William Poser facts for kids
William J. Poser is a Canadian-American linguist. A linguist is a person who studies languages. He is famous for his deep work on Native American languages. He focused especially on the Athabascan family, which is a group of related languages spoken by Indigenous peoples in North America.
Becoming a Language Expert
William J. Poser went to Harvard University and earned his first degree, a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), in 1979. He then continued his studies at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). In 1985, he earned his Ph.D., which is a very advanced university degree. For his Ph.D., he studied the sounds of the Japanese language.
After finishing his studies, Dr. Poser became a teacher. He taught at Stanford University, which is a well-known school. Later, he taught at the University of Northern British Columbia in Canada.
Studying the Carrier Language
Dr. Poser has spent a lot of time studying the Carrier language. This is a specific Native American language spoken by the Dakelh people in British Columbia, Canada. He did a lot of "fieldwork" for this. Fieldwork means he traveled to where the language is spoken and learned about it directly from the people who speak it every day. He has written many books and articles about the Carrier language.
Sharing Ideas on Language Log
William J. Poser is also known for writing often on a website called Language Log. This is a popular blog where linguists and language experts share their thoughts and discoveries about language. He uses this platform to discuss many interesting topics related to how languages work.
