List of linguists

A linguist in the academic sense is a person who studies natural language (an academic discipline known as linguistics). Ambiguously, the word is sometimes also used to refer to a polyglot (one who knows several languages), or a grammarian (a scholar of grammar), but these two uses of the word are distinct (and one does not have to be a polyglot in order to be an academic linguist). The following is a list of notable linguists in the academic sense.

A

• Abbott, Barbara (United States), pragmatics, semantics
• Abel, Carl (Germany), comparative lexicography
• Abdul Haq, Maulvi (India, 1870–1961), Urdu language
• Abrams, Lise (United States), psycholinguistics
• Abramson, Arthur S. (United States, 1925–2017), phonetics
• Adams, Douglas Q. (United States), English language, comparative linguistics, Tocharian language
• Adler, George J. (Germany/United States, 1821–1868), lexicography, German language, English language
• Aijmer, Karin (Sweden), pragmatics, semantics
• Aikhenvald, Alexandra Yurievna (Russia, 1957–), syntax, typology, Amazonian languages, Papuan languages, Hebrew language, Russian language
• Aitken, Adam Jack (UK, 1921–1998), lexicography
• Ajduković, Jovan (Serbia, 1968–), Slavic languages, sociolinguistics, contact linguistics, Russian language, Serbian language
• Albright, William Foxwell (United States, 1891–1971), Semitic languages
• Al-Khalil ibn Ahmad al-Farahidi
• Al-Kisa'i
• Allan, Keith (Australia), semantics
• Alleyne, Mervyn Coleridge (Trinidad and Tobago/Jamaica, 1933–2016), creole languages
• Felix Ameka (Ghana, Australia, Netherlands), pragmatics, semantics
• Amerias (Greece), Ancient Macedonian language, lexicography
• Anatoly Moskvin (Russia), academic and linguist, arrested in 2011 after the bodies of 26 mummified young women were discovered in his home.
• Anderson, Gregory D.S. (United States), Munda languages
• Anderson, Stephen (United States, 1943–), morphology and history of linguistics
• Aoun, Joseph (Lebanon/United States), oriental languages, syntax
• Arisaka Hideyo (Japan, 1908–1952), Japanese language
• Aristar, Anthony (South Africa/United States, 1948–), linguistic infrastructure
• Armstrong, Lilias (UK, 1882–1937), phonetics
• Aronoff, Mark (Canada, 1949–), morphology
• Ascoli, Graziadio Isaia (Italy, 1829–1907), substrata, ladin language
• Austin, John Langshaw (UK, 1911–1960), philosophy of language, speech act
• Awobuluyi, Oladele (Nigeria, 1937–), African languages
• Ayres-Bennett, Wendy (UK), history of French and history of linguistic thought
• Azad, Humayun (Bangladesh, 1947–2004), Bengali language
• Al-Harbi, Abdul Aziz
• Al-Mubarrad

B

• Babiniotis, Georgios (Greece, 1939–), Greek language
• Bach, Emmon (United States, 1929–2014), syntax, phonology, Haisla language
• Baker, Mark (United States), Mohawk language, generative grammar
• Bally, Charles (Switzerland, 1865–1947), French language, phraseology
• Bardovi-Harlig, Kathleen (United States, 1954–), second language acquisition, tense and aspect, pragmatics
• Bar-Hillel, Yehoshua (Israel, 1915–1975), machine translation, categorial grammar
• Barker, (Philip) Muhammad Abd-al-Rahman (United States, 1930–2012), Urdu language, Indian languages
• Barlow, Robert Hayward (United States, 1918–1951), Nahuatl language
• Barnhart, David K. (United States, 1941–), lexicography, English language
• Barnhart, Robert (United States, 1933–2007), lexicography, English language
• Barsky, Robert (United States), discourse analysis
• Barthes, Roland
• Bartlett, John Russell (United States, 1805–1886),
• Baudouin de Courtenay, Jan Niecisław (Poland, 1845–1929), phonology, Polish language
• Bauer, Robert Stuart (United States, 1946), syntax, phonology, Sino-Tibetan languages (especially Cantonese)
• Baugh, John (United States, 1949–), sociolinguistics, forensic linguistics
• Beckman, Mary E. (United States), phonetics, phonology
• Beckwith, Christopher (United States, 1945–), Asian languages, Tibetan language
• Beddor, Patrice (United States), Phonetics, speech perception
• Beeken, Jeannine (Belgium, 1961–), lexicography, syntax, Dutch language
• Bello, Andrés (Venezuela), Spanish language, philology
• Bellugi, Ursula (United States), sign language, neurolinguistics
• Ben-Yehuda, Eliezer (Israel), lexicography, Revival of the Hebrew language
• Bender, M. Lionel (United States), African languages
• Benedict, Paul K. (United States), Sino-Tibetan languages, Tai–Kadai languages, historical linguistics
• Benveniste, Émile (France, 1902–1976)
• Berez-Kroeker, Andrea L. (United States, 1972–), language documentation
• Berlitz, Charles Frambach (United States, 1914–2003), language acquisition
• Berlitz, Maximilian Delphinius (United States, 1852–1921), language acquisition
• Bhartrihari (India, 450–510), Sanskrit
• Bickel, Balthasar (Switzerland, 1965–), language typology, Kiranti languages
• Bickerton, Derek (United States, 1926–2018), creole languages, origin of language
• Bleek, Wilhelm Heinrich Immanuel (Germany, 1827–1875), languages of Africa
• Bloch, Bernard (United States, 1907–1965), Japanese language
• Bloch, Jules (France, 1880–1953), languages of India
• Bloomfield, Leonard (United States, 1887–1949), structural linguistics
• Blust, Robert (United States), Austronesian languages
• Boas, Franz (United States, 1858–1942), indigenous languages of the Americas
• Bœck, Égide de (Belgium, Belgish Congo, 1875-1944), Bangala language, Lingala
• Boersma, Paul (Netherlands, 1959–), phonetics
• Bolinger, Dwight Le Merton (United States, 1907–1992), semantics, Spanish language
• Bomhard, Allan R. (United States, 1943–), Nostratic languages, historical linguistics
• Bopp, Franz (Germany, 1791–1867), Indo-European languages, comparative linguistics
• Boyd, Julian Charles (United States, 1931–2005), English language
• Bowerman, Melissa psycholinguistics, language acquisition
• Bowern, Claire historical linguistics
• Bresnan, Joan (United States, 1945–), syntax
• Bright, William (United States, 1928–2006), Native American languages, South Asian languages
• Brinton, Laurel J. (Canada), grammaticalization, discourse markers
• Brody, Michael (Hungary, 1954–), syntax
• Browman, Catherine (United States, 1945–2008), phonetics, phonology
• Brugmann, Karl (Germany, 1849–1919), Indo-European languages, Sanskrit, comparative linguistics
• Bucholtz, Mary (United States), sociolinguistics
• Burgess, Anthony (UK, 1917–1993), English language, phonetics
• Burling, Robbins (United States, 1926–), languages of India
• Burridge, Kate (Australia), Germanic languages
• Butt, Miriam (Germany, 1966–), syntax, South Asian languages
• Butzkamm, Wolfgang (Germany, 1938–), applied linguistics, English language
• Byington, Cyrus (United States, 1793–1868) translated English religious text into Choctaw language
• Badawi, El-Said

