Yakov Malkiel
Encyclopedia
Yakov Malkiel was a U.S. (Russia
n-born) Romance etymologist
and philologist
. His specialty was the development of Latin words, roots, prefixes, and suffixes in modern Romance languages
, particularly Spanish
. He was the founder of the journal Romance Philology.
Malkiel was born in Kiev
to a Russian-Jewish family, and was brought up and educated in Berlin
, after the Russian Civil War
. Despite an early interest in literature, he ended up studying linguistics
at the Humboldt University of Berlin
, then known as the Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität. Being a Jew in 1930s Germany was an obstacle to his education, but one he was able to overcome; his family finally emigrated to the United States in 1940.
After two years unemployed in New York, Malkiel accepted a one-term appointment at the University of Wyoming
in Laramie
. In 1943, he was offered an initially temporary position at the University of California, Berkeley
, which later was converted to a permanent professorship; Malkiel remained there until his retirement in 1983, teaching in the departments of Spanish and (later) Linguistics. He married fellow Berkeley professor María Rosa Lida de Malkiel
, a philologist and literary critic from Argentina
, in 1948.
During a period when etymology was receding from prominence in linguistics, Malkiel was both one of its chief champions and most rigorous theorists. Best known for his work on the role of sound in the development of suffixes, Malkiel coined the term lexical polarization to describe the influence in sound words tend to have over the development of their opposites, when antonym
s occur in pairs. A major secondary interest was in the history of his field, explored in the pages of Romance Philology and in his last book, Etymology. His work in all fields was characterized by a doggedly comprehensive use of evidence; of his book, Development of the Latin Suffixes -antia and -entia in Romance Languages, influential linguist Leo Spitzer
said in a review, "No one can fail to be impressed by this outstanding example of akribia
and scholarly devotion to a task that might have daunted others."
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n-born) Romance etymologist
Etymology
Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time.For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts in these languages and texts about the languages to gather knowledge about how words were used during...
and philologist
Philology
Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics.Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin...
. His specialty was the development of Latin words, roots, prefixes, and suffixes in modern Romance languages
Romance languages
The Romance languages are a branch of the Indo-European language family, more precisely of the Italic languages subfamily, comprising all the languages that descend from Vulgar Latin, the language of ancient Rome...
, particularly Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
. He was the founder of the journal Romance Philology.
Malkiel was born in Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
to a Russian-Jewish family, and was brought up and educated in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, after the Russian Civil War
Russian Civil War
The Russian Civil War was a multi-party war that occurred within the former Russian Empire after the Russian provisional government collapsed to the Soviets, under the domination of the Bolshevik party. Soviet forces first assumed power in Petrograd The Russian Civil War (1917–1923) was a...
. Despite an early interest in literature, he ended up studying linguistics
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
at the Humboldt University of Berlin
Humboldt University of Berlin
The Humboldt University of Berlin is Berlin's oldest university, founded in 1810 as the University of Berlin by the liberal Prussian educational reformer and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt, whose university model has strongly influenced other European and Western universities...
, then known as the Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität. Being a Jew in 1930s Germany was an obstacle to his education, but one he was able to overcome; his family finally emigrated to the United States in 1940.
After two years unemployed in New York, Malkiel accepted a one-term appointment at the University of Wyoming
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming is a land-grant university located in Laramie, Wyoming, situated on Wyoming's high Laramie Plains, at an elevation of 7,200 feet , between the Laramie and Snowy Range mountains. It is known as UW to people close to the university...
in Laramie
Laramie, Wyoming
Laramie is a city in and the county seat of Albany County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 30,816 at the . Located on the Laramie River in southeastern Wyoming, the city is west of Cheyenne, at the junction of Interstate 80 and U.S. Route 287....
. In 1943, he was offered an initially temporary position at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, which later was converted to a permanent professorship; Malkiel remained there until his retirement in 1983, teaching in the departments of Spanish and (later) Linguistics. He married fellow Berkeley professor María Rosa Lida de Malkiel
María Rosa Lida de Malkiel
María Rosa Lida de Malkiel, born Maria Rosa Lida , was an Argentine philologist. Notable as an Hispanist medievalist, she came to the United States on a Rockefeller Foundation program of study...
, a philologist and literary critic from Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, in 1948.
During a period when etymology was receding from prominence in linguistics, Malkiel was both one of its chief champions and most rigorous theorists. Best known for his work on the role of sound in the development of suffixes, Malkiel coined the term lexical polarization to describe the influence in sound words tend to have over the development of their opposites, when antonym
Antonym
In lexical semantics, opposites are words that lie in an inherently incompatible binary relationship as in the opposite pairs male : female, long : short, up : down, and precede : follow. The notion of incompatibility here refers to the fact that one word in an opposite pair entails that it is not...
s occur in pairs. A major secondary interest was in the history of his field, explored in the pages of Romance Philology and in his last book, Etymology. His work in all fields was characterized by a doggedly comprehensive use of evidence; of his book, Development of the Latin Suffixes -antia and -entia in Romance Languages, influential linguist Leo Spitzer
Leo Spitzer
Leo Spitzer was an Austrian Romanist and Hispanist, and an influential and prolific literary critic. He was known for his emphasis on stylistics....
said in a review, "No one can fail to be impressed by this outstanding example of akribia
Akribia
In the Eastern Orthodox Church, akribeia , also sometimes akribia, akrivia is strict adherence to the letter of the law of the church, as distinguished from economy, which is discretionary deviation from the letter of the law in order to adhere to the spirit of the law.Only bishops have such...
and scholarly devotion to a task that might have daunted others."
Major works
- Development of the Latin Suffixes -antia and -entia in Romance Languages. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1945.
- The Derivation of Hispanic fealdad(e), fieldad(e), and frialdad(e). Berkeley: University of California Press, 1945.
- Three Hispanic Word Studies. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1947.
- Hispanic algu(i)en and Related Formations. Berkeley, University of California Press, 1948.
- The Hispanic Suffix (i)ego. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1951.
- Studies in the Reconstruction of Hispano-Latin Word Families. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1954.
- Essays on Linguistic Themes. Oxford : Blackwell, 1968.
- Patterns of Derivational Affixation in the Cabraniego Dialect of East-Central Asturian. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1970.
- Etymological Dictionaries: A Tentative Typology. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1976.
- Etymology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993.
External links
- Guide to the Yakov Malkiel Papers at The Bancroft Library