Calling it one of his greatest accomplishments, Southern University and A&M College’s Dr. David Porter recently had his article on the origins of the English language included in an internationally prestigious publication in England.
The article, “Isidore’s Etymologiae at the School of Canterbury,” was published Nov. 26, in the Anglo-Saxon England (ASE), an annual peer-reviewed academic journal that covers the study of various aspects of history, language, and culture.
The ASE, Porter said, “is a top journal that publishes only a dozen or so papers per year, and they have put mine first.” “This is a big thing for me because it’s the most important paper I’ve published,” said Porter, an English professor for 26 years in the College of Education, Arts and Humanities.
Last year, the National Endowment for the Humanities awarded Porter funding for his research project on the origins of written English.
His findings tell the story of how and why the first written English vocabulary was produced at the Canterbury School in the late seventh century. “It has taken me 20 years to understand what I found,” he joked.
One of the discoveries he made was of important text called the Leiden Glossary dated to seventh-century Canterbury (the first English School). Porter proved that another vocabulary that exists only in much later copies contributed to Leiden, and he was able to describe in detail the original lost seventh-century source.
Having his work included in the ASE journal, he said, is not only a professional benefit for him but a substantial acknowledgement of the strength of Southern’s faculty. “A lot of people who otherwise would not have seen the name Southern University will see it in this top journal,” he said.
Dr. Luria Young, dean of the College of Education, Arts and Humanities, praised Porter for his accomplishment. “We congratulate Dr. David Porter on his significant contribution to the body of knowledge and for increasing the scholarly productivity of the College of Education, Arts and Humanities.”
Porter received his undergraduate degree in English from the University of North Texas and earned a master’s and doctorate in English as a Second Language from the University of Texas at Austin.
CONTACT:
Edward Pratt or Erin Fulbright
Southern University Media Relations
(225) 771-4545 or (225) 771-3907
Posted By: How May I Help You NC
Friday, December 5th 2014 at 10:29AM
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