1928
Born in Oxnard, California.

1945
Graduated from Oxnard Union High School; won competitive four-year college scholarship offered by Pepsi-Cola Co.; entered University of California, Berkeley, as premedical student.

1947
Changed major to Spanish; attended summer school in Mexico City, became interested in Nahuatl (Aztec) language.

1948
Started taking linguistic courses at Berkeley with M. B. Emeneau and Mary Haas; switched to individual major in Linguistics.

1949
A.B. in linguistics, University of California, Berkeley (February). Started field work in spring on Karuk language of northwestern California. Attended LSA Linguistic Institute in summer at U of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

1950
Continued field work on Karuk during summer.

1951
Participated in LSA Linguistic Institute in summer at Berkeley; passed qualifying exams for linguistics doctorate and began writing dissertation on Karuk.

1952
Married Elizabeth Halloran; drafted into US Army; assigned to Military Intelligence unit in Lohfelden, near Kassel, Germany.

1954 Returned to US and discharged from Army (rank of Corporal); continued work at Berkeley on dissertation. Attended LSA Linguistic Institute in summer at U of Chicago.

1955
Awarded Ph.D. in linguistics, Berkeley (dissertation: A grammar of the Karok language.) Accepted Rockefeller Foundation fellowship in India for two years, to teach linguistics at Deccan College, Poona, and to do research on the colloquial variety of the Kannada language in Bangalore.

1956
Continuing teaching and research in India. Became interested in sociolinguistics through discussions with John Gumperz.

1957
Returned to US; hired as linguist, School of Languages, Foreign Service Institute, Department of State, Washington, DC (teaching Hindi, Urdu, French).

1958
Daughter, Susannah Bright, born in Arlington, Virginia. Hired in fall as Assistant Professor of Speech, University of California, Berkeley (teaching English to foreign students).

1959
Hired as Assistant Professor of Anthropology, UCLA (teaching linguistics, Hindi, anthropology).

1960
Taught Hindi in summer session, UC Berkeley.

1961
Divorce proceedings filed by Elizabeth Bright. Participated in summer session, University of Chicago, teaching Hindi, doing research on Tamil and Tulu.

1962
Promoted to Associate Professor of Anthropology, UCLA. Married Jane Orstan. Summer field work on Yurok language in northwestern California.

1963
Continued field work on Yurok. Taught anthropology in summer school, University of Colorado, Boulder. Served one year as Chair, Committee on the Linguistics Program, UCLA. Served one year as Abstracts Editor of International Journal of American Linguistics. Became Contributing Editor, Handbook of Latin American Studies (served until 1966).

1964
Became Review Editor of International Journal of American Linguistics (served until 1966). Participated in seminar on sociolinguistics at summer LSA Linguistic Institute, Indiana University, Bloomington. Jane Orstan Bright died in auto accident near Bloomington. Began sabbatical leave from UCLA, with ACLS Fellowship for research on American Indian linguistics. At end of year married Marcia Kinnamon (née Andersen).

1965
At end of year, named Editor of Language, Journal of the Linguistic Society of America, succeeding the late Bernard Bloch. (Served through 1987.)

1966
Promoted to Professor of Linguistics and Anthropology, UCLA. Taught in summer LSA Linguistic Institute at UCLA.

1967
Ford Foundation fellow in India during autumn, at Central Institute of English, Hyderabad, and at University of Delhi.

1968
Visiting Professor during autumn at University of Hawaii, Honolulu.

1971
Marcia Andersen Bright died of cancer in November. Began sabbatical leave from UCLA, with Guggenheim Fellowship (research on Nahuatl).

1975
Married Debra Levy. (Several short field trips to Guatemala in the late 70's; research on Cakchiquel.)

1977
Became Editorial Director, Malki Museum Press, Morongo Indian Reservation, Banning, CA; served until 1984.

1978
Became member of Advisory Board, MLA International Bibliography, and Section Head, American Indian Languages (served until 1980).

1979
Sabbatical leave with NEH fellowship (research on Coyote in Native American literature). Became member of Editorial Committee, University of California Press, and Chair, Board of Editors, UC Publications in Linguistics (served until 1982). Became Contributing Editor of Fine Print, a journal of book arts, San Francisco (served until 1990).

1982
Visiting Researcher, Instituto de Investigaciones Antropológicas, Universidad Autónoma de México (Mexico City) during spring.

1986
Accepted position as Editor in Chief, International Encyclopedia of Linguistics, published by Oxford University Press (published in 1992). Dissolution of marriage obtained by Debra Levy. Began fellowship at Center for Advanced Study in Behavioral Sciences, Stanford, CA. Married to Lise Menn at Palo Alto in November.

1987
Completed service as Editor of Language.

1988
Retired to status as Emeritus Professor of Linguistics and Anthropology, UCLA. Moved to Boulder, Colorado. Appointed as Research Associate, Center for the Study of Native American Languages of the Plains and Southwest, Dept. of Linguistics, University of Colorado, Boulder. In summer spent two months in Japan, as visiting scholar at Dokkyo University, Soka (near Tokyo).

1989
President, Linguistic Society of America.

1991
Visiting scholar again at Dokkyo University for first half of year. In fall began one year's service as Visiting Professor of Linguistics, University of Colorado, Boulder.

1992
Appointed as Professor Adjoint of Linguistics, University of Colorado, Boulder. Began service as Editor, Language in Society (Cambridge U. Press). Initiated monograph series, Oxford Studies in Anthropological Linguistics, as Editor.

1995
President, Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the Americas (SSILA). Was visiting scholar during summer at University of New Mexico (Linguistic Institute), and during fall at University of Arizona.

1996
President, Dravidian Linguistic Association. Was visiting scholar during spring at University of Hawaii, and during April at Dokkyo University in Japan. Spent May and June lecturing in East Asia, Australia, and India, and June and August traveling in Europe.

1997
Initiated journal, Written Language & Literacy (Benjamins, Amsterdam). Launched project to prepare reference book, Native American Placenames of the United States, to be completed in 2002 (U. of Oklahoma Press).

1999
Gave invited lectures at Institut für Nordamerikanische Studien, Freie Universität Berlin. Retired from editorship of Language in Society.

Copyright © 1999, 2000 Willian Bright, All Rights Reserved.