Remembering Nora England, 1946-2022 by UT DocLin https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe Please share your memories of Nora. en-us 2022-01-27 17:45:07 UTC 2022-02-28 17:04:19 UTC hello@padlet.com How to post (from Tony) utdoclin https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2016464397 1. You can log in (via Google, Facebook, or create an account using your email address) and post; or you can post without logging in.
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She has certainly left an indelible mark on all of us and everyone with whom she has had significant contact. ]]> 2022-01-27 18:04:21 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2016476082 From Gabriela García Salido utdoclin https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2016482590 Last night, I couldn't sleep, I thought I had worked a lot and my head kept thinking, but now I see it clearly, I thought about things like CILLA, I wondered when the next CILLA will be, I thought about who had trained me, that my advisers had always been women, I thought why women. Nora was saying goodbye in the distance and I didn't know it. I am very grateful to have had Nora England as my tutor and thesis advisor, blessed for teaching me so much and for her kindness in working with me in a language we knew very little about. I feel very sad about Nora's death, but lucky to have known her. When I arrived at the linguistics department, Nora was the first person to greet me with her smile and her particular way of saying that everything was going to be fine. I'm going to look for the photos I have and I'll share them soon. I send my condolences to all and also a deep hug.]]> 2022-01-27 18:07:26 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2016482590 From Kate Mesh utdoclin https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2016484032 Nora was one of a kind. This might sound silly, but one thing I will always associate with Nora's characteristic drive to do things right was her insistence, at each CILLA conference, that we source and provide clotted cream to go with the scones in the morning. No point in providing a scone and then serving it badly, was her strong viewpoint.  Nora was usually right in her strongly held opinions. I think she was right in this case. To hold CILLA without Nora is almost unimaginable. I am so sad thinking about it. ]]> 2022-01-27 18:08:07 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2016484032 From Emiliana Cruz utdoclin https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2016485468 When I first met Nora, I was very naive about linguistics and many things (I still am). I told her, "I really like Noam Chomsky". She looked at me like I was crazy. Then I continued saying that I saw him give a talk at Evergreen. Then she said, "Chomsky no hace ningún sentido". End of our conversation. I only knew his political activism, and not his linguistic work. It took me some time to get what she was trying to tell me.  We will miss you Nora.  ]]> 2022-01-27 18:08:47 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2016485468 From Hilaria Cruz utdoclin https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2016486489 If I may add another anecdote. While editing the acknowledgements to my PhD dissertation Nora edited a part where I said "and last, but not least I am forever grateful to my boyfriend Michael for his unyielding support." Nora said NO delete boyfriend and put "partner". I went back with Michael and said to him "Nora says that I should call you partner," to which Michael replied "I don't want to be called partner, I want to be called boyfriend." So I had to go back and change it to "boyfriend". This story tells of how much Nora cared for every detail. Miss Nora!]]> 2022-01-27 18:09:16 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2016486489 From Lina Hou tonywoodbury https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2017931483 Thanks Lina!]]> 2022-01-28 14:03:40 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2017931483 Nora ca. 1971 https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2018174495 Nora appears in a photo (lower left) in a brochure for the PLFM's Spanish immersion school in Antigua. There's no date on the brochure, but Nora started working with the PLFM in 1971. ]]> 2022-01-28 16:04:31 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2018174495 I was so so sorry to hear this news. Nora was on my PhD committee, and she asked by far the hardest question at my defense - I still reflect on it often. After I had presented some complicated experiments and computational work, she said (roughly), "So.. with all of this, why does it matter that you're a linguist?" Nora opened my eyes to new eyes of thinking about language and the things we do as linguists. alexispalmer https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2018818551 2022-01-29 01:25:17 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2018818551 I am so very sad to hear about Nora's passing. My very first class in graduate school was with Nora. Although she was never my MA/PhD advisor, she was someone who I always knew I could talk to. No matter what complication existed, you knew that in talking to Nora, it would be resolved. She was honest, she was pragmatic, she listened and observed, and she gave excellent advice. I always felt welcome at the meetings and parties at her house, even after I moved away from documentary linguistics. I was lucky to be a part of that. Nora was a larger-than-life personality, and she will be sorely missed. niamhkelly632 https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2018881624 2022-01-29 03:44:23 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2018881624 From Liberty Lidz https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2018988389 She was a brilliant linguist, magnificent mentor, and fierce and deep advocate for Mayan languages and linguistics, and endangered languages more generally. She was made of sturdy stuff, conducting linguistic fieldwork in Guatemala in the 1970s and 80s when the country was in a civil war, worked on 30 or so Mayan languages, and often seemed light years ahead in her vision for the field of linguistics, training native speaker scholars of Mayan and other indigenous languages of Latin America. 

