical linguistics, Mohegan language
- Ehret, Christopher (United States, 1941–2025), languages of Africa, historical linguistics
- Elbert, Samuel Hoyt (United States, 1907–1997), Polynesian languages of Hawaiʻi and Rennell and Bellona, Puluwatese language
- Elgin, Suzette Haden (United States, 1936–2015), constructed languages, transformational grammar
- Ellis, Rod (UK), second-language acquisition
- Elman, Jeffrey L. (United States, 1948–2018), language processing, neurolinguistics
- Emeneau, Murray Barnson (United States, 1904–2005), Dravidian languages, linguist areas
- Emre, Ahmet Cevat (Turkey, 1876–1961), Member of the Turkish Language Association, Turkish alphabet
- Engberg-Pedersen, Elisabeth (Denmark, 1952–), semantics, Danish Sign Language
- Epps, Patience L., Amazonian languages, language documentation
- Erdal, Marcel (Turkey, 1945–), Turkic languages
- Esenç, Tevfik (Turkey, 1904–1992), Ubykh language
- Esling, John (Canada, 1939–), phonetics
- Estrella Santos, Ana (Ecuador, born 20th-c.), dialectology
- Evans, Nicholas (Australia, 1956–), Indigenous Australian languages, Papuan languages, typology
- Evans, Vyvyan (UK, 1968–), cognitive linguistics, digital communication, and emoji
- Even-Shoshan, Avraham (Belarus/Israel, 1906–1984), Hebrew language, lexicography
- Everett, Daniel Leonard (United States, 1951–), languages of Brazil, Pirahã language
- Everson, Michael (United States/Ireland, 1963–), writing systems, historical linguistics
F
- Fairuzabadi (Iran, 1329–1414), lexicography, Arabic grammar
- Farhady, Hossein (Iran, born 1947), Iranian applied linguist
- Fassi Fehri, Abdelkader (Morocco, 1947–), Arabic syntax
- Fierz-David, Linda (Germany, 1891–1955), philology
- Fillmore, Charles J. (United States, 1929–2014), syntax, lexical semantics, cognitive linguistics, lexicography
- Firbas, Jan (Czech Republic, 1921–2000), English language, functional linguistics
- Firth, John Rupert (UK, 1890–1960), phonetics, phonology, prosody
- Fischer-Jørgensen, Eli (Denmark 1911–2010), phonetics, phonology, Danish language
- Fishman, Joshua (United States, 1926–2015), sociology of language
- Fiske, Willard (United States, 1831–1904), Northern European languages, Icelandic language
- Fodor, Janet Dean (United States, 1942–2023), psycholinguistics, semantics, syntax
- Fodor, Jerry Alan (United States, 1935–2017), psycholinguistics, language of thought
- Foley, William A. (Australia, 1949–), Papuan languages, Austronesian languages
- Ford, Jeremiah Denis Mathias (United States, 1873–1958), Spanish language
- Fowler, Carol A. (United States), phonetics, phonology
- François, Alexandre (France), Austronesian languages, historical linguistics, language contact
- Freiman, Aleksandr Arnoldovich (Poland/Russia, 1879–1968), Iranian languages
- French, David Heath (United States, 1918–1994), Native American languages
- Friedrich, Johannes (Germany, 1893–1972), Hittite language
- Fromkin, Victoria (United States, 1923–2000), theoretical linguistics, constructed languages
- Fujitani Nariakira (Japan, 1738–1779), Japanese language
G
- Galloway, Brent D. (United States, 1944–2014), Amerindian languages, Halkomelem language
- Gamkrelidze, Thomas V. (Georgia, 1929–2021), Indo-European studies, Georgian language
- Gans, Eric (United States, 1941–), origin of language
- Garnier, Romain (France, 1976–), Indo-European linguistics
- Gazdar, Gerald (UK, 1950–), computational linguistics, syntax, semantics
- Gebauer, Jan (Czech Republic, 1838–1907), Czech language
- Geeraerts, Dirk (Belgium, 1955–), semantics, lexicography
- van Geert, Paul (Netherlands, 1950–), second language development
- Giles, Howard (Wales/United States, 1946–), sociolinguistics
- Givón, Talmy (Israel/United States, 1936–), syntax, semantics, pragmatics, typology, functionalism
- Giegerich, Heinz (Germany/UK, 1952–), English language, phonology
- Gleason, Jean Berko (United States, 1931–), psycholinguistics, language acquisition
- Goatly, Andrew (UK), English language, Chinese language
- Goddard, Cliff (Australia, 1953–), semantics, pragmatics
- Goddard, R.H. Ives, III (United States, 1941–2025), Algonquian languages, historical linguistics
- Gode, Alexander (Germany/United States, 1906–1970), constructed languages, Germanic languages
- Goldberg, Adele (United States, 1963–), syntax, psycholinguistics
- Goldsmith, John Anton (United States, 1951–), phonology, computational linguistics
- Goldstein, Louis M. (United States), phonetics, phonology
- Gong Hwang-cherng (Republic of China, 1934–2010), Sino-Tibetan languages, Old Chinese, Tangut language
- Gordon, Cyrus Herzl (United States, 1908–2001), ancient languages, cuneiform script
- Gramsci, Antonio (Italy, 1891–1937), Italian language
- Gray, Louis Herbert (United States, 1875–1955), Indo-Iranian languages, phonology
- Green, Lisa (United States), syntax of African American English
- Greenberg, Joseph Harold (United States, 1915–2001), typology, language universals, languages of Africa
- Grenoble, Lenore (United States, 1958–), language contact, language endangerment, deixis, Slavic and Arctic Indigenous languages
- Grice, (Herbert) Paul (UK/United States, 1913–1988), pragmatics
- Grierson, George Abraham (Ireland, 1851–1941), languages of India
- Gries, Stefan Th. (Germany/United States, 1970–), corpus linguistics, computational linguistics, cognitive linguistics, construction grammar
- Grimm, Jakob Ludwig Carl (Germany, 1785–1863), historical linguistics, comparative linguistics, German language