C

• Campbell, Lyle (United States), Native American languages
• Canger, Una (Denmark, 1938–), Mesoamerican languages
• Canonge, Elliott D. (United States), Comanche, Inuit
• Capell, Arthur (Australia, 1902–1986), Australian languages, Austronesian languages, Papuan languages
• Cardona, George (United States), Indo-European studies
• Carnap, Rudolf (Germany, 1891–1970), syntax, constructed languages
• Carnie, Andrew (Canada, 1969–), syntax
• Caro Baroja, Julio (1914–1995)
• Caro, Miguel A. (Colombia, 1843–1909), Spanish language, Colombian Spanish
• Carpenter, William Henry (United States, 1853–1936), Icelandic language
• Cart, Théophile (France, 1855–1931), Esperanto
• Carter, Hazel (United Kingdom, 1928–2016), Bantu languages
• Chadwick, John (UK, 1920–1998), Linear B
• Chafik, Mohamed (Morocco, 1926–), writer and specialist in the Berber or Amazigh languages, dialects, and literature
• Chafe, Wallace (United States, 1927–2019), cognitive linguistics, semantics
• Chao Yuen Ren (PR China, 1892–1982), Chinese language
• Chakrabarti, Byomkes (India, 1923–1981), Santali language, Bengali language, comparative linguistics
• Champollion, Jean-François (France, 1790–1832), Egyptian hieroglyphs
• Chambers, Jack (Canada, 1938–), sociolinguistics
• Chatterji, Suniti Kumar (India, 1890–1977), Bengali language
• Choijinzhab (PR China, 1931–), Mongolian language
• Chomsky, Noam (United States, 1928–), syntax, universal grammar
• Choueiri, Lina (Lebanon), syntax, Lebanese Arabic
• Chyet, Michael L. (United States, 1957–), Kurdish language
• Clark, Eve V. (UK/United States), psycholinguistics, language acquisition
• Clyne, Michael George (Australia), Germanic languages
• Cohen, Paul S. (United States), 1942–), phonology, etymology
• Cohen, Maurice Abraham (Australia), 1851–1923), Urdu
• Collitz, Hermann (Germany/United States, 1855–1935), historical linguistics
• Comrie, Bernard (UK, 1947–), typology
• Cook, Guy (UK, 1951–), applied linguistics
• Cook, Vivian (UK, 1940–), applied linguistics
• Corder, Stephen Pit (UK, 1918–1990), applied linguistics
• Coşeriu, Eugen (Romania/Germany, 1921–2002), Romance languages
• Cowgill, Warren (United States, 1929–1985), Indo-European studies
• Cowper, Elizabeth (Canada), syntax
• Creissels, Denis (France), syntax, phonology, Niger–Congo languages, Nakh-Daghestanian languages
• Croft, William (United States, 1956–), syntax, cognitive linguistics
• Crystal, David (UK, 1941–), English language, language death, applied linguistics
• Cuervo, Rufino Jose (Colombia, 1844–1911), Spanish language, Colombian Spanish
• Culicover, Peter W. (United States), syntax, language change
• Culioli, Antoine (France, 1924–2018), general linguistics
• Cumakunova, Gülzura (Kyrgyzstan, 1954–), Turkic languages
• Curme, George Oliver, Sr. (United States, 1860–1948), German language, English language
• Curzan, Anne (United States), English language, Descriptivism, Prescriptivism, lexicography

D

• Dal, Vladimir (Russia, 1801–1872), lexicography, Russian language
• Dahl, Östen (Sweden, 1945–), tense and aspect in linguistic typology
• Das, Khudiram (India, 1916–2002), Bengali and Santali language
• Dani, Ahmad Hasan (Pakistan, 1920–2009), South Asian languages
• Daniels, Peter T. (United States), writing systems
• Dayal, Veneeta (United States), semantics, syntax
• Deacon, Terrence (United States), language change, origin of language, cognitive linguistics
• Dehkhoda, Ali-Akbar (Iran, 1879–1959), lexicography, Persian language
• Delbrück, Berthold (Germany, 1842–1922), Indo-European languages, syntax, comparative linguistics
• DeLancey, Scott (United States, 1949–), Tibeto-Burman languages, linguistic typology, historical linguistics
• Dempwolff, Otto (Germany, 1871–1938), Austronesian languages
• Diderichsen, Paul (Denmark, 1905–1964), Danish
• Diffloth, Gérard (United States), Mon–Khmer languages
• van Dijk, Teun Adrianus (Netherlands, 1943–), pragmatics, discourse analysis, text linguistics
• Dixon, Robert Malcolm Ward (Australia, 1939–), syntax, typology, Australian languages, Amazonian languages
• Dobrovský, Josef (Czech Republic, 1753–1829), Slavic languages, Czech language, lexicography
• Dobson, Veronica Perrule (Australia, 1944–), Arrernte language
• Doke, Clement Martyn (South Africa, 1893–1980), Bantu languages, Lamba language
• Dolgopolsky, Aharon (Russia/Israel, 1930–2012), Nostratic languages
• Dorian, Nancy (United States), language death, Scottish Gaelic
• Dougherty, Ray C. (United States), transformational grammar, computational linguistics
• Dowty, David (United States), semantics, syntax
• Dozier, Edward P. (United States, 1916–1971), Native American languages, languages of the Philippines
• Dressler, Wolfgang U. (Austria, 1939–), phonology, morphology, text linguistics
• van Driem, George (Netherlands), Tibeto-Burman languages, symbiosism, Dzongkha language
• Dryer, Matthew (United States), typology, syntax, language documentation
• Duden, Konrad (Germany, 1829–1911), lexicography, German language
• Dunn, John Asher (United States), Tsimshian language

E

• Eckert, Penelope (United States), sociolinguistics, language and gender
• Edmondson, Jerold A. (United States), Tai–Kadai languages, languages of Southeast Asia
• Edwards, Jonathan, Jr. (United States, 1745–1801), North American languages, historical linguistics, Mohegan language
• Ehret, Christopher (United States), languages of Africa, historical linguistics
• Elbert, Samuel Hoyt (United States, 1907–1997), Polynesian languages of Hawaiʻi and Rennell and Bellona, Puluwatese language
• Elgin, Suzette Haden (United States, 1936–2015), constructed languages, transformational grammar
• Ellis, Rod (UK), second language acquisition
• Elman, Jeffrey L. (United States), language processing, neurolinguistics
• Emeneau, Murray Barnson (United States, 1904–2005), Dravidian languages, linguist areas
• Erdal, Marcel (Turkey, 1945–), Turkic languages
• Esenç, Tevfik (Turkey 1904–1992), Ubykh language
• Evans, Nicholas (Australia, 1956–), Indigenous Australian languages, Papuan languages, typology
• Evans, Vyvyan (United Kingdom, 1968–), cognitive linguistics, digital communication, and emoji
• Even-Shoshan, Avraham (Belarus/Israel, 1906–1984), Hebrew language, lexicography
• Everett, Daniel Leonard (United States, 1951–), languages of Brazil, Pirahã language
• Everson, Michael (United States/Ireland, 1963–), writing systems, historical linguistics

