Anna Morpurgo Davies#

Obituary, Transactions of the Philological Society

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Curriculum vitae#

Present Position

• Diebold Professor Emeritus of Comparative Philology, University of Oxford
• Emeritus Fellow of Somerville College, Oxford

Secondary Education

• 1947-55: Liceo-Ginnasio Classico Giulio Cesare, Rome (Italy)

University Education

• 1955-59 University of Rome ("La Sapienza"): Classics (with Comparative Philology and Sanskrit)
• 1959 Dott. Lett. University of Rome (110/110 e lode). Degree Dissertation: Studi di Morfologia Micenea.

Further Degrees/ Qualifications

• 1963 "Libera docenza in Glottologia" (venia legendi), University of Rome
• 1964 M.A. by decree, University of Oxford.

Professional Career

• 1959-61 "Assistente" in Classical Philology, University of Rome
• 1961-62 Junior Fellow, Center for Hellenic Studies (Harvard University), Washington D.C.
• 1962-64 Part-time teaching in Comparative and Classical Philology, University of Oxford.
• 1964-71 University Lecturer in Classical Philology, University of Oxford.
• 1966-71 Supernumerary Fellow and Lecturer in Classics, St. Hilda's College, Oxford.
• 1971-2004 Professor of Comparative Philology, University of Oxford (from 2002 Diebold Professor of Comparative Philology)
• 1971-2004 Professorial Fellow, Somerville College, Oxford.

Visiting Professorships

• 1971 Fall Semester - Visiting Professor, Department of Linguistics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pa. (also appointed Visiting Professor at Swarthmore College).
• 1975 Collitz Professor of the Linguistic Society of America (Professorship held at the Summer Institute of the LSA at the University of Florida, Tampa)
• 1977 Fall Semester - Visiting Professor, Department of Linguistics, Yale University.
• 1988 May - "Professore a contratto", Istituto Universitario Orientale di Napoli
• 2000 Sather Professor of Classics, University of California at Berkeley
• 2005 November. Professor, Istituto Universitario di Studi Superiori, Pavia
• 2006 January-June Visiting Professor, Department of Classics and Department of Linguistics, University of California at Berkeley
• 2006 May - Bloc Seminar on Anatolian, Program in Indo-European Studies, UCLA
• 2007 January-June Visiting Professor, Department of Classics and Department of Linguistics, University of California at Berkeley
• 2009 July - Professor at the Linguistic Institute of the Linguistic Society of America, Berkeley

Series of Lectures and Named Lectures

• 1979 December - 'Academic Exchange with Europe' Lectures in Austria (Departments of Linguistics at Innsbruck, Salzburg, Vienna)
• 1983 April - Semple Lectures, Department of Classics, University of Cincinnati, Ohio.
• 1984 May - Comparative Philology Seminars, Department of Linguistics, Harvard University
• 1985 December - Lezioni lincee at the Scuola normale di Pisa.
• 1988 April - T.B.L. Webster Lectures, Department of Classics, Stanford University
• 1990 April - Jackson Lectures, Department of Classics, Harvard University
• 1993 Corbett Lecture, University of Cambridge
• 1995 Myres Lecture, University of Oxford
• 1996 Robinson Lecture, Brown University, Rhode Island
• 2000 Sather Lectures, University of California at Berkeley
• 2004 Bryce Lecture, Somerville College, Oxford
• 2006 Vaciago Lecture, British Council, Rome

Invited Lectures

Universities of Florence, Milano, Naples, Padua, Pavia, Pisa, Rome, Verona, Urbino, Udine, etc.; Universities of Cambridge, London, Manchester, Oxford, St. Andrews, etc.; Universities of Cincinnati, Florida, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Pittsburg, Brown U., Cornell U., Harvard U., Johns Hopkins U. Stanford, UCLA, UC Davis, Yale U., Bryn Mawr C., Connecticut C., Swarthmore C., Wellesley C. etc. ; Universities of Köln, Tübingen, Innsbruck, Salzburg, Vienna, etc.; Universities of Nancy, Paris, etc. Also invited papers and keynote papers at conferences in Austria, Britain, Canada, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, USA, etc.

Academies, Honours , etc.

• 1972- Honorary Fellow, St. Hilda's College, Oxford
• 1981 Honorary Doctorate (D. Litt.), University of St. Andrews, Scotland
• 1985- Fellow of the British Academy (Linguistics Section, Classics Section)
• 1986- Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
• 1988- Corresponding Member of the Oesterreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften
• 1989- Member of the Academia Europaea
• 1991- Foreign Member of the American Philosophical Society
• 1992- Corresponding Member of the Institut de France (Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres)
• 1993- Honorary Member of the Linguistic Society of America
• 1996 Premio Linceo per la linguistica, Accademia dei Lincei, Rome.
• 1998- Corresponding Member of the Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften
• 2001- Hon. DBE (Dame Commander of the British Empire)
• 2004 Presented with a Festschrift: Indo-European Perspectives. Studies in Honour of Anna Morpurgo Davies, Edited by J.H.W. Penney, Oxford, Oxford University Press.
• 2009 Doctorat honoris causa, Université de Nancy 2