- Grinder, John Thomas (United States, 1940–), neurolinguistics
- Gross, Maurice (France, 1934–2001), lexicon-grammar
- Grosz, Barbara J. (United States, 1948– ), natural language processing, computational modeling of discourse
- Groupe μ (Belgium, 1967–), rhetorics, semiotics
- Grube, Wilhelm (Germany, 1855–1908), Tungusic languages, Nivkh language, Jurchen language
- Grønnum, Nina (Denmark, 1945–), intonation of Danish
- Gumperz, John Joseph (United States, 1922–2013), sociolinguistics, discourse analysis, linguistic anthropology
- Gutiérrez Eskildsen, Rosario María (Mexico, 1899–1979), Spanish language, dialectology
- Guy, Gregory (United States, 1950–), sociolinguistics, historical linguistics, phonetics, phonology
- Guthrie, Malcolm (Britain, 1903–1972), Bantu languages
- Gygax, Pascal (Swiss, 1974–), inclusive language in French
H
- Haarmann, Harald (Germany, 1946–), evolutionary linguistics, language contact
- Haas, Mary Rosamund (United States, 1910–1996), Native American languages, Thai language, historical linguistics
- Haase, Martin (Germany, 1962–), Romance languages
- Hagberg, Carl August (Sweden, 1810–1864), Scandinavian languages
- Hajič, Jan (Czech Republic), computational linguistics
- Hajičová, Eva (Czech Republic, 1935–), corpus linguistics
- Hale, Kenneth Locke (United States, 1934–2001), syntax, phonology
- Hall, Kira (United States, 1962–), sociocultural linguistics
- Hall, Robert A., Jr. (United States, 1911–1997), Romance languages, Pidgins and Creoles
- Halle, Morris (Latvia/United States, 1923–2018), phonology, morphology
- Halliday, Michael Alexander Kirkwood (UK/Australia, 1925–2018), systemic functional grammar, ecolinguistics, applied linguistics
- Hammarström, Harald (Sweden, 1977–), computational linguistics, historical linguistics, linguistic typology
- Hammond, Michael (United States, 1957–), phonology, computational linguistics, syntax
- Hamp, Eric P. (United States, 1920–2019), Indo-European languages, Native American languages
- Hanzeli, Victor (United States, 1925–1991), Romance languages
- Haq, Mehr Abdul (Pakistan, 1915–1995), Saraiki language
- Harder, Peter (Denmark, 1950–), English language, functional linguistics
- Harkavy, Alexander (Belarus/United States, 1863–1939), Yiddish language, lexicography
- Harley, Heidi B. (United States, 1969–), distributed morphology, syntax
- Harrington, John Peabody (United States, 1884–1961), Native American languages, phonetics
- Alice C. Harris (United States, 1947-), Kartvelian languages, historical linguistics
- Harris, Roy (UK, 1931–2015), semiology, integrationism
- Harris, Zellig Sabbetai (Ukraine/United States, 1909–1992), structural linguistics, discourse analysis, Semitic languages
- Harrison, K. David (United States, 1966–), phonology, endangered languages, language extinction
- Hartmann, Reinhard Rudolf Karl (Austria/UK, 1938–2024), lexicography, contrastive linguistics
- Hasan, Ruqaiya (India/Australia, 1931–2015), systemic functional grammar, sociolinguistics, applied linguistics
- Hashimoto Mantarō (Japan, 1932–1987), Japanese language
- Hashimoto Shinkichi (Japan, 1882–1945), Old Japanese language, Japanese language
- Haspelmath, Martin (Germany, 1963–), typology, language change, language contact, Lezgian language
- Haugen, Einar Ingvald (United States, 1906– 1994), sociolinguistics, Old Norse
- Hawkins, John A. (UK), psycholinguistics, historical linguistics
- Hayakawa, Samuel Ichiye (Canada/United States, 1906–1992), semantics
- Hayes, Bruce (United States, 1955–), phonology
- Hays, David Glenn (United States, 1928–1995), computational linguistics, machine translation, dependency grammar, corpus linguistics, natural language processing, cognitive science
- Heath, Jeffrey (United States, 1949–), historical linguistics, morphology, linguistic anthropology
- Heim, Irene Roswitha (Germany/United States, 1954–), semantics
- Heine, Bernd (Germany, 1939–), languages of Africa, sociolinguistics, language contact
- Hepburn, James Curtis (United States, 1815–1911), Japanese language, lexicography
- Herbert, Robert Knox (United States, 1952–2007), phonology, languages of Africa, sociolinguistics
- Hetzron, Robert (Hungary/United States, 1937–1997), Afro-Asiatic languages
- Hewitt, John Napoleon Brinton (United States, 1859–1937), Iroquoian languages
- Hjelmslev, Louis (Denmark, 1899–1965), comparative linguistics, semantics
- Hobbs, Jerry R. (United States, 1942–), computational linguistics, discourse analysis, syntax, semantics
- Hock, Hans Henrich (Germany/United States, 1938–), historical linguistics, comparative linguistics, Sanskrit
- Hockett, Charles Francis (United States, 1916–2000), phonology, morphology
- Hoey, Michael (UK, 1948–2021), lexical priming, textual interaction, corpus linguistics
- Hoff, Erika (United States, 1951—), Psycholinguistics
- Hoffmann, John-Baptist (Germany, 1857–1928), Mundari language
- Hogg, Richard M. (UK, 1944–2007), phonology, historical linguistics
- Hoijer, Harry (United States, 1904–1976), Athabaskan languages, Tonkawa language
- Hopper, Paul (UK/United States), historical linguistics, emergent grammar
- Hornstein, Norbert (United States), syntax
- Hryhorchuk, Lidiia (Ukraine, 1926–2018), Ukrainian language
- Hrozný, Bedřich (Czech Republic, 1879–1952), Hittite language, ancient languages
- Huddleston, Rodney D. (UK/Australia, 1937—), English language
- Hudson, Richard (UK, 1939–), syntax, word grammar, linguistics in education
- von Humboldt, Wilhelm (Germany, 1787–1835), Basque language