F

• Fairuzabadi
• Fierz-David, Linda (Germany, 1891–1955), philology
• Fillmore, Charles J. (USA, 1929–2014), syntax, lexical semantics, cognitive linguistics, lexicography
• Firth, John Rupert (UK, 1890–1960), phonetics, phonology, prosody
• Fischer-Jørgensen, Eli (Denmark 1911–2010), phonetics, phonology, Danish language
• Fishman, Joshua (United States, 1926–2015), sociology of language
• Fiske, Willard (United States, 1831–1904), Northern European languages, Icelandic language
• Fodor, Janet Dean (United States), psycholinguistics, semantics, syntax
• Fodor, Jerry Alan (United States, 1935–2017), psycholinguistics, language of thought
• Foley, William A. (Australia, 1949–), Papuan languages, Austronesian languages
• Ford, Jeremiah Denis Mathias (United States, 1873–1958), Spanish language
• Fowler, Carol A. (United States), phonetics, phonology
• François, Alexandre (France), Austronesian languages, historical linguistics, language contact
• Freiman, Aleksandr Arnoldovich (Poland/Russia, 1879–1968), Iranian languages
• French, David Heath (United States, 1918–1994), Native American languages
• Friedrich, Johannes (Germany, 1893–1972), Hittite language
• Fromkin, Victoria (United States, 1923–2000), theoretical linguistics, constructed languages
• Fujitani Nariakira (Japan, 1738–1779), Japanese language

G

• Galloway, Brent D. (United States, 1944–2014), Amerindian languages, Halkomelem language
• Gamkrelidze, Thomas V. (Georgia, 1929–), Indo-European studies, Georgian language
• Gans, Eric (United States, 1941–), origin of language
• Garnier, Romain (France), Indo-European linguistics
• Gazdar, Gerald (UK, 1950–), computational linguistics, syntax, semantics
• Gebauer, Jan (Czech Republic, 1838–1907), Czech language
• Geeraerts, Dirk (Belgium, 1955–), semantics, lexicography
• van Geert, Paul (Netherlands), second language development
• Giles, Howard, sociolinguistics
• Givón, Talmy (Israel/United States, 1936–), syntax, semantics, pragmatics, typology, functionalism
• Giegerich, Heinz (Germany/UK), English language, phonology
• Gleason, Jean Berko (United States), psycholinguistics, language acquisition
• Goatly, Andrew (UK), English language, Chinese language
• Goddard, Cliff (Australia), semantics, pragmatics
• Goddard, R.H. Ives, III (United States), Algonquian languages, historical linguistics
• Gode, Alexander (Germany/United States, 1906–1970), constructed languages, Germanic languages
• Goldberg, Adele (United States, 1963–), syntax, psycholinguistics
• Goldsmith, John Anton (United States, 1951–), phonology, computational linguistics
• Goldstein, Louis M. (United States), phonetics, phonology
• Gong Hwang cherng (Republic of China, 1934–2010), Sino-Tibetan languages, Old Chinese, Tangut language
• Gordon, Cyrus Herzl (United States, 1908–2001), ancient languages, cuneiform script
• Gramsci, Antonio (Italy), Italian language
• Gray, Louis Herbert (United States, 1875–1955), Indo-Iranian languages, phonology
• Green, Lisa (United States), syntax of African American English
• Greenberg, Joseph Harold (United States, 1915–2001), typology, language universals, languages of Africa
• Grice, (Herbert) Paul (UK/United States, 1913–1988), pragmatics
• Grierson, George Abraham (Ireland, 1851–1941), languages of India
• Gries, Stefan Th. (Germany/United States, 1970–), corpus linguistics, computational linguistics, cognitive linguistics, construction grammar
• Grimm, Jakob Ludwig Carl (Germany, 1785–1863), historical linguistics, comparative linguistics, German language
• Grinder, John Thomas (United States, 1940–), neurolinguistics
• Grosz, Barbara J. (United States), natural language processing, computational modeling of discourse
• Groupe µ (Belgium, since 1967), rhetorics, semiotics
• Grube, Wilhelm (Germany, 1855–1908), Tungusic languages, Nivkh language, Jurchen language
• Gumperz, John Joseph (United States, 1922–2013), sociolinguistics, discourse analysis, linguistic anthropology
• Gutiérrez Eskildsen, Rosario María (Mexico, 1899–1979), Spanish language, dialectology
• Guy, Gregory (United States), sociolinguistics, historical linguistics, phonetics, phonology
• Guthrie, Malcolm (Britain, 1903–1972), Bantu languages

