Bob Bayley

Robert Bayley, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, passed away on December 27, 2024. Prof. Bayley was an internationally recognized sociolinguist who specialized in language variation and language socialization, especially in bilingual and second language populations. He was one of the first to apply the methods of variationist sociolinguistics to second language acquisition, producing influential publications on the topic. The many honors he received throughout his remarkable career include multiple Fulbright awards and the 2023 Mentoring Award from the Linguistic Society of America. He was named a fellow of the Linguistic Society of America in 2022 and of the American Dialect Society in 2021. From 2015 to 2017, he served as president of the American Dialect Society, a leading organization in his field.

After earning a Ph.D. at Stanford University in 1991, he joined the University of Texas at San Antonio as an Assistant Professor of Bicultural-Bilingual Studies. He became an Associate Professor in 1997, and a Professor in 2001. Professor Bayley joined the UC Davis Department of Linguistics in 2006, and was chair of the Linguistics Graduate Group from 2014 to 2017. He retired in 2022, and was named Distinguished Professor Emeritus in 2024. In addition to being a leading academic, he was widely regarded as an excellent teacher, a dedicated mentor, and a generous colleague. At UC Davis, he taught thousands of students, chaired or co-chaired 14 dissertation committees, served in an additional 21, participated in 50 qualifying and preliminary exams, and mentored numerous undergraduate students.

The impact Prof. Bayley had on Linguistics at UC Davis and beyond far extends what can be measured through publications and accolades. He will be remembered not just for his impressive scholarly accomplishments and contributions, but also for his leadership, friendship and generosity.