I remember when Nora arrived at UT Austin how deeply excited she seemed to start CILLA and be in a place where descriptive and documentary linguistics was valued and there was lots of enthusiasm and energy for the kind of work she wanted to do. It was my great good fortune to take the Structure of Mayan Languages, Grammar Writing, and to be her teaching assistant for her Indigenous Languages of the Americas class, as well as to have Nora as a committee member for my dissertation, all of which I learned a tremendous amount from her. 

I remember one afternoon in the CILLA offices at the end of the spring semester, she said that she was packing up to drive to Guatemala from Austin for the summer with B'alam and several others, which seemed like a crazy idea, but apparently was her habit.

RIP, Nora. You are loved by many.

I am heartbroken. 

]]> 2022-01-29 08:30:48 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2018988389 bsgraupner https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2019203327 Nora was so kind, welcoming, and thoughtful. As someone from across the sky bridge, I valued how she was always happy to have rigorous and enlightening exchanges with me that were much more anthropological than they were linguistic. The keen insights she offered would echo in my mind, indexing both her intellectual breadth and magnanimity. I’m so sorry for her passing. All my condolences to her family, friends, colleagues and students. -Bradley Graupner]]> 2022-01-29 14:46:12 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2019203327 Fond memories of Nora gbroadwell https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2019205061 I was on sabbatical at UT Austin in 2013 when I got to know Nora.  She was very gracious to invite me to lunch early on and made me feel welcome in the Linguistics department.
I remember that when I talked about fieldwork on Zapotec, she asked me about a certain prominent senior linguist in the field.  "Do you work with X? What do you think about X?"  
I said that I could not abide X's rudeness to colleagues and students, X's tendency to hoard data which could not be shared, and X's history of working without community consultation.
Nora said "Good. I completely agree with you.  I am glad that we see eye-to-eye on that."
I felt like I had passed a little test!
-- Aaron Broadwell]]> 2022-01-29 14:48:43 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2019205061 From Michal Brody https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2019247093 I was a UT graduate student working on maya yucateco, so of course I was familiar with Nora’s name and her work, and I was beyond thrilled when she came to UT. Studying with her was mind-blowingly wonderful. I loved how deep she would happily dive into the tiniest analytical question, I loved her no-bullshit approach to everything, and I loved that she was so very willing to engage thoughtfully and seriously with my work despite it being, oh, maybe a little too fluffy and socio for her taste, and on top of that, I worked in Yucatán, a place she didn’t like much (and said so) because it was too hot (she wasn’t wrong). She was my teacher, and a member of my committee, and then after I graduated, we were just two big-city Ashkenazi girls about the same age, and we entertained ourselves often, as Ashkenazis of our generation frequently do, insulting each others’ taste in food. She, a New Yorker, scoffed at my Chicago hot dogs; I rolled my eyes at her wimpy pizza. Just a couple of weeks ago, after some lengthy discussion about where I should get it and what should be on it, I brought over a pizza from a place not far from her house (Desano, fwiw). She had never tried it from that place, and she was skeptical, but I insisted that it would be her style and that she should know about this place so close by. We spent a pleasant evening, and I think she liked the pizza; she declared it “OK.” 

]]> 2022-01-29 15:44:02 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2019247093 From Elisa Ferracane https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2021925716 My first foray into Linguistics at UT was as an undergraduate non-degree-seeking student. I was lucky to join at a time when there was no undergrad advisor, as this led to my first encounter with Nora. 