H

• Haarmann, Harald (Germany, 1946–), evolutionary linguistics, language contact
• Haas, Mary Rosamund (United States, 1910–1996), Native American languages, Thai language, historical linguistics
• Haase, Martin (Germany, 1962–), Romance languages
• Hagberg, Carl August (Sweden, 1810–1864), Scandinavian languages
• Hajič, Jan (Czech Republic), computational linguistics
• Hajičová, Eva (Czech Republic) (1935–), corpus linguistics
• Hale, Kenneth Locke (United States, 1934–2001), syntax, phonology
• Hall, Kira (United States), sociocultural linguistics
• Hall, Robert A., Jr. (United States, 1911–1997), Romance languages, Pidgins and Creoles
• Halle, Morris (Latvia/United States, 1923–2018), phonology, morphology
• Halliday, Michael Alexander Kirkwood (UK/Australia, 1925–2018), systemic functional grammar, ecolinguistics, applied linguistics
• Hammarström, Harald (Sweden, 1977–), computational linguistics, historical linguistics, linguistic typology
• Hammond, Michael (United States, 1957–), phonology, computational linguistics, syntax
• Hamp, Eric P. (United States, 1920–2019), Indo-European languages, Native American languages
• Hanzeli, Victor (United States, 1925–1991), Romance languages
• Haq, Mehr Abdul (Pakistan, 1915–1995), Saraiki language
• Harder, Peter (Denmark, 1950–), English language, functional linguistics
• Harkavy, Alexander (Belarus/United States, 1863–1939), Yiddish language, lexicography
• Harley, Heidi B. (United States, 1969–), distributed morphology, syntax
• Harrington, John Peabody (United States, 1884–1961), Native American languages, phonetics
• Harris, Roy (UK, 1931–), semiology, integrationism
• Harris, Zellig Sabbetai (Ukraine/United States, 1909–1992), structural linguistics, discourse analysis, Semitic languages
• Harrison, K. David (United States, 1966–), phonology, endangered languages, language extinction
• Hartmann, Reinhard Rudolf Karl (Austria/UK, 1938–), lexicography, contrastive linguistics
• Hasan, Ruqaiya (India/Australia, 1931–2015), systemic functional grammar, sociolinguistics, applied linguistics
• Hashimoto Mantarō (Japan, 1932–1987), Japanese language
• Hashimoto Shinkichi (Japan, 1882–1945), Old Japanese language, Japanese language
• Haspelmath, Martin (Germany, 1963–), typology, language change, language contact, Lezgian language
• Haugen, Einar Ingvald (United States, 1906–1994), sociolinguistics, Old Norse
• Hawkins, Bruce Wayne (United States), cognitive linguistics
• Hawkins, John A. (UK), psycholinguistics, historical linguistics
• Hayakawa, Samuel Ichiye (Canada/United States, 1906–1992), semantics
• Hayes, Bruce (United States, 1955–), phonology
• Hays, David Glenn (United States, 1928–1995), computational linguistics, machine translation, dependency grammar, corpus linguistics, natural language processing, cognitive science
• Heath, Jeffrey (United States, 1949–), historical linguistics, morphology, linguistic anthropology
• Heim, Irene Roswitha (Germany/United States), semantics
• Heine, Bernd (Germany, 1939–), languages of Africa, sociolinguistics, language contact
• Hepburn, James Curtis (United States, 1815–1911), Japanese language, lexicography
• Herbert, Robert Knox (United States, 1952–2007), phonology, languages of Africa, sociolinguistics
• Hetzron, Robert (Hungary/United States, 1937–1997), Afro-Asiatic languages
• Hewitt, John Napoleon Brinton (United States, 1859–1937), Iroquoian languages
• Hjelmslev, Louis (Denmark, 1899–1965), comparative linguistics, semantics
• Hobbs, Jerry R. (United States, 1942–), computational linguistics, discourse analysis, syntax, semantics
• Hock, Hans Henrich (Germany/United States), historical linguistics, comparative linguistics, Sanskrit
• Michael Hoey (United Kingdom), lexical priming, textual interaction, corpus linguistics
• Hockett, Charles Francis (United States, 1916–2000), phonology, morphology
• Hoff, Erika (United States, 1951—), Psycholinguistics
• Hoffmann, John-Baptist (Germany, 1857–1928), Mundari language
• Hogg, Richard M. (UK, 1944–2007), phonology, historical linguistics
• Hoijer, Harry (United States, 1904–1976), Athabaskan languages, Tonkawa language
• Hopper, Paul (UK/United States), historical linguistics, emergent grammar
• Hornstein, Norbert (United States), syntax
• Hrozný, Bedřich (Czech Republic, 1879–1952), Hittite language, ancient languages
• Huddleston, Rodney D. (UK/Australia), English language
• Hudson, Richard (UK, 1939–), syntax, word grammar, linguistics in education
• von Humboldt, Wilhelm (Germany, 1787–1835), Basque language
• Hunston, Susan (UK, 1953–), corpus linguistics, lexical semantics
• Hupel, August Wilhelm (Germany/Estonia, 1737–1819), Estonian language, lexicography
• Hurford, James R. (UK, United States, 1941–), phonetics, semantics, grammar, computational linguistics, evolutionary linguistics
• Husain Khan, Masud (India, 1919–2010), Urdu language, phonetics, stylistics, linguistic description
• Hyman, Larry M. (United States, 1947–), phonology, languages of Africa
• Hymes, Dell Hathaway (United States, 1927–2009), sociolinguistics, Kathlamet language

I

• Ibn Sidah (c.1007–1066)
• Ibn Manzur (c.1233–1311/1312)
• Ibn Jinni
• Illich-Svitych, Vladislav Markovich (Ukraine/Russia, 1934–1966), comparative linguistics, Nostratic languages
• Ivanov, Aleksei Ivanovich (Russia, 1878–1937), Chinese language, Tangut language
• Ivanov, Vyacheslav Vsevolodovich (Russia, 1929–2017), Indo-European studies
• Ivić, Pavle (Serbia, 1924–1999), South Slavic languages, phonology, Serbocroatian language

J

• Jackendoff, Ray (United States, 1945–), syntax, lexical semantics
• Jackson, Abraham Valentine Williams (United States, 1862–1937), Indo-Iranian languages, Avestan language
• Jackson, Kenneth Hurlstone (UK, 1909–1991), Brythonic languages, Gaelic languages
• Jacobsen, Lis (1882–1961), Danish and Nordic languages
• Jacques, Guillaume (France), Old Chinese, Rgyalrongic languages, Tangut language
• Jagić, Vatroslav (Croatia, 1838–1923), Croatian language, Slavic languages
• Jakobson, Roman Osipovich (Russia/Czech Republic/United States, 1896–1982), structuralism, phonology
• Jarring, Gunnar (Sweden, 1907–2002), Turkic languages
• Jasanoff, Jay (USA, 1942–), Indo-European linguistics
• Jaszczolt, Katarzyna (UK), semantics, pragmatics, philosophy of language
• Jaunius, Kazimieras (Lithuania, 1848–1908), Lithuanian language, comparative linguistics
• Jendraschek, Gerd (Germany), Basque language, Turkish language, Iatmul language
• Jespersen, Otto (Denmark, 1860–1943), English language, phonetics, constructed languages
• Johnson, David E. (United States, 1946–), syntax
• Jones, Daniel (UK, 1881–1967), phonetics
• Jones, Sir William (UK, 1746–1794), Indo-European studies, Sanskrit, comparative linguistics
• Joshi, Aravind Krishana (India/United States, 1929–2017), computational linguistics
• Junast (PR China, 1934–2010), Mongolian language, Monguor language, Eastern Yugur language, Phags-pa script
• Jurafsky, Daniel (United States), computational linguistics

