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Joshua A. Fishman 1926–2015
Author(s) -
García Ofelia
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of sociolinguistics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1
H-Index - 51
eISSN - 1467-9841
pISSN - 1360-6441
DOI - 10.1111/josl.12127
Subject(s) - sociolinguistics , memoir , manifesto , obituary , sociology , editorial board , garcia , media studies , field (mathematics) , anthropology , art history , history , library science , humanities , linguistics , philosophy , political science , law , theology , mathematics , computer science , pure mathematics
Joshua Fishman died in March this year. He was founder‐editor of the International Journal of the Sociology of Language, one of the early and central journals of sociolinguistics. Alongside this major editorial involvement, which he maintained to the end, he also edited several of the field‐defining book collections which helped shape the growing field in the 1960s and 70s. He might well have viewed the founding of the Journal of Sociolinguistics in 1997 as unfortunate or competitive, the more so since our opening manifesto questioned the role of traditional sociology in our field. But Fishman responded graciously and positively to the invitation from me and Nikolas Coupland to join our inaugural Editorial Board. He remained on the Board, and was warm in his support and advice. The one piece he published with us was in 2000, a very personal obituary for Charles Ferguson which was notable for the respect and warmth it displayed. The editorial team is indebted to Fishman's longtime collaborator, Ofelia García, for this memoir on him and his significance in sociolinguistics . The Editors