It was not face-to-face or even over the phone, but over email-- yet her character was strong enough to shine through and lodge a deep memory in my mind. Her reply clearly implied I should not be wasting her time but at the same time was packed with useful information that enabled me to start the program from the best vantage point. I regret I was never able to share this memory with Nora while she was alive. I'm sure she would have gotten a kick out of it.]]> 2022-01-31 18:10:50 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2021925716 Nora https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2024533754 Nora comenzó su tarea de amor con los idiomas Mayas en Guatemala en 1972, trabajando como lingüista con el Proyecto Lingüístico Francisco Marroquín.  Yo entré al Proyecto en 1973, desde entonces nos hicimos amigas, xqachb'il qi'.  Juntas o separadas por millas seguimos.  Siempre era la luz que iluminaba el camino.  Su ejemplo nos sigue guiando.

Ixq'anil, Judith M. Maxwell]]> 2022-02-02 01:28:26 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2024533754 From Daniel Smith https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2030206589 I have been thinking what to write, but everything reflects what others have been writing about what Nora meant to them individually and as a giant in the field. I just want to add that, as an indigenous scholar, I felt encouraged by her consistently to pursue my vision, an approach to grammar writing that was different from most grammars but that I believed would benefit my community. Despite this different approach and my, at times, slow-paced writing, she was nothing but supportive in every step of the process. Knowing she was always in my corner gave me the confidence knowing that my efforts were worthwhile. 

Thank you, Nora, and I'll miss you and your quips about the heat whenever I would mention you needed to visit Panama. ]]> 2022-02-04 22:06:03 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2030206589 From Leah Geer https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2038250417 Everyone has shared such wonderful memories. I think it’s important to mention the tacos. All parties at Nora’s had Taco Deli and that’s just a wonderful thing. Like Kate mentioned about serving scones correctly, when you host a party you should have tacos! 

I don’t live in Austin anymore but every time I visit and go to Taco Deli (probably daily), I’ll think of Nora. I’ll think of what a guiding light she was in ‘QP class’ (I don’t remember the actual number). I learned so much in that class. Her little quips about this and that, priceless! I’ll think of TAing for her my last semester. (Hah, actually, funny story, after missing several classes for campus visits, and having to work out with my TA partner some sort of grading arrangement to account for my absence, she said, “I’m so happy you have so many job interviews but I’d prefer a TA who’s here!”]]> 2022-02-09 16:03:33 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2038250417 From Brandon Baird https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2067865452 Nora was one of the reasons I came to UT. I remember being scared about going to talk to her in person for the first time, but she was immediately very kind to me. I asked her a question about a particular syntactic feature in Mayan languages, she kindly explained it to me, I said thanks and promptly forgot what she had told me.  

The next time I saw her was in the Houston airport as we were both waiting for a flight to Guatemala City. I pestered her about different things while we waited to board. Again, she was so generous with her time with me, as she would be until the end. 

When I went up for tenure, my chair wrote a letter in support of me that had a large section about how I “was doing great things” because my work was being recognized “by the great linguist, Nora England” and we had even written a paper together. I didn’t bother telling anyone that Nora could have easily done the things we did together without me, but in her kindness she let me be a small part of it and get more credit than I deserved.

My very last communication with her was our annual Christmas greeting. She always wrote me a short email after receiving my Christmas card, and always had nice things to say about my kids.

I am extremely saddened by her passing. She was always in my corner and taught me so many things about life, well beyond linguistics. 

Maltyox che la, ixkeem Nora.]]> 2022-02-27 02:31:28 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2067865452 From Hammal Al Balushi https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2069897998 So sorry to hear this very sad news. This is not a loss for UT-Linguistics Dep only, but the whole field of Linguistics and especially Latin America.
Dr. England was always there to help, support, and guide all the students in the Dep. Sometimes she sounded very harsh and stern on us as Documentation students, but this was always for our own benefit.
I remember my first skype meeting with her just before getting admitted into UT and her direct difficult questions about language documentation and linguistics. After the meeting I thought I was not getting an admission! But once I arrived at UT, I saw Dr. England was one of the most supportive professors back there.

She will be always missed and remembered.
Rest in peace Dr. England.  ]]> 2022-02-28 17:04:19 UTC https://padlet.com/utdoclin/g42ou0w9sipicqxe/wish/2069897998