K

• Kaplan, Ronald M. (United States), computational linguistics
• Karadžić, Vuk Stefanović (Serbia, 1787–1864), Serbian language, lexicography
• Kari, James (United States), Native American languages
• Kasravi, Ahmad (Iran, 1890–1946), ancient languages, Iranian languages
• Katz, Jerrold J. (United States, 1932–2002), semantics, generative grammar
• Kaufman, Terrence (United States), historical linguistics, contact linguistics, Mesoamerican languages
• Kay, Martin (UK, United States), computational linguistics
• Kay, Paul (United States), construction grammar
• Kayne, Richard (United States), syntax, transformational grammar
• Kazama Kiyozō (Japan, 1928–), Japanese language
• Keating, Patricia (United States), phonetics
• Kellogg, Samuel H. (United States), Hindi language
• Kenyon, John Samuel (United States, 1874–1959), English language, lexicography, phonology
• Keyser, Samuel Jay (United States, 1935–), phonology, English language
• Kiesling, Scott Fabius (United States), sociolinguistics
• Kindaichi Haruhiko (Japan, 1913–2004), Japanese language
• Kindaichi Kyōsuke (Japan, 1882–1971), Ainu language
• Kinkade, M. Dale (United States, 1933–2004), Salishan languages
• Kiparsky, Paul (Finland/United States, 1941–), phonology, morphology
• Kirby, Simon (UK), computational linguistics, evolutionary linguistics
• Klima, Edward (United States, 1931–2008), sign language
• Klinkenberg, Jean-Marie (Belgium, 1944–), rhetorics, semiotics, stylistics
• Kloekhorst, Alwin (Netherlands, 1978–), Anatolian languages
• Knechtges, David R. (United States), East Asian languages, Chinese language
• Knorozov, Yuri Valentinovich (Russia, 1922–1999), Maya hieroglyphics, writing systems
• Kober, Alice (UK/United States, 1906–1950), Linear B
• Komárek, Miroslav (Czechia, 1924–2013), Czech language, morphology, phonology
• Kordić, Snježana (Croatia, 1964–), Serbo-Croatian language, syntax, sociolinguistics
• Kornai András (Hungary/United States, 1957–), mathematical linguistics, phonology, morphology, Hungarian language, syntax
• Kornfilt, Jaklin, theoretical linguistics, syntax, morphology, Turkic languages, Germanic languages
• Korsakov, Andrey Konstantinovich (Russia/Ukraine, 1916–2007), Germanic languages, English language, morphology, syntax
• Korzybski, Alfred Habdank Skarbek (Poland/United States, 1879–1950), general semantics
• Koster, Jan (Netherlands, 1945–), generative grammar
• Krahe, Hans (Germany, 1898–1965), Indo-European languages, Illyrian language
• Krashen, Stephen (United States, 1941–), second language acquisition
• Kratzer, Angelika (United States/Germany), semantics
• Krauss, Michael E. (United States, 1941–2019), Native American languages
• Krishnamurti, Bhadriraju (India, 1929–2012), Dravidian languages
• Kroeber, Alfred Louis (United States, 1876–1960), Native American languages
• Kučera, Henry (Czech Republic/United States, 1925–2010), computational linguistics
• Kuno Susumu (Japan/United States, 1933–), Dravidian languages, Japanese language, syntax
• Kurath, Hans (Austria/United States, 1891–1992), English language, lexicography, dialectology
• Kuroda Shigeyuki (Japan, 1934–2009), Japanese language
• Kuryłowicz, Jerzy (Poland, 1895–1978), Indo-European languages, syntax, morphology
• Kychanov, Evgenij Ivanovich (Russia, 1932–2013), Tangut language

L

• Labov, William (United States, 1927–), sociolinguistics, phonology, English language
• Lado, Robert (United States, 1915–1995), applied linguistics, contrastive analysis
• Ladefoged, Peter Nielsen (UK/United States, 1925–2006), phonetics, endangered languages
• Laird, Charlton (United States, 1901–1984), lexicography, English language
• Lakoff, George P. (United States, 1941–), cognitive linguistics, transformational grammar, generative semantics, syntax
• Lakoff, Robin Tolmach (United States, 1942–), sociolinguistics
• Lamb, Sydney MacDonald (United States, 1929–), stratificational grammar, Native American languages, historical linguistics, computational linguistics
• Lambdin, Thomas Oden (United States), Semitic languages, Egyptian language
• Lane, Harlan (United States, 1936–2019), speech, Deaf culture, sign language
• Langacker, Ronald W. (United States, 1942–), cognitive linguistics
• Langdon, Margaret (United States, d. 2005), Native American languages
• LaPolla, Randy J. (United States), morpho-syntax, Chinese, Qiang, Rawang
• Lasersohn, Peter (United States), semantics
• Lasnik, Howard (United States, 1945–), syntax
• Laycock, Donald (Australia, 1936–1988), languages of Papua New Guinea
• Lee, Joan H. (Canada, 1981–), text messaging
• Leech, Geoffrey (UK), applied linguistics, English language
• Lees, Robert (United States, 1922–1996), machine translation
• Lehiste, Ilse (United States, 1922–2010), phonetics, Estonian language, Serbo-Croatian, phonology
• Lehmann, Winfred P. (United States, 1916–2007), historical linguistics, Proto-Indo-European language
• Leonard, Robert A. (United States), Forensic linguistics
• Lepsius, Karl Richard (Germany, 1810–1884), Egyptian language, Nubian languages, phonology
• Leslau, Wolf (Polish-born American), (1906–2006) Semitic languages, Languages of Ethiopia
• Leskien, August (Germany, 1840–1916), comparative linguistics, Baltic languages, Slavic languages
• Levin, Beth (United States, d. 1955), semantics
• Levinson, Stephen C. (UK/Netherlands), pragmatics
• Levstik, Fran (Slovenia, 1831–1881), Slovene language
• Li Fanwen (PR China, 1932–), Tangut language
• Li Fanggui (PR China/United States, 1902–1987), Mattole language, Tai languages, Old Chinese, Tibetan language
• Li, Paul Jen-kuei (Taiwan), Formosan languages, Austronesian languages, historical linguistics, lexicography
• Liberman, Alvin Meyer (United States, 1917–2000), speech perception, phonology
• Liberman, Anatoly (Russia/United States), etymology, Germanic languages
• Liberman, Mark (United States), phonetics, prosody
• Lieber, Rochelle (United States, 1954–), morphology, syntax, lexical semantics
• Lieberman, Philip (United States), phonetics, language evolution
• Lillo-Martin, Diane (United States), signed languages
• Lisker, Leigh (United States, 1918–2006), phonetics, Dravidian languages
• Local, John (UK, 1947–), phonetics, phonology, conversation analysis
• Lounsbury, Floyd Glenn (United States, 1914–1998), Native American languages, Mayan languages
• Lowman, Guy Sumner, Jr. (United States, 1909–1941), phonetics
• Ludlow, Peter (United States, 1957–), syntax, semantics
• Lukoff, Fred (United States, 1920–2000), Korean language, phonology
• Lunde, Ken (United States, 1965–), East Asian languages
• Lynch, John (Australia, 1946–), Austronesian languages, historical linguistics

