معرفی
Walter Bisang (born February 2, 1959, in Zurich) is a Swiss linguist and Professor of General and Comparative Linguistics at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz since 1992. His research focuses on language typology and theoretical linguistics, with extensive empirical work on East and Southeast Asian languages, Caucasian languages (especially Georgian), Austronesian languages, and Yoruba.
His educational background includes:
- Major in General Linguistics with minors in Chinese and Georgian at the University of Zurich (1978-1986)
- Advanced studies in Thai, Khmer, and linguistics at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (1986/1987)
- Doctorate in General Linguistics from the University of Zurich (1990) with a comparative thesis on East and Southeast Asian languages
Bisang's research spans language typology, grammaticalization, areal typology, and language contact, investigating phenomena such as verb serialization, clause linking, finiteness, numeral classifiers, and argument structure. His work integrates formal and functional linguistic frameworks to analyze structural diversity and change across language families, emphasizing how contact situations reshape linguistic systems. He critically examines linguistic complexity metrics and their theoretical implications across different grammatical traditions.
His publication record (1992-2009) reveals a sustained focus on comparative grammar of understudied language families, particularly highlighting typological patterns in East/Southeast Asia. His articles consistently bridge theoretical debates with empirical data, demonstrating how grammaticalization pathways diverge in areal contexts and how precategorial systems challenge traditional parts-of-speech classifications.
His scientific recognition includes:
- Election to Academia Europaea (2016)
Bisang has led major interdisciplinary projects including the EUROTYP initiative (1992-1995) and the German Research Foundation's Collaborative Research Center on 'Cultural and Linguistic Contacts' (1999-2008), where he coordinated teams spanning ancient history, ethnology, and linguistics. He currently serves on the DFG Review Board 104 evaluating typology and historical linguistics proposals, while co-editing the 'Trends in Linguistics' series and two journals ('Asian Linguistics' and 'Zeitschrift für Sprachwissenschaft'). His editorial work significantly shapes publication standards in cross-linguistic research.
