Eminent linguist and former vice-chancellor of the University of Hyderabad (UoH) Prof Bhadriraju Krishnamurti passed away at his residence at Tarnaka here on Saturday following a brief illness. He was 85 and is survived by wife, three sons and a daughter.
Fellow linguists, writers, staff and students of the university offered their last respects to him at his residence. The last rites were performed at the Bansilalpet crematorium on Saturday evening.
Krishnamurti was the vice-chancellor of the University of Hyderabad from 1986 to 1993. Apart from holding various positions at different Indian universities, Prof Krishnamurti had also been associated with the study of South Indian languages in many western institutions and had been a visiting professor of linguistics at several universities. He also served as the president of the Linguistic Society of India in 1970 and as the president of the Dravidian Linguistics Association in 1980. He was also associated with several international organisations of linguistics.
Prof Krishnamurti was a recipient of many honours and awards. He was an elected honorary member of the Linguistic Society of America in 1985. He was elected corresponding fellow of the prestigious Royal Society of Edinburgh, UK, in 2004. He was also an executive member of the Sahitya Akademi during 1990-2002. He was conferred honorary doctorates in literature by Sri Venkateswara University in 1998 and by the Dravidian University in 2007.