Daniel Everett — Wikipedia Summary

Daniel Leonard Everett (born July 26, 1951) is an American linguist and author best known for his study of the Pirahã people and their language.

Career

Trustee Professor of Cognitive Sciences at Bentley University. Former Dean of Arts and Sciences at Bentley.

Pirahã Research

Initially a missionary linguist with SIL International. PhD 1983, University of Campinas (Charlotte Galves). Early work provided detailed Chomskyan analysis of Pirahã. After decades of field work, changed theoretical views. His 2005 article in Current Anthropology and 2008 book Don’t Sleep, There are Snakes argued that Pirahã lacks recursion and challenges universal grammar — sparking major controversy in linguistics.