- Hunston, Susan (UK, 1953–), corpus linguistics, lexical semantics
- Hupel, August Wilhelm (Germany/Estonia, 1737–1819), Estonian language, lexicography
- Hurford, James R. (UK, United States, 1941–), phonetics, semantics, grammar, computational linguistics, evolutionary linguistics
- Husain Khan, Masud (India, 1919–2010), Urdu language, phonetics, stylistics, linguistic description
- Hyman, Larry M. (United States, 1947–), phonology, languages of Africa
- Hymes, Dell Hathaway (United States, 1927–2009), sociolinguistics, Kathlamet language
I
- Ibn Sidah (Andalusia, c. 1007–1066)
- Ibn Manzur (c. 1233–1311/1312)
- Ibn Jinni (c. 932–1002)
- Illich-Svitych, Vladislav Markovich (Ukraine/Russia, 1934–1966), comparative linguistics, Nostratic languages
- Ivanov, Aleksei Ivanovich (Russia, 1878–1937), Chinese language, Tangut language
- Ivanov, Vyacheslav Vsevolodovich (Russia, 1929–2017), Indo-European studies
- Ivić, Pavle (Serbia, 1924–1999), South Slavic languages, phonology, Serbo-Croatian language
J
- Jackendoff, Ray (United States, 1945–), syntax, lexical semantics
- Jackson, Abraham Valentine Williams (United States, 1862—1937), Indo-Iranian languages, Avestan language
- Jackson, Kenneth Hurlstone (UK, 1909—1991), Brythonic languages, Gaelic languages
- Jacobsen, Lis (1882–1961), Danish and Nordic languages
- Jacques, Guillaume (France, 1979—), Old Chinese, Rgyalrongic languages, Tangut language
- Jagić, Vatroslav (Croatia, 1838—1923), Croatian language, Slavic languages
- Jakobson, Roman Osipovich (Russia/Czech Republic/United States, 1896—1982), structuralism, phonology
- Jarring, Gunnar (Sweden, 1907—2002), Turkic languages
- Jasanoff, Jay (United States, 1942–), Indo-European linguistics
- Jaszczolt, Katarzyna (UK, 1963—), semantics, pragmatics, philosophy of language
- Jaunius, Kazimieras (Lithuania, 1848—1908), Lithuanian language, comparative linguistics
- Jendraschek, Gerd (Germany), Basque language, Turkish language, Iatmul language
- Jensen, Eva Skafte (Denmark, 1966—), Danish language
- Jespersen, Otto (Denmark, 1860—1943), English language, phonetics, constructed languages
- Johnson, David E. (United States, 1946–), syntax
- Jones, Daniel (UK, 1881—1967), phonetics
- Jones, Sir William (UK, 1746—1794), Indo-European studies, Sanskrit, comparative linguistics
- Joshi, Aravind Krishana (India/United States, 1929–2017), computational linguistics
- Junast (PR China, 1934–2010), Mongolian language, Monguor language, Eastern Yugur language, Phags-pa script
- Jurafsky, Daniel (United States, 1962—), computational linguistics
K
- Kaplan, Ronald M. (United States, 1946—), computational linguistics
- Karadžić, Vuk Stefanović (Serbia, 1787—1864), Serbian language, lexicography
- Kari, James (United States), Native American languages
- Kasravi, Ahmad (Iran, 1890—1946), ancient languages, Iranian languages
- Katz, Jerrold J. (United States, 1932—2002), semantics, generative grammar
- Kaufman, Terrence (United States, 1937—2022), historical linguistics, contact linguistics, Mesoamerican languages
- Kay, Martin (UK, United States, 1935–2021), computational linguistics
- Kay, Paul (United States, 1934—), construction grammar
- Kayne, Richard S. (United States, 1944—), syntax, transformational grammar
- Kazama Kiyozō (Japan, 1928–), Japanese language
- Keating, Patricia (United States, 1952—), phonetics
- Kellogg, Samuel H. (United States, 1839–1899), Hindi language
- Kenyon, John Samuel (United States, 1874—1959), English language, lexicography, phonology
- Keyser, Samuel Jay (United States, 1935–), phonology, English language
- Kiesling, Scott Fabius (United States), sociolinguistics
- Kindaichi Haruhiko (Japan, 1913–2004), Japanese language
- Kindaichi Kyōsuke (Japan, 1882–1971), Ainu language
- Kinkade, M. Dale (United States, 1933—2004), Salishan languages
- Kiparsky, Paul (Finland/United States, 1941–), phonology, morphology
- Kirby, Simon (UK), computational linguistics, evolutionary linguistics
- Klima, Edward (United States, 1931—2008), sign language
- Klinkenberg, Jean-Marie (Belgium, 1944–), rhetorics, semiotics, stylistics
- Kloekhorst, Alwin (Netherlands, 1978–), Anatolian languages
- Knechtges, David R. (United States, 1942–), East Asian languages, Chinese language
- Knorozov, Yuri Valentinovich (Russia, 1922—1999), Maya hieroglyphics, writing systems
- Kober, Alice (UK/United States, 1906—1950), Linear B
- Komárek, Miroslav (Czechia, 1924–2013), Czech language, morphology, phonology
- Kordić, Snježana (Croatia, 1964–), Serbo-Croatian language, syntax, sociolinguistics
- Kornai András (Hungary/United States, 1957–), mathematical linguistics, phonology, morphology, Hungarian language, syntax
- Kornfilt, Jaklin, theoretical linguistics, syntax, morphology, Turkic languages, Germanic languages
- Korsakov, Andrey Konstantinovich (Russia/Ukraine, 1916—2007), Germanic languages, English language, morphology, syntax
- Kortlandt, Frederik (Netherlands, 1946–), historical linguistics, Indo-European linguistics, Balto-Slavic languages
- Korzybski, Alfred Habdank Skarbek (Poland/United States, 1879—1950), general semantics
- Koster, Jan (Netherlands, 1945–), generative grammar
- Krahe, Hans (Germany, 1898—1965), Indo-European languages, Illyrian language
- Krashen, Stephen (United States, 1941–), second-language acquisition
- Kratzer, Angelika (United States/Germany), semantics
- Krauss, Michael E. (United States, 1941–2019), Native American languages
