While women have made considerable contributions to linguistics before it became an independent academic discipline, these early achievements have often fallen into oblivion. Their work has been lost or become untraceable and their authorship has been challenged. They have not been given recognition when collaborating with male scholars, or had to publish anonymously due to gender bias. While, at times, their contributions were left unpublished, the passing of time in other instances erased the memory of what they did publish. Moreover, in case the memory of these women has stood the test of time, it is often their academic, and particularly linguistic, achievements that do not live on.
Meanwhile, those female linguistic contributions that have not fully slipped into obscurity should be regarded separately from a more general history of linguistics, so as not to measure their significance against male achievements. Additionally, the historical field of female linguistics should be demarcated with careful consideration of the intricate historical context in which women's linguistic achievements are couched, such as limited education opportunities or restriction to the private sphere. Consequently, it should include contributions outside of formal, institutionalised, and public structures, such as language teaching, translating, and even supporting male colleagues, alongside more traditional input, such as the publication of dictionaries and grammars, or engagement in language debates. Nonetheless, because the linguistic field has overall become more accepting towards women, female achievements have also increasingly aligned with the traditional idea of linguistics over time.
Aspasia (ca. 470 – 401 BCE)
Aspasia was an Athenian woman who started out as a hetaira, but later married Pericles, Athen's political leader at the time. Though she lived in Athens, being foreign-born granted her more freedom than other women, which allowed her to distinguish herself in Sophist circles as a great rhetorician and to engage her rhetorical skills in political life. These actions not only held considerable linguistic significance but even gained her the titles of 'poetess' and 'mistress of eloquence'. Moreover, Aspasia was also associated with Plato's Academy and one of the only two women described as a philosopher in his dialogues. Plato himself considered her a poster child of the deceitful use of Sophistic rhetoric, which he was exceptionally critical of. Furthermore, his Menexus mentions that she wrote a funeral speech delivered by Pericles, and cites her as Socrates', as well as many other Athenians', teacher in rhetoric, which also ranks among her linguistic achievements. Nevertheless, the idea that she instructed Socrates in rhetoric cannot count on much support anymore in the 21st century. Conversely, Plutarch's account, which mentions that Socrates sporadically visited her with his pupils and that even his close friends allowed their wives to listen to her, is considered more plausible.
Hypatia (ca. 355 – ca. 415 CE)
Hypatia of Alexandria, like other philosophers in the early centuries of the Empire, played an active role in the public life of Alexandria and became a prominent celebrity as a result. She succeeded her father as leader of the Academy, the most renowned philosophical school at that time. Given her position, she must have been well-versed in foundational ancient philosophical texts on linguistics and logic, like those by Aristotle or Plato, and their corresponding commentaries. Among the readings of the Neoplatonist curriculum, for instance, was Plato's Cratylus, a testimony to the importance held by linguistic topics in the philosophic framework of late antiquity. Additionally, Hypatia was also a private and public teacher of geometry, mathematics, and philosophy. According to Socrates of Constantinople she taught all who wanted to hear, not just exclusive groups of initiates. He also mentions how her knowledge awarded her with a certain freedom of speech and with the liberty to treat men as her equals.
Ban Zhao (44-116 CE)
Ban Zhao was the daughter of Ban Biao and sister of Ban Gu, both historians during the Han dynasty. Whereas women did not have substantial influence over Chinese philology during this period, Ban Zhao is an exception. After her brother's execution, she secured her place in the male bastion of scholastic transmission by completing her father and brother's composition of the Book of Han by order of Emperor He. She also allegedly annotated a critical edition (now lost) of Liu Xiang's Biographies of Eminent Women. The linguistic character of this work lies in the fact that it contributes to the field of glossography, a prominent aspect of Chinese philology.
Moreover, she wrote what is considered to be the earliest female metarhetorical work, entitled Admonitions for Women/Lessons for Women. Because its preface reveals the intended audience to be the young women in Ban Zhao's family, this text is also regarded as the earliest work exclusively designed to meet the needs of Chinese women's education. It served as inspiration for later female textbooks and was integrated in the Four Books for Women as well. In terms of its content, while the text intends to instruct women in respectable female behaviour and wifely submission, it also includes the earliest known argument for female literacy. In this way, Ban Zhao could successfully plead in favour of women's literacy without offending her male, more conservative readership. Besides her publications, Ban Zhao also presided over the schooling of Empress Deng and her court ladies during the reign of Emperor He, and afterwards during Empress Dowager Deng's own reign.
