Mei Tsu-lin (梅祖麟), a leading academic of historical Chinese linguistics, passed away on Oct. 14 in Ithaca, New York, Academia Sinica announced on Friday.
He was 90.
Mei was an elected member of Academia Sinica’s Institute of History and Philology since 1994.
Photo: Screen grab from Academia Sinica’s Web site
His research focused on Chinese historical grammar, Chinese historical dialectology, the morphology of Chinese characters and Sino-Tibetan comparative linguistics, according to Cornell University, where Mei taught from 1971 to 2001.
Mei’s time at Cornell saw him achieve the status of Hu Shih professor emeritus of Chinese literature and philology while chairing the university’s Department of Asian Studies and directing its East Asia Program.
Following his retirement from Cornell, Mei became a visiting professor at prestigious academic institutions around the world, including National Taiwan University and National Tsing Hua University, as well as Stanford University in California, Beijing University, the Chinese Academy of Social Science in Beijing, Tsinghua University in Beijing and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.
Mei became president of the International Association of Chinese Linguistics in 1994 and was also a member of Taiwan’s Association of Chinese Phonology.
Academia Sinica said that Mei’s professional achievements were preceded by his prestigious education, having attained a doctorate in philosophy from Yale in 1962.
Cornell said that he received a bachelor’s degree from Oberlin College in 1954 and a master’s in mathematics from Harvard in 1955, where he also taught from 1964 to 1971.
Academia Sinica said that Mei heavily contributed to the research of modern Chinese grammar and dialectology alongside old morphology.
Mei’s efforts in tracing the grammatic and phonetic development of the Chinese language became a tool used in literary criticism, Academia Sinica said, adding that Mei also proposed that Sanskrit had an impact on modern Chinese poetry.
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan