Leonard Bloomfield
American linguist who led the development of structural linguistics in the United States during the 1930s and 1940s.
Leonard Bloomfield (April 1, 1887 – April 18, 1949) was an American linguist who shaped structural linguistics in the United States throughout the 1930s and 1940s, and is often called the father of American distributionalism. His 1933 textbook *Language* offered a thorough account of this approach. He also advanced Indo-European historical linguistics and documented languages from the Austronesian and Algonquian families.
Bloomfield was born in Chicago to Jewish parents, Carola and Sigmund Bloomfield. His father had immigrated as a child in 1868, the family name changing from Blumenfeld after arrival. In 1896 the family moved to Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, where he attended elementary school, then returned to Chicago for high school. His uncle Maurice Bloomfield was a noted linguist at Johns Hopkins, and his aunt Fannie Bloomfield Zeisler was a celebrated concert pianist.
He entered Harvard College in 1903 and earned an A.B. in 1906. Graduate work followed at the University of Wisconsin, where he studied German, Germanic philology, and other Indo-European languages. A meeting with Indo-Europeanist Eduard Prokosch, a faculty member there, steered him toward linguistics. In 1908 he moved to the University of Chicago, studying under Frances A. Wood and Carl Darling Buck. His 1909 doctoral dissertation, supervised by Wood, was on Germanic secondary ablaut. Further study in 1913–1914 at Leipzig and Göttingen brought him into contact with leading Indo-Europeanists August Leskien, Karl Brugmann, Hermann Oldenberg, and Sanskrit specialist Jacob Wackernagel. He regarded Wackernagel and the rigorous grammatical tradition of Pāṇini as major influences. This European training was required for promotion at the University of Illinois.
Bloomfield taught German at the University of Cincinnati (1909–1910), then at the University of Illinois (1910–1913), where he became assistant professor of Comparative Philology and German (1913–1921). He was Professor of German and Linguistics at Ohio State (1921–1927), Professor of Germanic Philology at Chicago (1927–1940), and Sterling Professor of Linguistics at Yale (1940–1949). In summer 1925, through Edward Sapir, he worked as Assistant Ethnologist with the Geological Survey of Canada, doing fieldwork on Plains Cree. A severe stroke in May 1946 ended his career.
Bloomfield helped found the Linguistic Society of America. In 1924, with George M. Bolling and Edgar Sturtevant, he organized the Society and drafted its founding call. He wrote the lead article for the first issue of its journal *Language* and served as its president in 1935. He taught at the Society’s Linguistic Institute from 1938 to 1941. He was also a member of the American Philosophical Society.
His earliest work was in historical Germanic studies, starting with his dissertation and continuing with papers on Indo-European and Germanic phonology and morphology. Postdoctoral study in Germany deepened his expertise in the Neogrammarian tradition, especially the principle of regular sound change, which he emphasized throughout his career. Beyond his dissertation, his Indo-European work included an article on Sanskrit palatal consonants, one on the Pāṇinian grammatical tradition, and many book reviews. He used Indo-European material extensively in his textbooks *An introduction to language* (1914) and *Language* (1933) to illustrate historical and comparative principles, selecting examples that supported regular sound change and outlining steps for comparative work: studying and analyzing texts, applying the comparative method, and reconstructing proto-forms. He also stressed the value of dialect studies and sociological factors.
- born
- April 1, 1887, Chicago, Illinois
- died
- April 18, 1949
- field
- Linguistics
- nationality
- American
- known_for
- Development of structural linguistics, father of American distributionalism, textbook 'Language' (1933)
Lore & Background
Bloomfield was born in Chicago, Illinois, on April 1, 1887, to Jewish parents, Carola (née Buber) and Sigmund Bloomfield. His father immigrated to the United States as a child in 1868; the original family name Blumenfeld was changed to Bloomfield after their arrival. In 1896 his family moved to Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, where he attended elementary school, but returned to Chicago for secondary school. His uncle Maurice Bloomfield was a prominent linguist at Johns Hopkins University, and his aunt Fannie Bloomfield Zeisler was a well-known concert pianist. Bloomfield attended Harvard College from 1903 to 1906, graduating with the A.B. degree. He subsequently began graduate work at the University of Wisconsin, taking courses in German and Germanic philology, in addition to courses in other Indo-European languages. A meeting with Indo-Europeanist Eduard Prokosch, a faculty member at the University of Wisconsin, convinced Bloomfield to pursue a career in linguistics. In 1908 Bloomfield moved to the University of Chicago, where he took courses in German and Indo-European philology with Francis A. Wood and Carl Darling Buck. His doctoral dissertation in Germanic historical linguistics, A semasiologic differentiation in Germanic secondary ablaut, was supervised by Wood, and he graduated in 1909. He undertook further studies at the University of Leipzig and the University of Göttingen in 1913 and 1914 with leading Indo-Europeanists August Leskien, Karl Brugmann, as well as Hermann Oldenberg, a specialist in Vedic Sanskrit. Bloomfield also studied at Göttingen with Sanskrit specialist Jacob Wackernagel, and considered both Wackernagel and the Sanskrit grammatical tradition of rigorous grammatical analysis associated with Pāṇini as important influences on both his historical and descriptive work. Further training in Europe was a condition for promotion at the University of Illinois from Instructor to the rank of assistant professor.
Reader's Guide
Bloomfield was instructor in German at the University of Cincinnati, 1909–1910; Instructor in German at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, 1910–1913; promoted to assistant professor of Comparative Philology and German, also University of Illinois, 1913–1921; Professor of German and Linguistics at the Ohio State University, 1921–1927; Professor of Germanic Philology at the University of Chicago, 1927–1940; Sterling Professor of Linguistics at Yale University, 1940–1949. During the summer of 1925 Bloomfield worked as Assistant Ethnologist with the Geological Survey of Canada in the Canadian Department of Mines, undertaking linguistic field work on Plains Cree; this position was arranged by Edward Sapir, who was then Chief of the Division of Anthropology, Victoria Museum, Geological Survey of Canada, Canadian Department of Mines. In May 1946, he suffered a debilitating stroke, which ended his career. Bloomfield was one of the founding members of the Linguistic Society of America. In 1924, along with George M. Bolling (Ohio State University) and Edgar Sturtevant (Yale University) he formed a committee to organize the creation of the Society, and drafted the call for the Society's foundation. He contributed the lead article to the inaugural issue of the Society's journal Language, and was President of the Society in 1935. He taught in the Society's summer Linguistic Institute in 1938–1941, with the 1938–1940 Institutes being held in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and the 1941 Institute in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Bloomfield was also a member of the American Philosophical Society.
Did You Know?
- Bloomfield's father immigrated to the United States as a child in 1868.
- Bloomfield's Ph.D. supervisor was Francis A. Wood.
- Bloomfield was one of the founding members of the Linguistic Society of America.
- Bloomfield contributed the lead article to the inaugural issue of the Society's journal Language.
Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)
"Leonard Bloomfield (April 1, 1887 – April 18, 1949) was an American linguist who led the development of structural linguistics in the United States during the 1930s and the 1940s." — Leonard Bloomfield "It was in India, however, that there rose a body of knowledge which was destined to revolutionize European ideas about language." — Leonard Bloomfield
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