Indian-American Professor Emeritus Braj B Kachru died

Renowned Indian-American linguist Braj B Kachru passed away on 29 July 2016 in Urbana, Illinois. He was 84.

Kachru coined the term World English. He is also known for his published studies on Kashmiri.

Who was Braj B Kachru?
• Born on 15 May 1931 in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, Braj Bihari Kachru initiated, shaped and defined the field of World Englishes.
• He researched in the fields of World Englishes and Kashmiri language and has published several books and research papers related to the field.
• At the University of Illinois, he headed the Department of Linguistics from 1968 to 1979.
• From 1985 to 1991, he directed the Division of English as an International Language at the University.
• He was the Director of the Center for Advanced Study from June 1996 to January 2000 at the University.
• In 1984, he was appointed director at the Linguistic Institute of the Linguistic Society of America.
• He was named Jubilee Professor of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Illinois in 1992.
• He went on to become the president of the International Association for World Englishes from 1997 to 1999.
• He has also authored and edited over 25 books and more than 100 research papers, reviews and review articles.
• He authored the prize-winning The Alchemy of English: The Spread, Functions and Models of Non-Native Englishes.
• He was also the associate editor for Contributor to the Cambridge History of the English Language and The Oxford Companion to the English Language.