- Krishnamurti, Bhadriraju (India, 1929–2012), Dravidian languages
- Kroeber, Alfred Louis (United States, 1876—1960), Native American languages
- Kučera, Henry (Czech Republic/United States, 1925–2010), computational linguistics
- Kuiper, F. B. J. (Netherlands, 1907–2003), historical linguistics, Indo-European linguistics, and Sanskrit
- Kuno Susumu (Japan/United States, 1933–), Dravidian languages, Japanese language, syntax
- Kurath, Hans (Austria/United States, 1891—1992), English language, lexicography, dialectology
- Kuroda Shigeyuki (Japan, 1934–2009), Japanese language
- Kuryłowicz, Jerzy (Poland, 1895—1978), Indo-European languages, syntax, morphology
- Kvergić, Hermann Feodor (Slovakia, 1895–sometime after 1948), Turkish language
- Kychanov, Evgenij Ivanovich (Russia, 1932–2013), Tangut language
L
- Labov, William (United States, 1927–2024), sociolinguistics, English dialectology, phonology
- Lado, Robert (United States, 1915–1995), applied linguistics, contrastive analysis
- Ladefoged, Peter Nielsen (UK/United States, 1925–2006), phonetics, endangered languages
- Laird, Charlton (United States, 1901–1984), lexicography, English language
- Lakoff, George P. (United States, 1941–), cognitive linguistics, transformational grammar, generative semantics, syntax
- Lakoff, Robin Tolmach (United States, 1942–2025), sociolinguistics
- Lamb, Sydney MacDonald (United States, 1929–), stratificational grammar, Native American languages, historical linguistics, computational linguistics
- Lambdin, Thomas Oden (United States, 1927–2020), Semitic languages, Egyptian language
- Lane, Harlan (United States, 1936–2019), speech, Deaf culture, sign language
- Langacker, Ronald W. (United States, 1942–), cognitive linguistics
- Langdon, Margaret (United States, 1926–2005), Native American languages
- LaPolla, Randy J. (United States), morpho-syntax, Chinese, Qiang, Rawang
- Lasersohn, Peter (United States), semantics
- Lasnik, Howard (United States, 1945–), syntax
- Laycock, Donald (Australia, 1936–1988), languages of Papua New Guinea
- Leech, Geoffrey (UK, 1936–2014), applied linguistics, English language
- Lees, Robert (United States, 1922–1996), machine translation
- Lehiste, Ilse (United States, 1922–2010), phonetics, Estonian language, Serbo-Croatian, phonology
- Lehmann, Winfred P. (United States, 1916– 2007), historical linguistics, Proto-Indo-European language
- Leonard, Robert A. (United States), Forensic linguistics
- Lepsius, Karl Richard (Germany, 1810– 1884), Egyptian language, Nubian languages, phonology
- Leslau, Wolf (Polish-born American, 1906–2006), Semitic languages, Languages of Ethiopia
- Leskien, August (Germany, 1840–1916), comparative linguistics, Baltic languages, Slavic languages
- Levin, Beth (United States, 1955–), semantics
- Levinson, Stephen C. (UK/Netherlands, 1947–), pragmatics
- Levstik, Fran (Slovenia, 1831–1881), Slovene language
- Li Fanwen (PR China, 1932–), Tangut language
- Li, Fang-Kuei (China/United States, 1902–1987), Mattole language, Tai languages, Old Chinese, Tibetan language
- Li, Paul Jen-kuei (Taiwan, 1936–), Formosan languages, Austronesian languages, historical linguistics, lexicography
- Liberman, Alvin Meyer (United States, 1917–2000), speech perception, phonology
- Liberman, Anatoly (Russia/United States, 1937–), etymology, Germanic languages
- Liberman, Mark (United States), phonetics, prosody
- Lieber, Rochelle (United States, 1954–), morphology, syntax, lexical semantics
- Lieberman, Philip (United States, 1934–2022), phonetics, language evolution
- Lillo-Martin, Diane (United States), signed languages
- Lisker, Leigh (United States, 1918–2006), phonetics, Dravidian languages
- Local, John (UK, 1947–), phonetics, phonology, conversation analysis
- López Sández, María (Spain, born 1973), Galician philologist and essayist
- Lounsbury, Floyd Glenn (United States, 1914–1998), Native American languages, Mayan languages
- Lowman, Guy Sumner, Jr. (United States, 1909–1941), phonetics
- Ludlow, Peter (United States, 1957–), syntax, semantics
- Lukoff, Fred (United States, 1920–2000), Korean language, phonology
- Lunde, Ken (United States, 1965–), East Asian languages
- Lynch, John (Australia, 1946–2021), Austronesian languages, historical linguistics
M
- MacWhinney, Brian (United States, 1945–), language acquisition, second-language acquisition, corpus linguistics
- Maddieson, Ian (United States, 1942–), phonetics
- Fray Francisco Maldonado (1571– c. 1640), Guatemalan Franciscan linguist and historian
- Manzini, Rita (Italy), generative syntax, Romance languages
- Malkiel, Yakov (United States, 1914–1998), etymology, philology
- Manaster Ramer, Alexis (United States/Poland, 1956–), phonology, syntax, poetics, etymology
- Marantz, Alec (United States, 1959–), distributed morphology
- March, Francis Andrew (United States, 1825–1911), comparative linguistics, lexicography, Old English language, English language
- Margolis, Max Leopold (Lithuania/United States, 1866–1932), Semitic languages
- Marr, Nikolay Yakovlevich (Georgia/Russia, 1865–1934), historical linguistics, comparative linguistics, origin of language
- Martin, James (Sydney, Australia, 1950–), genre
- Martin, Samuel Elmo (United States, 1924–2009), Korean language, Japanese language
- Martinet, André (France, 1908–1999), structuralism, historical linguistics, constructed languages
- Martinet, Jeanne (France, 1920–2018), semiotics, constructed languages
- Massam, Diane (Canada), syntax, Austronesian languages