M

• MacWhinney, Brian (United States, 1945–), language acquisition, second language acquisition, corpus linguistics
• Maddieson, Ian (United States), phonetics
• Malkiel, Yakov (United States, 1914–1998), etymology, philology
• Manaster Ramer, Alexis (United States/Poland), phonology, syntax, poetics, etymology
• Marantz, Alec (United States), distributed morphology
• March, Francis Andrew (United States, 1825–1911), comparative linguistics, lexicography, Old English language, English language
• Margolis, Max Leopold (Lithuania/United States, 1866–1932), Semitic languages
• Marr, Nikolay Yakovlevich (Georgia/Russia, 1865–1934), historical linguistics, comparative linguistics, origin of language
• Martin, James (Sydney, Australia), genre
• Martin, Samuel Elmo (United States, 1924–2009), Korean language, Japanese language
• Martinet, André (France, 1908–1999), structuralism, historical linguistics, constructed languages
• Martinet, Jeanne (France, 1920–2018), semiotics, constructed languages
• Massam, Diane (Canada), syntax, Austronesian languages
• Mathesius, Vilém (Czech Republic, 1882–1945), phonology, syntax, English language, Czech language
• Matisoff, James A. (United States, 1937–), Tibeto-Burman languages, phonology
• Matthews, Peter Hugoe (UK, 1934–), morphology, syntax
• Matthews, Stephen (UK/PR China), typology, syntax, semantics, Cantonese language
• Mattingly, Ignatius G. (United States, 1927–2004), phonetics, speech synthesis, speech perception
• Matveyev, Aleksandr (Russia, 1926–2010), onomastics, etymology
• McArthur, Tom (UK), English language, lexicography
• McCarthy, John J. (United States, 1953–), phonology, morphology, optimality theory
• McCawley, James D. (UK/United States, 1938–1999), syntax, semantics, phonology
• McCulloch, Gretchen (Canada), internet linguistics
• McCune, George McAfee (North Korea/United States, 1908–1988), Korean language
• McNamara, Barbara (United States), Chinese language
• McWhorter, John Hamilton (United States, 1965–), creole languages, Saramaccan language
• Meillet, Antoine (France, 1866–1936), Comparative Linguistics, Armenian language, Philology
• Meinhof, Carl Friedrich Michael (Germany, 1857–1944), languages of Africa
• Melchert, H. Craig (United States), Anatolian languages
• Michaelis, Laura A. (United States), syntax, English language
• Michaud, Alexis (France), Phonetics, Tonology, Naish languages, Vietnamese
• Miklosich, Franz (Slovenia/Austria, 1813–1891), Slavic languages
• Miller, Wick R. (United States, 1932–1994), Keresan languages, Uto-Aztecan languages
• Miller, Roy Andrew (United States, 1924–2014), Tibetan language, Japanese language
• Mithun, Marianne (United States, 1946–), Native American languages
• Mitxelena Elissalt, Koldo (Spain, 1915–1987), Basque language
• Miura Tsutomu (Japan, 1911–1989), Japanese language
• Miyake, Marc (United States, 1971–), historical linguistics, Old Japanese, Tangut language
• Mönkh-Amgalan, Yümjiriin (Mongolia), pragmatics, semantics, syntax, Mongolian language, dialectology
• Mori Hiromichi (Japan, 1949–), Japanese language
• Motoori Norinaga (Japan, 1730–1801), Japanese language
• Motoori Haruniwa (Japan, 1763–1828), Japanese language
• Montague, Richard Merett (United States, 1930–1971), semantics, philosophy of language
• Moro, Andrea (Italy, 1962–), syntax, copula, expletive, antisymmetry, neurolinguistics
• Moser, Edward W. (United States), Seri language
• Hamza Al-Mozainy (Saudi Arabia, 1944–)
• Mufwene, Salikoko (United States), creole languages, African-American English, language evolution
• Munro, Pamela (United States), Native American languages, lexicography
• Murayama Shichirō (Japan, 1908–1995), Japanese language
• Murray, James (UK, 1837–1915), lexicography, English language, etymology
• Muti’I, Ibrahim (China, 1920–2010), Uyghur language
• Myers-Scotton, Carol (United States, 1934–), language contact

N

• Nábělková, Mira (Slovakia), lexical semantics, sociolinguistics
• Nádasdy Ádám (Hungary), phonology, morphophonology
• Napoli, Donna Jo (United States, 1948–), syntax, phonetics, phonology, Japanese language
• Neeleman, Ad (Netherlands/UK, 1964–), syntax, semantics, phonology, generative grammar
• Nelson, Andrew Nathaniel (United States, 1893–1975), Japanese language, lexicography
• Nevsky, Nikolai Aleksandrovich (Russia, 1892–1937), Tangut language
• Newmeyer, Frederick J. (United States, 1944–), syntax, origin of language
• Nichols, Johanna (United States), languages of the Caucasus, Chechen language, Ingush language, typology
• Niftawayh
• Nishida Tatsuo (Japan, 1928–2012), Tangut language
• Nolan, Francis (UK), phonetics
• Noreen, Adolf Gotthard (Sweden, 1854–1925), dialectology, historical linguistics, Germanic languages
• Nunberg, Geoffrey (United States), lexical semantics, English language

O

• Odden, David A. (United States), phonology, African linguistics, Bantu languages
• Ohala, John (United States), phonetics, phonology
• Okrand, Marc (United States, 1948–), Klingon language, Mutsun language
• Ōno Susumu (Japan, 1919–2008), Japanese language, Tamil language
• Orešnik, Janez (Slovenia, 1935–), comparative linguistics
• Orikuchi Shinobu (Japan, 1887–1953), Japanese language
• Orton, Harold (UK, 1898–1975), phonology, dialectology, English dialects
• Osthoff, Hermann (Germany, 1847–1909), Indo-European studies, historical linguistics
• Ōtsuki Fumihiko (Japan, 1847–1928), Japanese language

P

• Pāṇini (India, ca. 520–460 BC), Sanskrit, morphology, descriptive linguistics, generative linguistics
• Frank R. Palmer (England, 1922–2019), semantics, English language, Ethiopian languages
• Partee, Barbara Hall (United States, 1940–), semantics
• Paul, Hermann Otto Theodor (Germany, 1846–1921), lexicography, German language
• Pawley, Andrew Kenneth (Australia/New Zealand, 1941), Austronesian languages, Papuan languages, lexicography, phraseology
• Peacock, Dmitri Rudolf (Britain, 1842–1892), Kartvelian languages
• Pedersen, Holger (Denmark, 1867–1953), Celtic languages, historical linguistics, Nostratic languages
• Pedersen, Johannes (Denmark, 1883–1977), Hebrew language
• Pei, Mario Andrew (Italy/United States, 1901–1978), Italian language, Indo-European languages
• Pesetsky, David Michael (United States, 1957–), transformational grammar
• Keith Malcolm Petyt (UK), sociolinguistics
• Phillipson, Robert (UK/Denmark, 1942–), language policy
• Pierrehumbert, Janet (United States), phonetics, phonology
• Pinault, Georges-Jean (France), Tokharian, Indo-European linguistics
• Pike, Kenneth Lee (United States, 1912–2000), English language, constructed languages, tagmemics
• Pilch, Herbert (Germany, 1927–2018), Old English, Celtic languages, phonetics
• Pimsleur, Paul (United States), language acquisition, French language, phonetics
• Pinker, Steven (Canada/United States, 1954–), language acquisition, syntax, semantics
• Piron, Claude (Switzerland, 1931–2008), Esperanto, psycholinguistics
• Polinsky, Maria (United States), syntax, Austronesian languages
• Pollard, Carl Jesse (United States, 1947–), syntax, semantics
• Pollock, Jean-Yves (France), syntax
• Poplack, Shana (United States), sociolinguistics
• Poppe, Nicholas (Russia, 1897–1991), Mongolic languages
• Postal, Paul M. (United States, 1936–), syntax, semantics
• Primer, Sylvester (United States, 1842–1912), English language, dialectology, phonetics, Germanic languages
• Prince, Alan Sanford (United States, 1946–), optimality theory, phonology
• Prince, Ellen (United States, 1944–2010), pragmatics
• Pulgram, Ernst (Austria/United States, 1915–2005), Romance languages, Italic languages
• Pullum, Geoffrey K. (UK/United States, 1945–), syntax, English language
• Pustejovsky, James D. (United States), natural language processing, computational linguistics, semantics

