Darrell Tryon

Darrell T. Tryon
Born(1942-07-20)20 July 1942
New Zealand
Died15 May 2013(2013-05-15) (aged 70)
Canberra, Australia
OccupationLinguist
Academic background
ThesisLe français parlé aux Iles Loyauté. (1963)
Academic work
InstitutionsAustralian National University
Main interestsOceanic languages

Darrell T. Tryon (20 July 1942 – 15 May 2013) was a New Zealand-born linguist, academic, and specialist in Austronesian languages. Specifically, Tryon specialised in the study of the languages of the Pacific Islands, particularly Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, and the French-speaking Pacific.[1][2]

From 1970 to 1971, Tryon completed the first systematic study of the languages of Vanuatu, known at the time as the New Hebrides.[1] His study, which collected a list of vocabulary words from communities throughout the islands, determined that there were more than one hundred distinct languages in Vanuatu.[1] Tryon determined that the modern, indigenous languages of Vanuatu are part of Austronesian language family.[1]

Tryon began to study the languages of the Solomon Islands in 1978.[1] He was also authored works on the pidgin and creole languages of the Pacific Islands, including Pijin of the Solomon Islands and Bislama of Vanuatu.[1][3]

  1. ^ a b c d e f Makin, Bob (28 May 2013). "Darrell Tryon laid the foundation for four decades of language research in Vanuatu: Lynch". Vanuatu Daily Post. Archived from the original on 15 June 2013. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
  2. ^ François, Alexandre (2013). "In memoriam Darrell T. Tryon (1942-2013)". Journal de la Société des Océanistes (in French). No. 136/137. pp. 275–278. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
  3. ^ Ross, Malcolm (8 May 2013). "Tribute to The Late Professor Darrell Tryon (1942–2013)". Outrigger: Blog of the Pacific Institute at Australian National University. Archived from the original on 18 December 2013. Retrieved 12 June 2013.