Larry Selinker Quick Facts

Larry Selinker (1937) is an American linguist and the world’s most influential Second Language Acquisition (SLA) theorist.

Profile

• Birth Name: Larry Selinker
• Date of Birth: September 19, 1937
• Zodiac Sign: Virgo
• Nationality: American
• Spouse: Phyllis Selinker
• Children: Mike Selinker
• Alma Mater: Brandeis University, The American University, Georgetown University.
• Larry Selinker is known for: his concept of interlanguage which helped to found the field of Second Language Acquisition.
• Larry Selinker is criticized for: limited explanatory power of his interlanguage theory.
• Larry Selinker was influenced by: Pit Corder.

Quotes

“[t]he process of learning a second language (L2) is characteristically non-linear and fragmentary, marked by a mixed landscape of rapid progression in certain areas but slow movement, incubation or even permanent stagnation in others. Such a process results in a linguistic system known as ‘interlanguage’.” ― Larry Selinker, “Interlanguage” (1972)

Major Works

• “Language Transfer” (1969)
• “Interlanguage” (1972)
• Workbook in Second Language Acquisition (1984)
• Rediscovering Interlanguage (1991)
• Second Language Acquisition: An Introductory Course (1993)
• The Current State of Interlanguage: Studies in Honor of William E. Rutherford (1995)
• Second Language Learning Data Analysis : Teachers Manual (1998)

Did You Know?

• Larry Selinker is chiefly noted for his concept of interlanguage theory, which paved the way for laying the foundation of modern research into SLA.
• He proposed his interlanguage theory in his paper “Interlanguage” which appeared in the January 1972 issue of the journal International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching.
• His paper, “Language Transfer” first appeared in a 1969 edition of General Linguistics.
• His interlanguage theory is also known as compromise system, approximative system, idiosyncratic dialect, learner language, and transitional competence.
• Although Selinker has been credited for postulating the interlanguage theory, in essence, he based it upon Pit Corder's previous work on the nature of language learners' errors.
• Selinker’s interlanguage focuses on the linguistic and psychological aspects of SLA research.
• Selinker earned his doctorate degree from Georgetown University in 1966.
• He was the assistant professor of linguistics and the director of English for foreign students from 1966 to 1975 in the University of Washington.
• Selinker held the position of director of the University of Michigan’s English Language Institute from 1977 to 1982.
• At University of Michigan he designed a course entitled “The Good and Bad Language Learner” which was widely popular amongst undergraduate students.
• He was also a Professor of Linguistics in the University of Michigan until his retirement in 1993.
• After his retirement the Regents of the University of Michigan awarded Professor Selinker an emeritus title.
• His son Mike Selinker is a well-known game designer and puzzle maker.
• His wife, Phyllis Selinker is an attorney specializing in pro bono services.

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