- Matasović, Ranko (Croatia, 1968–), historical linguistics, Celtic languages
- Mathesius, Vilém (Czech Republic, 1882– 1945), phonology, syntax, English language, Czech language
- Matisoff, James A. (United States, 1937–), Tibeto-Burman languages, phonology
- Matthews, Peter Hugoe (UK, 1934–2023), morphology, syntax
- Matthews, Stephen (UK/PR China), typology, syntax, semantics, Cantonese language
- Mattingly, Ignatius G. (United States, 1927–2004), phonetics, speech synthesis, speech perception
- Matveyev, Aleksandr (Russia, 1926–2010), onomastics, etymology
- McArthur, Tom (UK, 1938–2020), English language, lexicography
- McCarthy, John J. (United States, 1953–), phonology, morphology, optimality theory
- McCawley, James D. (UK/United States, 1938–1999), syntax, semantics, phonology
- McConnell-Ginet, Sally (United States, 1938–), language of gender and sexuality
- McCulloch, Gretchen (Canada), internet linguistics
- McCune, George McAfee (North Korea/United States, 1908–1988), Korean language
- McNamara, Barbara (United States, 1942–), Chinese language
- McGregor, William B. (Australia, 1952–), Australian Aboriginal languages, theoretical linguistics, Shua language
- McWhorter, John Hamilton (United States, 1965–), creole languages, Saramaccan language
- Meillet, Antoine (France, 1866–1936), Comparative Linguistics, Armenian language, Philology
- Meinhof, Carl Friedrich Michael (Germany, 1857–1944), languages of Africa
- Melchert, H. Craig (United States, 1945–), Anatolian languages
- Merchant, Jason (United States, 1966–), syntax, semantics, ellipsis
- Michaelis, Laura A. (United States), syntax, English language
- Michaud, Alexis (France, 1975–), Phonetics, Tonology, Naish languages, Vietnamese
- Miklosich, Franz (Slovenia/Austria, 1813–1891), Slavic languages
- Miller, Wick R. (United States, 1932–1994), Keresan languages, Uto-Aztecan languages
- Miller, Roy Andrew (United States, 1924–2014), Tibetan language, Japanese language
- Mithun, Marianne (United States, 1946–), Native American languages
- Mitxelena Elissalt, Koldo (Spain, 1915–1987), Basque language
- Miura Tsutomu (Japan, 1911–1989), Japanese language
- Miyake, Marc (United States, 1971–), historical linguistics, Old Japanese, Tangut language
- Mönkh-Amgalan, Yümjiriin (Mongolia, 1956–), pragmatics, semantics, syntax, Mongolian language, dialectology
- Mori Hiromichi (Japan, 1949–), Japanese language
- Moskvin, Anatoly (Russia, 1966–), academic and linguist, arrested in 2011 after the bodies of 26 mummified young women were discovered in his home
- Motoori Norinaga (Japan, 1730–1801), Japanese language
- Motoori Haruniwa (Japan, 1763–1828), Japanese language
- Montague, Richard Merett (United States, 1930–1971), semantics, philosophy of language
- Moro, Andrea (Italy, 1962–), syntax, copula, expletive, antisymmetry, neurolinguistics
- Moser, Edward W. (United States, 1924–1976), Seri language
- Mufwene, Salikoko (United States), creole languages, African-American English, language evolution
- Mulder, Jean (United States, 1954–), Australian English, Tsimshianic languages
- Munro, Pamela (United States, 1947–), Native American languages, lexicography
- Murayama Shichirō (Japan, 1908–1995), Japanese language
- Murray, James (UK, 1837–1915), lexicography, English language, etymology
- Muti’I, Ibrahim (China, 1920–2010), Uyghur language
- Myers-Scotton, Carol (United States, 1934–), language contact
N
- Nábělková, Mira (Slovakia, 1956–), lexical semantics, sociolinguistics
- Nádasdy, Ádám (Hungary, 1947–2026), phonology, morphophonology
- Napoli, Donna Jo (United States, 1948–), syntax, phonetics, phonology, Japanese language
- Neeleman, Ad (Netherlands/UK, 1964–), syntax, semantics, phonology, generative grammar
- Nelson, Andrew Nathaniel (United States, 1893–1975), Japanese language, lexicography
- Nevsky, Nikolai Aleksandrovich (Russia, 1892– 1937), Tangut language
- Newman, Paul (United States, 1937-), African languages
- Newmeyer, Frederick J. (United States, 1944–), syntax, origin of language
- Nichols, Johanna (United States, 1945–), languages of the Caucasus, Chechen language, Ingush language, typology
- Niftawayh (Iraq, c. 8585–935), Arabic grammar, lexicography
- Nishida Tatsuo (Japan, 1928–2012), Tangut language
- Nolan, Francis (UK), phonetics
- Noreen, Adolf Gotthard (Sweden, 1854–1925), dialectology, historical linguistics, Germanic languages
- Nunberg, Geoffrey (United States, 1945–2020), lexical semantics, English language
O
- Odden, David A. (United States, 1954–), phonology, African linguistics, Bantu languages
- Odin, Louise (Switzerland, 1836–1909), Blonay dialect linguist, dialect researcher and author
- Ogilvie, Sarah (Australia)
- Ohala, John (United States, 1941–2020), phonetics, phonology
- Okrand, Marc (United States, 1948–), Klingon language, Mutsun language
- Ōno Susumu (Japan, 1919–2008), Japanese language, Tamil language
- Orešnik, Janez (Slovenia, 1935–), comparative linguistics
- Orikuchi Shinobu (Japan, 1887–1953), Japanese language
- Orton, Harold (UK, 1898–1975), phonology, dialectology, English dialects
- Osthoff, Hermann (Germany, 1847–1909), Indo-European studies, historical linguistics
- Ōtsuki Fumihiko (Japan, 1847–1928), Japanese language
- Özyürek, Aslı, psycholinguistics, neurolinguistics
P
- Pāṇini (India, ca. 520–460 BC), Sanskrit, morphology, descriptive linguistics, generative linguistics
- Frank R. Palmer (England, 1922–2019), semantics, English language, Ethiopian languages
- Partee, Barbara Hall (United States, 1940–), semantics
- Paul, Hermann Otto Theodor (Germany, 1846–1921), lexicography, German language
- Pawley, Andrew Kenneth (Australia/New Zealand, 1941), Austronesian languages, Papuan languages, lexicography, phraseology
- Peacock, Dmitri Rudolf (Britain, 1842–1892), Kartvelian languages
- Pedersen, Holger (Denmark, 1867–1953), Celtic languages, historical linguistics, Nostratic languages
- Pedersen, Johannes (Denmark, 1883–1977), Hebrew language
- Pei, Mario Andrew (Italy/United States, 1901–1978), Italian language, Indo-European languages
- Pesetsky, David Michael (United States, 1957–), transformational grammar
- Keith Malcolm Petyt (UK, 1941–), sociolinguistics
- Phillipson, Robert (UK/Denmark, 1942–), language policy
- Pierrehumbert, Janet (United States, 1954–), phonetics, phonology
- Piller, Ingrid (Australia, 1967–), applied linguistics, sociolinguistics, intercultural communication
- Pinault, Georges-Jean (France, 1955–), Tokharian, Indo-European linguistics
- Pike, Kenneth Lee (United States, 1912–2000), English language, constructed languages, tagmemics
- Pilch, Herbert (Germany, 1927–2018), Old English, Celtic languages, phonetics
- Pimsleur, Paul (United States, 1927–1976), language acquisition, French language, phonetics
- Pinker, Steven (Canada/United States, 1954–), language acquisition, syntax, semantics
- Piron, Claude (Switzerland, 1931–2008), Esperanto, psycholinguistics
- Polinsky, Maria (United States), syntax, Austronesian languages
- Pollard, Carl Jesse (United States, 1947–), syntax, semantics
- Pollock, Jean-Yves (France, 1946–), syntax
- Poplack, Shana (United States), sociolinguistics
- Poppe, Nicholas (Russia, 1897–1991), Mongolic languages
- Postal, Paul M. (United States, 1936–), syntax, semantics
- Pou, Saveros (Cambodia/France, 1929-2020), Khmer
- Primer, Sylvester (United States, 1842–1912), English language, dialectology, phonetics, Germanic languages
- Prince, Alan Sanford (United States, 1946–), optimality theory, phonology
- Prince, Ellen (United States, 1944–2010), pragmatics
- Pulgram, Ernst (Austria/United States, 1915– 2005), Romance languages, Italic languages
- Pullum, Geoffrey K. (UK/United States, 1945–), syntax, English language
- Pustejovsky, James D. (United States, 1956–), natural language processing, computational linguistics, semantics
Q
- Quirk, Charles Randolph (UK/Germany, 1920–2017), English language
R
- Radford, Andrew (UK, 1945–), syntax, generative grammar, child language acquisition
- Rael, Juan Bautista (United States, 1900–1993), phonology, morphology, New Mexican Spanish
- Rankin, Robert L. (United States, 1939–2014), historical linguistics and Siouan linguistics
- Rask, Rasmus Christian (Denmark, 1787–1832), lexicography, comparative linguistics, Indo-European language
- Ratliff, Martha (United States, 1946–), Hmong–Mien languages, historical linguistics
- Rauch, Irmengard (United States, 1933–), Germanic languages, semiotics
- Read, Allen Walker (United States, 1906–2002), etymology, lexicography, English language
- Reinhart, Tanya (Israel, 1943–2007), syntax
- Rice, Keren (Canada), phonology, morphology, Athapaskan languages
- Rickford, John Russell (United States, 1949–), sociolinguistics, African-American English
- van Riemsdijk, Henk (Netherlands, 1948–), prepositional phrases, free relatives, syntax, Germanic language
- Rizzi, Luigi (Italy, 1952–), syntax, language acquisition
- Roberts, Ian G. (UK, 1957–), syntax
- Rock, Joseph Francis Charles (Austria/United States/PR China, 1884–1962), Naxi language, lexicography
- Rosenblat, Ángel (Poland/Venezuela, 1902–1984), lexicography, Venezuelan Spanish, Philology
- Ross, John Robert (United States, 1938–2025), semantics, syntax
- Ross, Malcolm David (Australia, 1942–), Austronesian languages, Papuan languages, historical linguistics, language contact
- Rubach, Jerzy (Poland/United States, 1948–), phonology, Polish language
- Rubin, Philip E. (United States, 1949–), articulatory synthesis, phonology
- Ruhlen, Merritt (United States, 1944–2021), typology, historical linguistics
S
- Sacks, Harvey (United States, 1935–1975), conversation analysis
- Sadock, Jerrold (United States), syntax, morphology, pragmatics, Greenlandic language, Yiddish language
- Sag, Ivan (United States, 1949–2013), syntax, construction grammar
- Sagart, Laurent (France, 1951–), Chinese linguistics and Austronesian languages
- Sakaguchi, Alicja (Poland/Germany, 1954–), interlinguistics, Esperanto
- Shakirova, Liya (Soviet Union/Russia, 1921–2015), Russian language
- Salo, David (United States, 1969–), constructed languages, Tocharian languages, Elvish languages
- Sampson, Geoffrey (UK, 1944–), philosophy of language
- Sánchez Carrión, José María (Spain, 1952–), Basque language, sociolinguistics, historical linguistics
- Sanders, Ted (Netherlands, 1963–), Coherence in text, discourse
- Sankoff, Gillian (Canada, 1943–), sociolinguistics
- Sankrityayan, Rahul (India, 1893–1963), Tibetan language, Hindi language
- Sapir, Edward (Germany/United States, 1884–1939), Native American languages, constructed languages, semantics
- Sarkar, Prabhat Ranjan (India, 1921–1990), Transliteration, Science of Letters
- Saunders, Irene (United States/PR China), lexicography, Chinese language
- de Saussure, Ferdinand (Switzerland/France, 1857–1913), semantics, Indo-European studies, structural linguistics
- Saxon, Leslie (Canada), First Nations languages
- Sayce, Archibald Henry (UK, 1846–1933), Akkadian language
