Origins & Early Life

Michael Silverstein (12 September 1945 – 17 July 2020) was an American linguist and semiotician who served as the Charles F. Grey Distinguished Service Professor of anthropology, linguistics, and psychology at the University of Chicago. He was a theoretician of semiotics and linguistic anthropology. Over the course of his career he created an original synthesis of research on the semiotics of communication, the sociology of interaction, Russian formalist literary theory, linguistic pragmatics, sociolinguistics, early anthropological linguistics and structuralist grammatical theory, together with his own theoretical contributions, yielding a comprehensive account of the semiotics of human communication and its relation to culture.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

He presented the developing results of this project annually from 1970 until his death in a course entitled "Language in Culture". Among other achievements, he was instrumental in introducing the semiotic terminology of Charles Sanders Peirce, including especially the notion of indexicality, into the linguistic and anthropological literature; with coining the terms metapragmatics and metasemantics in drawing attention to the central importance of metasemiotic...

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The historical impact and works continue to influence the modern world.

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• Alan Mulally — Contemporary (Born in 1945) (1945): Aerospace executive credited with revitalizing Boeing and saving Ford Motor Company.
• Anatoly Fomenko — Contemporary (Born in 1945) (1945): Topologist, Mathematician, and proponent of the New Chronology theory.
• Angus Deaton — Contemporary (Born in 1945) (1945): Influential economist specializing in poverty, inequality, and consumption analysis.
• Alan Parker — Contemporary (Died in 2020) (2020): Acclaimed English filmmaker known for genre versatility and numerous BAFTA and Golden Globe wins.
• Albert Uderzo — Contemporary (Died in 2020) (2020): Pioneering French comic artist, co-creator of the iconic Astérix series.
• Alfred Worden — Contemporary (Died in 2020) (2020): American astronaut and test pilot, famous for Apollo 15 lunar mission.
• Alexander Radishchev — Shared historical date (09-12 · Died) (1802): Pioneering Russian author and social critic, known for 'Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow'
• Amílcar Cabral — Shared historical date (09-12 · Born) (1924): Bissau-Guinean anti-colonial leader, intellectual, and revolutionary poet.
• Adam Smith — Shared historical date (07-17 · Died) (1790): Scottish philosopher and economist, considered the father of modern capitalism.
• Ananya Birla — Shared historical date (07-17 · Born) (1994): Indian businesswoman and artist, daughter of Kumar Mangalam Birla.
• 1945 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 1945
• September 12 (09-12) On This Day — Historical birthdays and events on September 12
• 2020 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 2020
• July 17 (07-17) On This Day — Historical events and memorials on July 17