Membership of professional societies

• Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries
• Member of: Philological Society, Linguistic Association of Great Britain, Hellenic Society, Classical Association, Royal Asiatic Society, Henry Sweet Society, Linguistic Society of America, Société de Linguistique de Paris, Società Italiana di Glottologia, Indogermanische Gesellschaft, S.H.E.S.L., Societas Linguistica Europaea
• (British) Philological Society: Member of Council, 1972-75, President, 1976-80, Hon. Vice-President, 1980 -- (for life)
• Henry Sweet Society for the History of Linguistic Ideas: Member of the Executive Committee, 1983- President, 1991-1993, Vice-President 1993-
• Member of the Executive Committee for the Societas Linguistica Europaea, 1990-1993

Editorial Boards/ Research Committees:

• Coeditor of Untersuchungen zur indogermanischen Sprach- und Kulturwissenschaft, de Gruyter, Berlin (a series of monographs, the first of which appeared in 1985) 1983- 2000.
• Member of the Editorial Board for Kadmos. Zeitschrift für vor- und frühgriechische Epigraphik. Berlin. 1989-
• Member of Advisory Board for Rivista di Linguistica. Pisa. 1989-1999, 2008-
• Member of Editorial Board for Seminari Romani di Cultura Classica, 1998-
• Member of Editorial Board for Written language and Literacy, 1998-2003
• Member of two British Academy Research Committees: Supplement to Liddell & Scott's Greek Lexicon (until 1994); Lexicon of Greek Personal Names.
• Area Advisor for Linguistics, Oxford Classical Dictionary, 3rd ed., 1996, New Ed. 2008-2010
• Co-editor for the History of Linguistics, International Encyclopedia of Linguistics, Second edition, 2003

Administration:

a) at Oxford

Served on a number of College and University Committees (including Curators of the Taylorian, Computing Council, Research and Equipment Committee, Committee for Computing in the Arts, Classics Taskforce, Ad hominem Promotion Committee, Distinctions Committee, etc.). Active Member of two subfaculties, Languages and Literature (Literae Humaniores) and Linguistics (Modern Languages). Served for a number of years on the Planning Committee which planned the reform of the classical courses.

Chairman, Committee for Comparative Philology, Oxford (1974-1984).

Chairman, Committee for Comparative Philology and General Linguistics, Oxford; also acting as Director of Graduate Studies (1988-1994); Vice-Chairman 1995-2000 (Acting Chairman MT 1996, HT1998, MT 2000).; Chairman Oct. 2000-2002

Literae Humaniores Faculty Board, Member 1971-2001 (Vice-Chairman 1981-2). Chairman, 1985-1987. Classics Faculty Board: Member 2001-2004

Arts and Humanities Division, Divisional Board, Member 2000-2003 Member of the Resource Allocation Committee 2000- 2003

Bodleian Library, Oxford: Curator, 1989-1996 and Member of the Standing Committee of the Curators, 1993-1996.

Curators of the Oxford University Libraries: Member 2000-2003.

Oxford University Press: Delegate 1992-2004 (responsibility for linguistics and the dictionaries), Member of Finance Committee, 1995-2004.

Member of Electoral Boards for various Chairs or similar appointments (Oxford, Cambridge, Birmingham, London, etc.; at Oxford Chairs of Armenian (twice), Comparative Slavonic Philology, General Linguistics (three times), Latin, Romance Languages (twice), Sanskrit (twice), advisory Committee for the Regius Chair of Greek, Appointing Committee for Bodley's Librarian and Directory of Library Services; Committee for the Appointment of the Vice-Chancellor.

b) Outside Oxford:

University of Cambridge: Member of the Review Committee for the Department of Linguistics, 1994-5. Elector to the Chair of Linguistics and the Chair of Comparative Philology (twice).

Member of the British National Committee for Linguistics, 1978-1990.

Member of the (British) Universities Grant Committee Working-Party on Asian and African Studies (Parker Committee),1986-1989.

British Academy: Member of Council, 1987-1990. Member of the Standing Committee of the Classics Section 1990-94, Member of the Standing Committee of the Linguistics Section,1991-95. Member of the Structures Committee, 1991-1994. Chairman of Section C (Linguistics and Philology), 1995-98. Section representative on Groups I and III, 1995-98. British Academy representative on the Council of the British School in Rome 2000-2006 . Humanities Research Board HRB: Member of Research Panel 2 (language based disciplines), 1994-97.

Higher Education Funding Council for England HEFCE: Member of the Classics, Ancient History, Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies Panel for the Research Assessment Exercise, 1995-96.

(British) Arts and Humanities Data Service: Member of Steering Committee 1997- 1999

Harvard University: 1991 - member of search committee for the Director of the Center for Hellenic Studies in Washington DC; 1996 - member of the ad hoc committee for a senior appointment in historical linguistics.