- Schegloff, Emanuel (United States, 1937–), conversation analysis
- Schleicher, August (Germany, 1821–1868), Indo-European studies, language development, historical linguistics
- Schmidt, Johannes (Germany, 1843–1901), historical linguistics, Indo-European studies
- Schmidt, Richard (United States, 1941–2017), second-language acquisition
- Schmidt, Wilhelm (Germany/Austria/Switzerland, 1868–1954), Mon–Khmer languages
- Searle, John Rogers (United States, 1932–), philosophy of language, pragmatics
- Selinker, Larry (United States), second-language acquisition
- Sen, Sukumar (India, 1900–1992), Bengali language
- Sequoyah (United States, 1767–1843), Cherokee language
- Setälä, Eemil Nestor (Finland, 1864–1935), Finnish language, Uralic languages
- Sgall, Petr (Czech Republic, 1926–2019), syntax
- Shackle, Christopher (UK, 1942–), Urdu language, Saraiki language
- Shepard-Kegl, Judy (United States, 1953– ), Nicaraguan Sign Language
- Shevoroshkin, Vitaly Victorovich (Russia/United States, 1932–), Slavic languages, Nostratics
- Shinmura Izuru (Japan, 1876–1967), Japanese language
- Shipley, William F. (United States, 1921-2011), Maidu language
- Sibawayh (Iran, ca. 760– 796), Arabic language
- Sidi Boushaki (Algeria, ca. 796–857), Arabic language
- Sievers, Eduard (Germany, 1850–1932), Germanic languages, historical linguistics
- Siewierska, Anna (Poland/Netherlands/UK, 1955–2011), language typology
- Sihler, Andrew Littleton (United States, 1941–), comparative linguistics, Indo-European languages
- Silvet, Johannes (Estonia, 1895–1979), lexicography
- Sinclair, John McHardy (UK, 1933–2007), applied linguistics, corpus linguistics, discourse analysis
- Skeat, Walter W. (UK, 1835–1912), Old English, Middle English, etymology, philology
- Skinner, B.F. (United States, 1905–1992), verbal behavior
- Skousen, Royal (United States, 1945–), language modeling
- Smith, Neilson Voyne (UK, 1939–), syntax, language acquisition
- Smith-Stark, Thomas (United States, 1948–2009), Mesoamerican languages
- Smolensky, Paul (United States, 1955–), phonology, optimality theory, syntax
- Stachowski, Marek (Poland, 1957–), historical linguistics, Turkic languages
- Starostin, Georgiy Sergeevich (Russia, 1976–), comparative linguistics, historical linguistics, Nostratics, Proto-World
- Starostin, Sergei Anatolyevich (Russia, 1953–2005), comparative linguistics, historical linguistics, Nostratics, Proto-World
- Stati, Sorin (Romania-French, 1931–2008), pragmatics, syntax
- Steedman, Mark (UK, United States, 1946–), theoretical linguistics, categorial grammar, syntax, computational linguistics
- Steels, Luc (Belgium, 1952–), computational linguistics, evolutionary linguistics
- Steinmetz, Sol (United States, 1930–2011), Yiddish language
- Stetson, Raymond Herbert (United States, d. 1950), phonetics
- Stieber, Zdzisław (Poland, 1903–1980), Slavic languages, phonology
- Stokoe, William (United States, 1919–2000), American Sign Language, cherology
- Stollznow, Karen (United States, 1976–), lexical semantics, sociolinguistics, cognitive linguistics
- Stuart-Smith, Jane (United Kingdom, 1965–), phonetics, sociolinguistics
- Suzuki Takao (Japan, 1926–2021), Japanese language, sociolinguistics
- Svoboda, Aleš (Czech Republic, 1941–2010), English language, Czech language, functional linguistics
- Swadesh, Morris (United States, 1909–1967), typology, historical linguistics, Native American languages, lexicostatistics
- de Swart, Henriette (Netherlands, 1961–), semantics
- Sweet, Henry (UK, 1845–1912), Germanic languages, phonetics
- Sweetser, Eve (United States), cognitive linguistics, semantics, historical linguistics, Celtic languages
T
- Talmy, Leonard (United States, 1942–), cognitive linguistics, semantics, Yiddish language, Native American languages
- Tannen, Deborah Frances (United States, 1945–), discourse analysis
- Tarone, Elaine (United States, 1962–), second-language acquisition
- Tarpent, Marie-Lucie (Canada, 1941–), Tsimshianic languages
- Tha Myat (Burma, 1899–1977), Mon language, Burmese language, Pyu language, Nagari
- Teeter, Karl van Duyn (United States, 1929– 2007), Algic languages, endangered languages
- Thieberger, Nicholas (Australia), Indigenous Australian languages
- Thomas, Calvin (United States, 1854–1919), Germanic languages, German language
- Thomason, Sarah Grey (United States, 1939–), language contact, historical linguistics, typology, Montana Salish
- Thompson, John Eric Sidney (UK, 1898– 1975), Maya languages, Maya hieroglyphics
- Thompson, Sandra A. (United States, 1941–), syntax, discourse analysis, Mandarin language
- Tokieda Motoki (Japan, 1900–1967), Japanese language
- Tolkien, John Ronal Reuel (UK, 1892–1973), Old English language, constructed languages, Sindarin, Quenya
- Toporišič, Jože (Slovenia, 1926–2014), Slovene language
- Trager, George Leonard (United States, 1906–1992), phonemics, paralanguage, semantics
- Trask, Robert Lawrence (United States, 1944–2004), Basque language, historical linguistics, origin of language
- Traugott, Elizabeth C. (United States, 1939–), grammaticalization
- Troy, Jakelin (Australia, 1960–), Aboriginal Australian languages, language revival, indigenous languages of Pakistan
- Trubetzkoy, Nikolai Sergeyevich (Russia/Austria, 1890–1938), structural linguistics, morphology, phonology
- Trudgill, Peter (UK, 1943–), sociolinguistics, English language, dialectology
- Tuite, Kevin (United States, 1954–), Caucasian languages, Georgian language
