Suzette Haden Elgin

Suzette Haden Elgin
Haden at Norwescon in 2005
Born	Patricia Anne Suzette Wilkins (1936-11-18)November 18, 1936 Jefferson City, Missouri, U.S.
Died	January 27, 2015(2015-01-27) (aged 78)
Occupation	linguist teacher writer
Alma mater	University of California, San Diego California State University, Chico University of Chicago
Period	Contemporary
Genres	Fantasy science fiction social science fiction
Subject	Sociology of language
Literary movement	Feminist science fiction
Years active	1960s–2010s
Spouse	Peter Haden (married 1955; he predeceased her) George Elgin (married 1964)
Children	4
Relatives	Josepha Haden (granddaughter)
Signature
Website
sfwa.org/members/elgin

Suzette Haden Elgin (born Patricia Anne Suzette Wilkins; November 18, 1936 – January 27, 2015) was an American researcher in experimental linguistics, construction and evolution of languages and poetry and science fiction writer. She founded the Science Fiction Poetry Association and is considered an important figure in the field of science fiction constructed languages. Her best-known non-fiction includes her Verbal Self-Defense series.

Early life

Patricia Anne Suzette Wilkins was born in 1936 in Jefferson City, Missouri.

Linguistics, teaching and writing

She attended the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) in the 1960s, and began writing science fiction in order to pay tuition. She gained a PhD in linguistics, and was the first UCSD student ever to write two dissertations (on English and Navajo).

She created the engineered language Láadan for her Native Tongue science fiction series. A grammar and dictionary was published in 1985. She supported feminist science fiction, saying "women need to realize that SF is the only genre of literature in which it's possible for a writer to explore the question of what this world would be like if you could get rid of [Y], where [Y] is filled in with any of the multitude of real world facts that constrain and oppress women. Women need to treasure and support science fiction."

In addition, she published works of shorter fiction. Overlying themes in her work include feminism, linguistics and the impact of proper language, and peaceful coexistence with nature. Many of her works also draw from her Ozark background and heritage.

Later years and death

Elgin became a professor at San Diego State University (SDSU). She retired in 1980 and lived in Arkansas with her second husband, George Elgin. She died at age 78 in 2015 from undisclosed causes. She was survived by her husband until his own death in 2020. Her son Michael pre-deceased her.

Bibliography

Main article: Suzette Haden Elgin bibliography

References

• Mohr, Dunja M. Worlds Apart: Dualism and Transgression in Contemporary Female Dystopias. Jefferson, NC, McFarland, 2005. [extensive chapter on Native Tongue series]

External links

• Official site
• Official blog at LiveJournal
• Suzette Haden Elgin at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
• Suzette Haden Elgin at the Encyclopedia of Science Fiction
• "Why a Woman Is Not Like a Physicist" Elgin's Guest of Honor speech at WisCon 6 (March 6, 1982)
• "What the EPA Don't Know Won't Hurt Them"
• Database search for recordings of her songs
• Entrevista en español http://escritorasfantastikas.blogspot.com.es/2015/04/entrevista-suzette-haden-elgin.html
• ¿Por qué una mujer no es como un físico? http://escritorasfantastikas.blogspot.com.es/2015/05/por-que-una-mujer-no-es-como-un-fisico.html