Gerhardt Laves
Encyclopedia
Gerhardt Laves was a graduate student at the University of Chicago
and Yale University
who spent the years 1929 - 1931 doing fieldwork on Australian Aboriginal languages
.
After his fieldwork he returned to Chicago
, married [1932] and followed his mentor, Edward Sapir
, to Yale in New Haven, CT where he continued his graduate studies. Before completing his Ph.D. (which he never finished) he left Yale to be a teacher on the Navajo reservation at Shiprock
, New Mexico. Several years later he returned to Chicago where he began a career with the International Harvester Company in Chicago
. Laves never returned to linguistics or anthropology and only published two notes based on his work on Australian languages (listed below). His collection of materials from his fieldwork sat in storage until Mark Francillon (an anthropology student at the University of Chicago) heard about it and made contact with Laves in 1983. He arranged for the collection to be copied and deposited (as were the originals, sometime later) in the library at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
.
Laves was probably the first person trained in modern linguistic fieldwork and analysis to study Australian languages. Laves carried out extensive survey work and made intensive study of six languages: 'Kumbaingeri' (Gumbaynggir), 'Karadjeri' (Karajarri), 'Barda' (Bardi
), 'Kurin' (Goreng), 'Hermit Hill' (Matngela) and 'Ngengumeri (Ngan'gimerri). On the basis of his work Laves concluded that all Australian languages belong to a single language family.
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
and Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
who spent the years 1929 - 1931 doing fieldwork on Australian Aboriginal languages
Australian Aboriginal languages
The Australian Aboriginal languages comprise several language families and isolates native to the Australian Aborigines of Australia and a few nearby islands, but by convention excluding the languages of Tasmania and the Torres Strait Islanders...
.
After his fieldwork he returned to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, married [1932] and followed his mentor, Edward Sapir
Edward Sapir
Edward Sapir was an American anthropologist-linguist, widely considered to be one of the most important figures in the early development of the discipline of linguistics....
, to Yale in New Haven, CT where he continued his graduate studies. Before completing his Ph.D. (which he never finished) he left Yale to be a teacher on the Navajo reservation at Shiprock
Shiprock
Shiprock is a rock formation rising nearly above the high-desert plain on the Navajo Nation in San Juan County, New Mexico, USA. It has a peak elevation of above the sea level. It lies about southwest of the town of Shiprock, which is named for the peak...
, New Mexico. Several years later he returned to Chicago where he began a career with the International Harvester Company in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. Laves never returned to linguistics or anthropology and only published two notes based on his work on Australian languages (listed below). His collection of materials from his fieldwork sat in storage until Mark Francillon (an anthropology student at the University of Chicago) heard about it and made contact with Laves in 1983. He arranged for the collection to be copied and deposited (as were the originals, sometime later) in the library at the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
The Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies is an independent Australian Government statutory authority. It is Australia's premier institution for information about the cultures and lifestyles of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It is located on Acton...
.
Laves was probably the first person trained in modern linguistic fieldwork and analysis to study Australian languages. Laves carried out extensive survey work and made intensive study of six languages: 'Kumbaingeri' (Gumbaynggir), 'Karadjeri' (Karajarri), 'Barda' (Bardi
Bardi
Bardi can refer to:*Bardi, Emilia-Romagna, a city in the province of Parma, northern Italy*Bardi, Western Australia, a town in Australia*Bardi bush, an Australian plant, Acacia victoriae...
), 'Kurin' (Goreng), 'Hermit Hill' (Matngela) and 'Ngengumeri (Ngan'gimerri). On the basis of his work Laves concluded that all Australian languages belong to a single language family.
Laves' publications
- Laves, Gerhardt. 1929a [Words among Australian Aborigines], Science n.s. 70, no.1823 : Supplement, xiv.
- Laves, Gerhardt. 1929b Collecting native words, El Palacio 27(8/9), 290-1.