Q

• Quirk, Charles Randolph (UK/Germany, 1920–2017), English language

R

• Radford, Andrew (UK, 1945–), syntax, generative grammar, child language acquisition
• Rael, Juan Bautista (United States, 1900–1993), phonology, morphology, New Mexican Spanish
• Rask, Rasmus Christian (Denmark, 1787–1832), lexicography, comparative linguistics, Indo-European language
• Ratliff, Martha (United States), Hmong–Mien languages, historical linguistics
• Rauch, Irmengard (United States), Germanic languages, semiotics
• Read, Allen Walker (United States, 1906–2002), etymology, lexicography, English language
• Reinhart, Tanya (Israel, 1943–2007), syntax
• Rice, Keren (Canada), phonology, morphology, Athapaskan languages
• Rickford, John Russell (United States), sociolinguistics, African-American English
• Rizzi, Luigi (Italy, 1952–), syntax, language acquisition
• Roberts, Ian G. (UK, 1957–), syntax
• Rock, Joseph Francis Charles (Austria/United States/PR China, 1884–1962), Naxi language, lexicography
• Rosenblat, Ángel (Poland/Venezuela, 1902–1984), lexicography, Venezuelan Spanish, Philology
• Ross, John Robert (United States, 1938–), semantics, syntax
• Ross, Malcolm David (Australia, 1942–), Austronesian languages, Papuan languages, historical linguistics, language contact
• Rubach, Jerzy (Poland/United States, 1948–), phonology, Polish language
• Rubin, Philip E. (United States, 1949–), articulatory synthesis, phonology
• Ruhlen, Merritt (United States), typology, historical linguistics

S

• Sacks, Harvey (United States, 1935–1975), conversation analysis
• Sadock, Jerrold (United States), syntax, morphology, pragmatics, Greenlandic language, Yiddish language
• Sag, Ivan (United States, 1949–2013), syntax, construction grammar
• Sagart, Laurent (France), Chinese linguistics and Austronesian languages
• Sakaguchi, Alicja (Poland/Germany, 1954–), interlinguistics, Esperanto
• Salo, David (United States, 1969–), constructed languages, Tocharian languages, Elvish languages
• Sampson, Geoffrey (UK, 1944–), philosophy of language
• Sánchez Carrión, José María (Spain, 1952–), Basque language, sociolinguistics, historical linguistics
• Sankoff, Gillian (Canada), sociolinguistics
• Sankrityayan, Rahul (India, 1893–1963), Tibetan language, Hindi language
• Sapir, Edward (Germany/United States, 1884–1939), Native American languages, constructed languages, semantics
• Sarkar, Prabhat Ranjan, (India, 1921–1990), Transliteration, Science of Letters
• Saunders, Irene (United States/PR China), lexicography, Chinese language
• de Saussure, Ferdinand (Switzerland/France, 1857–1913), semantics, Indo-European studies, structural linguistics
• Sayce, Archibald Henry (UK, 1846–1933), Akkadian language
• Schegloff, Emanuel (United States), conversation analysis
• Schleicher, August (Germany, 1821–1868), Indo-European studies, language development, historical linguistics
• Schmidt, Johannes (Germany, 1843–1901), historical linguistics, Indo-European studies
• Schmidt, Richard (United States, 1941–2017), second-language acquisition
• Schmidt, Wilhelm (Germany/Austria/Switzerland, 1868–1954), Mon–Khmer languages
• Searle, John Rogers (United States, 1932–), philosophy of language, pragmatics
• Selinker, Larry (United States), second-language acquisition
• Sen, Sukumar (India, 1900–1992), Bengali language
• Sequoyah (United States, 1767–1843), Cherokee language
• Setälä, Eemil Nestor (Finland, 1864–1935), Finnish language, Uralic languages
• Sgall, Petr (Czech republic, 1926–2019), syntax
• Shackle, Christopher (UK, 1942–), Urdu language, Saraiki language
• Shepard-Kegl, Judy (United States), Nicaraguan Sign Language
• Shevoroshkin, Vitaly Victorovich (Russia/United States), Slavic languages, Nostratics
• Shinmura Izuru (Japan, 1876–1967), Japanese language
• Sibawayh (Iran, ca. 760–796), Arabic language
• Sievers, Eduard (Germany, 1850–1932), Germanic languages, historical linguistics
• Siewierska, Anna (Poland/Netherlands/UK, 1955–2011), language typology
• Sihler, Andrew Littleton (United States, 1941), comparative linguistics, Indo-European languages
• Sinclair, John McHardy (UK, 1933–2007), applied linguistics, corpus linguistics, discourse analysis
• Skeat, Walter W. (UK, 1835–1912), Old English, Middle English, etymology, philology
• Skinner, B.F. (United States, 1905–1992), verbal behavior
• Skousen, Royal (United States, 1945–), language modeling
• Smith, Neilson Voyne (UK, 1939–), syntax, language acquisition
• Smolensky, Paul (United States, 1955–), phonology, optimality theory, syntax
• Stachowski, Marek (Poland), historical linguistics, Turkic languages
• Starostin, Georgiy Sergeevich (Russia, 1976–), comparative linguistics, historical linguistics, Nostratics, Proto-World
• Starostin, Sergei Anatolyevich (Russia, 1953–2005), comparative linguistics, historical linguistics, Nostratics, Proto-World
• Stati, Sorin (Romania-French, 1931–2008), pragmatics, syntax
• Steedman, Mark (UK, United States), theoretical linguistics, categorial grammar, syntax, computational linguistics
• Steels, Luc (Belgium), computational linguistics, evolutionary linguistics
• Stetson, Raymond Herbert (United States, d. 1950), phonetics
• Stieber, Zdzisław (Poland, 1903–1980), Slavic languages, phonology
• Stokoe, William (United States, 1919–2000), American Sign Language, cherology
• Stollznow, Karen (United States), lexical semantics, sociolinguistics, cognitive linguistics
• Suzuki Takao (Japan, 1926–), Japanese language, sociolinguistics
• Swadesh, Morris (United States, 1909–1967), typology, historical linguistics, Native American languages, lexicostatistics
• de Swart, Henriette (Netherlands), semantics
• Sweet, Henry (UK, 1845–1912), Germanic languages, phonetics
• Sweetser, Eve (United States), cognitive linguistics, semantics, historical linguistics, Celtic languages

