[An-lang] Moving Blust’s Legacy Forward: Archiving for the Next Era

[Yuko Kitada]

Dear Bill (if I may), dear colleagues,

Thank you, Bill, for your perspective and agreement with Gary that the in The Austronesian Languages (2009) refers to the language group, emphasizing that analyses are ongoing and collaborative. However, the essential issue is not one of linguistic interpretation. The broader issue that we should truly be concerned about is the impression created when Blust’s single-authored work, The Austronesian Languages alone as a title (with or without the), with the book’s broad scope, risks conveying an exclusive authority, potentially discouraging new researchers from challenging established views, especially those made by Blust. I question this seemingly exclusive tendency of Blust’s, and I am concerned that it continues to be perpetuated by his followers even after his passing. This impression is amplified by efforts like the Wix site (https://blusthawaii.wixsite.com/blust)<https://blusthawaii.wixsite.com/blust>, which, while well-intentioned, fosters personal veneration over collaborative progress.

This reflects a lack of community restraint in elevating Blust’s legacy above scrutiny, which connects to my forthcoming concerns about the Austronesian Comparative Dictionary’s unverified entries. I look forward to further discussion on fostering a non-dogmatic and truly academic collaborative Austronesian linguistics field, as this is the hallmark of a healthy academic field.

Best regards,
Yuko Kitada

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