Prof. Dr. Karl Pajusalu – Senior Researcher/Expert

Karl Pajusalu is a Professor of Estonian Language History and Dialects at the University of Tartu. He is also a member of the Estonian Academy of Sciences and a foreign member of the Latvian Academy of Sciences. His research focuses on language variation and historical sociolinguistics. His scholarly contribution to Southern Finnic studies, including research on South Estonian and Salaca Livonian languages, is extensive. He has also been active in the revitalisation of minoritized languages by documenting speech and compiling dictionaries and grammars. Beyond academic interests, but also closely connected to revitalisation, he has published solely and co-authored poetry collections such as “Trillum” (2018:10):

“The appearance of the most productive modern Livonian poet Ķempi Kārl (i.e., Karl Pajusalu) was one of the greatest surprises in recent times on the Livonian literary scene. His first poetry collection, Salats joug kolm aģa (The three shores of the Salaca, 2013; also containing translations of each poem in Latvian and Estonian) became the first book to be published in the Salaca Livonian language in the entire history of the Livonian people”.