Carl Croneberg, renowned professor and researcher, dies

More than 60 years after he began his painstaking and meticulous research on American Sign Language, Carl-Gustaf Arvid Olof Croneberg, ’55 & H-’22, is receiving international recognition. His passing on August 7, at age 92, inspired numerous tributes, including full-length obituaries in the New York Times and the Washington Post. 

Croneberg’s work with Dr. William C. Stokoe, along with that of colleague Dorothy Chiyoko Sueoka Casterline, ’58 & H-’22, led to the publication in 1965 of A Dictionary of American Sign Language on Linguistic Principles, and changed forever the study of signed languages and indeed, the entire field of linguistics. 

Linguistics faculty member Pamela Wright and her students spearheaded an effort to bring long overdue recognition to Croneberg’s and Casterline’s contributions, culminating in the university awarding both honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degrees in May.

Read the New York Times obituary.

Read the Washington Post obituary.