<html aria-label="message body"><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body style="overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;">Dear colleagues,<div><br></div><div>my FB feed (the FB account of the Livonian Institute) just brought in a sad piece of news: Professor Huno Rätsep (<span class="x193iq5w xeuugli x13faqbe x1vvkbs xlh3980 xvmahel x1n0sxbx x1lliihq x1s928wv xhkezso x1gmr53x x1cpjm7i x1fgarty x1943h6x xudqn12 x3x7a5m x6prxxf xvq8zen xo1l8bm xzsf02u x1yc453h" dir="auto">28.12.1927–26.06.2026) has passed away at the age of 99 years.</span></div><div><br></div><div>Huno Rätsep, long-time professor of Estonian at the University of Tartu, was best known for his studies of Estonian syntax and vocabulary and for his central role in the paradigm change and advent of Western theoretical linguistics in the Estonian linguistic scene from the 1960s on. Beyond Estonian, he also worked with etymology, comparative phraseology and minor Finno-Ugric languages such as Livonian. </div><div><br></div><div>A versatile scholar who shaped the development of Estonian linguistics has left us. In the name of our community, our deepest condolences to Huno Rätsep’s colleagues, friends, former students and all who knew him.</div><div><br></div><div>jl<br><div>
<meta charset="UTF-8"><div dir="auto" style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none; overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;"><div dir="auto" style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none; overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;"><div style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; border-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none;"><div style="overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; border-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;"><div style="overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;"><div>--</div><div>Univ.Prof. Dr. Johanna Laakso</div><div>Universität Wien, Institut für Europäische und Vergleichende Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaft (EVSL)</div><div>Abteilung Finno-Ugristik</div><div>Campus AAKH Spitalgasse 2-4 Hof 7</div><div>A-1090 Wien</div><div>johanna.laakso@univie.ac.at • http://homepage.univie.ac.at/Johanna.Laakso/</div></div></span></div></span></div></div></div>
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