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{{Use British English|date=June 2013}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2013}}
{{BLP sources|date=August 2010}}
{{BLP sources|date=August 2010}}
'''Sir John Lyons''', LittD, [[British Academy|FBA]] (born 23 May 1932) is an English linguist, most famous for his work on semantics.
'''Sir John Lyons''', LittD, [[British Academy|FBA]] (born 23 May 1932) is an English linguist,working on semantics.


John Lyons was educated at [[St Bede's College, Manchester]] and at [[Christ's College, Cambridge]], where he took a degree in [[Classics]] in 1953 and a Diploma in Education in 1954. After doing his [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|national service]] in the [[Royal Navy|navy]] for two years,studying Russian as a Coder (Special), and commissioned as a Midshipman, he returned to Cambridge as a PhD student in 1956. His supervisor was [[W. Sidney Allen]]. The following year he was made a lecturer at the [[School of Oriental and African Studies]]. He was also awarded a one-year Rockefeller Scholarship to Yale, but declined for the more opportunistic academic position in linguistics that was rare in those days in Britain. Lyons moved from Cambridge to SOAS in London, where [[R. H. Robins]] was his PhD supervisor. In the summer of 1960, Lyons went to [[Indiana University]] to work in a [[machine translation]] project; he was chosen because of his expertise in Russian and linguistics. It was at Indiana, in a post-[[Leonard Bloomfield|Bloomfieldean]] milieu, where Lyons gave his very first courses on general linguistics.
John Lyons was educated at [[St Bede's College, Manchester]] and at [[Christ's College, Cambridge]], where he took a degree in [[Classics]] in 1953 and a Diploma in Education in 1954. After doing his [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|national service]] in the [[Royal Navy|navy]] for two years, studying Russian as a Coder (Special), and commissioned as a Midshipman, he returned to Cambridge as a PhD student in 1956. His supervisor was [[W. Sidney Allen]]. The following year he was made a lecturer at the [[School of Oriental and African Studies]]. He was also awarded a one-year Rockefeller Scholarship to Yale, but declined for the more opportunistic academic position in linguistics that was rare in those days in Britain. Lyons moved from Cambridge to SOAS in London, where [[R. H. Robins]] was his PhD supervisor. In the summer of 1960, Lyons went to [[Indiana University]] to work in a [[machine translation]] project; he was chosen because of his expertise in Russian and linguistics. It was at Indiana, in a post-[[Leonard Bloomfield|Bloomfieldean]] milieu, where Lyons gave courses on general linguistics.


In 1961, he returned to Christ's College, where he taught until 1964. Between 1965 and 1969, he was the founder editor of the ''[[Journal of Linguistics]]''.<ref>''New Horizons in Linguistics'' ed. Lyons, Pelican 1972 reprint ISBN 978-0-14-021223-5</ref> From 1964 to 1984, he was professor of linguistics at the universities of [[University of Edinburgh|Edinburgh]] and [[University of Sussex|Sussex]]. He was master of [[Trinity Hall, Cambridge]] for 15 years, before retiring in 2000; he is now an honorary fellow at the college. He was knighted in 1987.
In 1961, he returned to Christ's College, where he taught until 1964. Between 1965 and 1969, he was the founder editor of the ''[[Journal of Linguistics]]''.<ref>''New Horizons in Linguistics'' ed. Lyons, Pelican 1972 reprint ISBN 978-0-14-021223-5</ref> From 1964 to 1984, he was professor of linguistics at the universities of [[University of Edinburgh|Edinburgh]] and [[University of Sussex|Sussex]]. He was master of [[Trinity Hall, Cambridge]] for 15 years, before retiring in 2000; he is now an honorary fellow at the college. He was knighted in 1987.


Lyons' introductory texts are very widely read, notably ''Introduction to Theoretical Linguistics'', ''Chomsky'', ''Semantics'', and ''Linguistic Semantics''.{{Citation needed|date=September 2009}}
Lyons' introductory texts are ''Introduction to Theoretical Linguistics'', ''Chomsky'', ''Semantics'', and ''Linguistic Semantics''.{{Citation needed|date=September 2009}}


== Selected works ==
== Selected works ==

Revision as of 15:18, 28 October 2013

Sir John Lyons, LittD, FBA (born 23 May 1932) is an English linguist,working on semantics.

John Lyons was educated at St Bede's College, Manchester and at Christ's College, Cambridge, where he took a degree in Classics in 1953 and a Diploma in Education in 1954. After doing his national service in the navy for two years, studying Russian as a Coder (Special), and commissioned as a Midshipman, he returned to Cambridge as a PhD student in 1956. His supervisor was W. Sidney Allen. The following year he was made a lecturer at the School of Oriental and African Studies. He was also awarded a one-year Rockefeller Scholarship to Yale, but declined for the more opportunistic academic position in linguistics that was rare in those days in Britain. Lyons moved from Cambridge to SOAS in London, where R. H. Robins was his PhD supervisor. In the summer of 1960, Lyons went to Indiana University to work in a machine translation project; he was chosen because of his expertise in Russian and linguistics. It was at Indiana, in a post-Bloomfieldean milieu, where Lyons gave courses on general linguistics.

In 1961, he returned to Christ's College, where he taught until 1964. Between 1965 and 1969, he was the founder editor of the Journal of Linguistics.[1] From 1964 to 1984, he was professor of linguistics at the universities of Edinburgh and Sussex. He was master of Trinity Hall, Cambridge for 15 years, before retiring in 2000; he is now an honorary fellow at the college. He was knighted in 1987.

Lyons' introductory texts are Introduction to Theoretical Linguistics, Chomsky, Semantics, and Linguistic Semantics.[citation needed]

Selected works

  • Structural Semantics (1964)
  • Introduction to Theoretical Linguistics (1968)
  • Chomsky (Fontana Modern Masters, 1970)
  • New Horizons in Linguistics (1970) (as editor)
  • Semantics, Volumes 1 and 2 (1977)
  • Language and Linguistics (1981)
  • Language, Meaning and Context (1981)
  • New Horizons in Linguistics 2 (1987) (as co-editor)
  • Natural Language and Universal Grammar (1991)
  • Linguistic Semantics: An introduction (1995)

See also

Notes

  1. ^ New Horizons in Linguistics ed. Lyons, Pelican 1972 reprint ISBN 978-0-14-021223-5
Academic offices
Preceded by Master of Trinity Hall, Cambridge
1986–2000
Succeeded by

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