- Turin, Mark (UK, 1973–), Himalayan languages, endangered languages
- Turner, Mark (United States, 1954–), cognitive linguistics
- Tucker, Archibald (South Africa, 1904–1980), African languages
U
- Uldall, Elizabeth T. (United States, 1913–2004), phonetics
- Uldall, Hans Jørgen (Denmark, 1907–1957), glossematics, Maidu language
- Ullendorff, Edward (UK, 1920–2011), Semitic languages
- Unger, James Marshall (United States, 1947–), Japanese language, historical linguistics, writing systems
- Upton, Clive (UK, 1946–), English language, sociolinguistics, dialectology
V
- Vajda, Edward (United States, 1958–), Ket language, historical linguistics, Na-Dené languages, comparative linguistics
- van Valin, Robert D. (United States, 1952–), syntax, semantics, cognitive linguistics
- van Wijk, Nicolaas (Netherlands, 1880–1941), historical linguistics, Balto-Slavic languages
- Valli, Clayton (United States, 1951–2003), American Sign Language,
- Vasmer, Max (Russia/Germany, 1886–1962), etymology, historical linguistics, Russian language
- Vassalli, Mikiel Anton (Malta, 1764–1829), Maltese language
- Vaux, Bert (United States, 1968–), phonology, morphology, Armenian language
- Veltman, Calvin (United States/Canada/France, 1941–), sociolinguistics
- Vendler, Zeno (United States, 1921–2004), philosophy of language, event structure
- Ventris, Michael George Francis (UK, 1922–1956), Linear B, Archaic Greek
- Verner, Karl (Denmark, 1846–1896), phonology, comparative linguistics, historical linguistics
- Vincent, Nigel (UK, 1947–), morphology, syntax, historical linguistics
- Voegelin, Charles F. (United States, 1906–1986), indigenous languages of North America
- Voegelin, Florence M. (United States, 1927–1989), Hidatsa language
- Voloshinov, Valentin Nikolaevich (Russia, 1895–1936), semantics
- Vovin, Alexander (Russia/United States, 1961–2022), Japanese language, Siberian languages, Korean language, Ainu language, Central Asian languages
W
- Wackernagel, Jacob (Switzerland, 1853–1938), Indo-European studies, Sanskrit
- Wang Li (PR China, 1900–1986), Chinese language
- Watanabe Shōichi (Japan, 1930–2017), Japanese language
- Watkins, Calvert (United States, 1933–2013), comparative linguistics, Indo-European languages
- Weeks, Raymond (United States, 1863–1954), phonetics, French language
- Weinreich, Max (Latvia/United States, 1893– 1969), Yiddish language
- Weinreich, Uriel (Poland/United States, 1926–1967), sociolinguistics, dialectology, semantics, Yiddish language
- Wells, John Christopher (UK, 1939–), phonetics, Esperanto
- Westermann, Diedrich Hermann (Germany, 1875–1956), languages of Africa, typology
- Westphal, Ernst Oswald Johannes (South Africa/UK, 1919–1990), Bantu languages, Khoisan languages
- Whalen, Douglas H. (United States), phonology, endangered languages
- Wheeler, Benjamin Ide (United States, 1854–1927), historical linguistics, comparative linguistics, Greek language
- White, Lydia (UK/Canada, 1946–), second-language acquisition
- Whitney, William Dwight (United States, 1827–1894), lexicography, Sanskrit, English language
- Wilks, Yorick (UK, 1939–2023), artificial intelligence, computational linguistics, natural language processing, semantics
- Whorf, Benjamin Lee (United States, 1897–1941), Native American languages, Maya script, linguistic relativity
- Wichmann, Søren (Denmark, 1964–), Mesoamerican languages, Mixe–Zoque languages, Mayan languages, Maya script
- Widdowson, Henry G. (UK, 1935–), English language, discourse analysis
- Wierzbicka, Anna (Poland/Australia, 1938–), semantics, pragmatics
- Wiese, Richard (Germany, 1953–), phonology, morphology, neurolinguistics
- Williams, Nicholas Jonathan Anselm (UK/Ireland, 1942–), Cornish language, Irish language, Manx language, phonology
- Williams, Samuel Wells (United States/China, 1812–1884), Chinese language, lexicography
- Wilson, Robert Dick (United States, 1856–1930), comparative linguistics, Hebrew language, Syriac language
- Wittmann, Henri (France/Canada, 1937–), French language, creole languages, morphology, comparative linguistics
- Wodak, Ruth (Austria/UK, 1950–), discourse analysis
- Wolvengrey, Arok (Canada, 1965–), Cree language, syntax, Native American languages, lexicography
- Worcester, Samuel (1798–1859), Presbyterian missionary, linguist, co-founder of Cherokee Phoenix with Elias Boudinot (first Cherokee newspaper in Indian Territory)
- Wright, Alfred (United States, 1788–1853), Presbyterian minister, physician, linguist, Choctaw language
- Wurm, Stephen Adolphe (Hungary/Australia, 1922–2001), Australian Aboriginal languages, Papuan languages
Y
- Yeda Pessoa de Castro (Brazil), African languages
- Yamada Yoshio (Japan, 1873–1958), Japanese language
- Yiakoumetti, Androula (Cyprus), Greek language, dialectology
- Yip, Virginia (Hong Kong, 1962–), bilingual language acquisition, Sinitic grammar
- Yngve, Victor (United States, 1920–2012), computational linguistics, natural language processing
- Young, Robert W. (United States, 1912–2007), Navajo language, lexicography
Z
- Zamenhof, Ludwik Łazarz (Poland, 1859–1917), Esperanto
- Zepeda, Ofelia (United States, 1952–), O'odham language
- Zhang, Niina Ning (PR China), formal syntax, morphology
- Zhou Youguang (PR China, 1906–2017), orthography, Romanization of Chinese
- Zuazo, Koldo (Spain, 1956–), Basque dialectology, sociolinguistics
- Zuckermann, Ghil'ad (Israel, Italy, UK, Australia, 1971–), contact linguistics, lexicology, revival linguistics
- Zwicky, Arnold (United States, 1940–), syntax, morphology
