Robert Hale Ives Goddard, III (1941- ) is curator

Curator

A curator is a manager or overseer. Traditionally, a curator or keeper of a cultural heritage institution is a content specialist responsible for an institution's collections and involved with the interpretation of heritage material...

 emeritus in the Department of Anthropology

Anthropology

Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...

 of the National Museum of Natural History

National Museum of Natural History

The National Museum of Natural History is a natural history museum administered by the Smithsonian Institution, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. Admission is free and the museum is open 364 days a year....

 at the Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Institution

The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...

. He is widely considered the leading expert on the Algonquian languages

Algonquian languages

The Algonquian languages also Algonkian) are a subfamily of Native American languages which includes most of the languages in the Algic language family. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from the orthographically similar Algonquin dialect of the Ojibwe language, which is a...

 and the larger Algic language family.

Early life and education

Ives Goddard received his B.A. from Harvard College

Harvard College

Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...

 in 1963 and his Ph.D. from Harvard University

Harvard University

Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...

 in 1969. From 1966-1969 he was a Junior Fellow of the Harvard Society of Fellows

Harvard Society of Fellows

The Harvard Society of Fellows is a group of scholars selected at the beginning of their careers by Harvard University for extraordinary scholarly potential, upon whom distinctive academic and intellectual opportunities are bestowed in order to foster their individual growth and intellectual...

.

Career

After earning his doctorate, Goddard taught at Harvard as a junior professor.

In 1975, he moved to the Smithsonian Institution. His own field research has concentrated on the Delaware languages and Meskwaki

Meskwaki

The Meskwaki are a Native American people often known to outsiders as the Fox tribe. They have often been closely linked to the Sauk people. In their own language, the Meskwaki call themselves Meshkwahkihaki, which means "the Red-Earths." Historically their homelands were in the Great Lakes region...

 (Fox). He is also known for work on the Algonquian

Algonquian languages

The Algonquian languages also Algonkian) are a subfamily of Native American languages which includes most of the languages in the Algic language family. The name of the Algonquian language family is distinguished from the orthographically similar Algonquin dialect of the Ojibwe language, which is a...

 Massachusett language

Massachusett language

The Massachusett language was a Native American language, a member of the Algonquian language family. It is also known as Wôpanâak , Natick, and Pokanoket....

, and the history of the Cheyenne language

Cheyenne language

The Cheyenne language is a Native American language spoken by the Cheyenne people, predominantly in present-day Montana and Oklahoma in the United States. It is part of the Algonquian language family...

. He has also published on the history of the Arapahoan branch of Algonquian, whose two living representatives are Arapaho

Arapaho

The Arapaho are a tribe of Native Americans historically living on the eastern plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Sioux. Arapaho is an Algonquian language closely related to Gros Ventre, whose people are seen as an early...

 and Gros Ventre.

Goddard is a prominent figure in the study of the methodology of historical linguistics. He has played a significant role in critiquing crank historical linguistic work.

He is the linguistic and technical editor of the Handbook of North American Indians

Handbook of North American Indians

The Handbook of North American Indians is a monographic series of edited scholarly and reference volumes in Americanist studies, published by the Smithsonian Institution beginning in 1978. To date, fifteen volumes have been published...

.

External links

• Ives Goddard homepage, National Museum of Natural History
• Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution
• Harvard Society of Fellows