T

• Talmy, Leonard (United States), cognitive linguistics, semantics, Yiddish language, Native American languages
• Tannen, Deborah Frances (United States, 1945–), discourse analysis
• Tarone, Elaine (United States), second-language acquisition
• Tarpent, Marie-Lucie (Canada), Tsimshianic languages
• Tha Myat (Burma), Mon language, Burmese language, Pyu language, Nagari
• Teeter, Karl van Duyn (United States, 1929–2007), Algic languages, endangered languages
• Thieberger, Nicholas (Australia), Indigenous Australian languages
• Thomas, Calvin (United States, 1854–1919), Germanic languages, German language
• Thomason, Sarah Grey (United States), language contact, historical linguistics, typology, Montana Salish
• Thompson, John Eric Sidney (UK, 1898–1975), Maya languages, Maya hieroglyphics
• Thompson, Sandra A. (United States), syntax, discourse analysis, Mandarin language
• Tokieda Motoki (Japan, 1900–1967), Japanese language
• Tolkien, John Ronal Reuel (UK, 1892–1973), Old English language, constructed languages, Sindarin, Quenya
• Toporišič, Jože (Slovenia, 1926–2014), Slovene language
• Trager, George Leonard (United States, 1906–1992), phonemics, paralanguage, semantics
• Trask, Robert Lawrence (United States, 1944–2004), Basque language, historical linguistics, origin of language
• Traugott, Elizabeth C. (United States), grammaticalization
• Trubetzkoy, Nikolai Sergeyevich (Russia/Austria, 1890–1938), structural linguistics, morphology, phonology
• Trudgill, Peter (UK, 1943–), sociolinguistics, English language, dialectology
• Tuite, Kevin (United States, 1954–), Caucasian languages, Georgian language
• Turner, Mark (United States), cognitive linguistics
• Tucker, Archibald (South Africa), (1904–1980) African languages

U

• Ullendorff, Edward (UK, 1920–2011), Semitic languages
• Unger, James Marshall (United States, 1947–), Japanese language, historical linguistics, writing systems
• Upton, Clive (UK), English language, sociolinguistics, dialectology

V

• Vajda, Edward (United States), Ket language, historical linguistics, Na-Dené languages, comparative linguistics
• van Valin, Robert D. (United States, 1952–), syntax, semantics, cognitive linguistics
• Valli, Clayton (United States, d. 2003), American Sign Language,
• Vasmer, Max (Russia/Germany, 1886–1962), etymology, historical linguistics, Russian language
• Vaux, Bert (United States, 1968–), phonology, morphology, Armenian language
• Veltman, Calvin (United States/Canada/France), sociolinguistics
• Vendler, Zeno (United States, 1921–2004), philosophy of language, event structure
• Ventris, Michael George Francis (UK, 1922–1956), Linear B, Archaic Greek
• Verner, Karl (Denmark, 1846–1896), phonology, comparative linguistics, historical linguistics
• Vincent, Nigel (UK), morphology, syntax, historical linguistics
• Voloshinov, Valentin Nikolaevich (Russia, 1895–1936), semantics
• Vovin, Alexander (Russia/United States), Japanese language, Siberian languages, Korean language, Ainu language, Central Asian languages

W

• Wackernagel, Jacob (Switzerland, 1853–1938), Indo-European studies, Sanskrit
• Wang Li (PR China, 1900–1986), Chinese language
• Watanabe Shōichi (Japan, 1930–2017), Japanese language
• Watkins, Calvert (United States), comparative linguistics, Indo-European languages
• Weeks, Raymond (United States, 1863–1954), phonetics, French language
• Weinreich, Max (Latvia/United States, 1893–1969), Yiddish language
• Weinreich, Uriel (Poland/United States, 1926–1967), sociolinguistics, dialectology, semantics, Yiddish language
• Wells, John Christopher (UK, 1939–), phonetics, Esperanto
• Westermann, Diedrich Hermann (Germany, 1875–1956), languages of Africa, typology
• Westphal, Ernst Oswald Johannes (South Africa/UK, 1919–1990), Bantu languages, Khoisan languages
• Whalen, Douglas H. (United States), phonology, endangered languages
• Wheeler, Benjamin Ide (United States, 1854–1927), historical linguistics, comparative linguistics, Greek language
• White, Lydia (United Kingdom/Canada), second language acquisition
• Whitney, William Dwight (United States, 1827–1894), lexicography, Sanskrit, English language
• Wilks, Yorick (UK, 1939–), artificial intelligence, computational linguistics, natural language processing, semantics
• Whorf, Benjamin Lee (United States, 1897–1941), Native American languages, Maya script, linguistic relativity
• Wichmann, Søren (Denmark, 1964–), Mesoamerican languages, Mixe–Zoque languages, Mayan languages, Maya script
• Widdowson, Henry G. (UK), English language, discourse analysis
• Wierzbicka, Anna (Poland/Australia, 1938–), semantics, pragmatics
• Williams, Nicholas Jonathan Anselm (UK/Ireland, 1942–), Cornish language, Irish language, Manx language, phonology
• Williams, Samuel Wells (United States/China, 1812–1884), Chinese language, lexicography
• Wilson, Robert Dick (United States, 1856–1930), comparative linguistics, Hebrew language, Syriac language
• Wittmann, Henri (France/Canada, 1937–), French language, creole languages, morphology, comparative linguistics
• Wodak, Ruth (Austria/UK, 1950–), discourse analysis
• Wolvengrey, Arok (Canada), Cree language, syntax, Native American languages, lexicography
• Worcester, Samuel, (1798–1859) Presbyterian missionary, linguist, co-founder of Cherokee Phoenix with Elias Boudinot (first Cherokee newspaper in Indian Territory)
• Wright, Alfred (US), Presbyterian minister, physician, linguist), (1788–1853), Choctaw language
• Wurm, Stephen Adolphe (Hungary/Australia, 1922–2001), Australian Aboriginal languages, Papuan languages

Y

• Yeda Pessoa de Castro (Brazil), African languages
• Yamada Yoshio (Japan, 1873–1958), Japanese language
• Yiakoumetti, Androula (Cyprus), Greek language, dialectology
• Yngve, Victor (United States, 1920–2012), computational linguistics, natural language processing
• Young, Robert W. (United States, 1912–2007), Navajo language, lexicography

Z

• Zamenhof, Ludwik Łazarz (Poland, 1859–1917), Esperanto
• Zepeda, Ofelia (United States, 1952–), O'odham language
• Zhang, Niina Ning (PR China), formal syntax, morphology
• Zhou Youguang (PR China, 1906–2017), orthography, Romanization of Chinese
• Zuazo, Koldo (Spain, 1956–), Basque dialectology, sociolinguistics
• Zuckermann, Ghil'ad (Israel, Italy, UK, Australia, 1971–), contact linguistics, lexicology, revival linguistics
• Zwicky, Arnold (United States, 1940–), syntax, morphology

See also

• List of female linguists
• List of Russian linguists and philologists
• List of Jewish American linguists
• List of lexicographers