Aisha bint Abi Bakr (613/14-678 CE)
Aisha bint Abi Bakr is known as the favourite wife of Muhammad, the Prophet, and the daughter of Abu Bakr. Her linguistic importance is rooted in her impact on the stabilisation and codification of the Arabic language. Many Arabic linguistic contributions are linked to the Qur'an because they aim for a more accurate and authentic understanding of this sacred text. Consequently, as many believe to find an addition to this Qur'an in the Hadith, Aisha's prominent transmission of Hadith holds linguistic importance as well. Her understanding of medicine, astronomy, and, most importantly, poetry enabled her to formulate expressions with a certain subtlety, and her thorough knowledge of Arabic grammar shines through in her transmissions. Aisha's prestige lead others to embrace her phraseology and made her a great influence on the codification of Arabic. In this regard, her discourse can be considered a linguistic achievement in itself.
Additionally, Aisha contributed to the codification of the Islamic legal language of Fiqh, because it builds upon that of Hadith. Besides, she issued fatwas during the caliphates of Umar and Uthman and held discussions with Companions of the Prophet about the correct way of formulating these judgements, which stimulated the adoption of an accurate grammar and vocabulary. Lastly, she is also valuable to the field of linguistics because she taught Arabic to her nephew Urwa ibn al-Zubayr, as well as to other prominent male jurists.
Paula Vicente (1519-1576 CE)
Paula Vicente can be considered a linguist because of the grammar she wrote, entitled Arte da língua inglesa, e olandeza para instruçaõ dos seus naturaes (The Art of the English and Dutch Language for the Instruction of its Natives). She was also reportedly proficient in multiple languages and was a member of Maria of Portugal's renowned circle, which partook in literary sessions and held a unique cultural importance. Furthermore, because she was the daughter of Gil Vicente, Queen D. Catarina de Áustria gave her permission to both print and sell his collected works. Nonetheless, because of the lack of information about the grammar and several other works ascribed to her, some researchers believe these attributions to be part of a myth created around the figure of Paula Vicente.
Marie Le Jars de Gournay (1565-1645 CE)
Marie Le Jars de Gournay, fille d'alliance (adopted daughter) of Michel de Montaigne and editor of his Essais (Essays), is best known for her feminist works. She took part in the Querelle des femmes by writing her Egalité des hommes et des femmes (The Equality of Men and Women), published in 1622. Besides feminist texts, her collected works also include essays concerning the French language. On top of that, de Gournay can also be considered a pioneering female linguist because she is the earliest known woman who wrote a French metalinguistic work. Her critical perspective on the French language was probably incited by her work as an editor, translator, as well as writer of novels and poetry. Moreover, even in her linguistic writings her feminist convictions shine through.
She was a defender of the language usage and poetic style of the Pléiade poets, Ronsard in particular, and supported their use of archaisms, neologisms, diminutives, and metaphors. She also believed that the language of poetry should not be restricted by rules, and heavily criticised François de Malherbe's new school which regulated language by rejecting words considered too archaic, too new, or too lowly. Additionally, even though she strongly advocated for the equality between men and women, in her Deffence de la poësie et du langage des poëtes (Defence of Poetry and the Language of the Poets) she still disapproved of those who insincerely praised and flattered women by terming them the arbiters of good language usage.
Furthermore, women in the French tradition had more influence on the linguistic debate through their work as translators, which was at the time considered a sort of applied grammar. De Gournay's partial translations of Virgil's Aeneid, published in 1626, in particular, are a great representation of the association between these two disciplines. Her translation of the second book includes passages from Jean Bertaut's version as comparisons and her translation of book four is actually a completion of the one started by Jacques Davy Duperron. De Gournay's 1626 essay De la façon d'escrire de Messieurs l'Eminentissime Cardinal Du Perron et Bertaut Illustrissime Evesque de Sées (On the Writing Style of the Most Eminent Cardinal Du Perron and the Most Illustrious Bishop Bertaut of Sées) also presents these men as late supporters of the Pléiade, whose language was characterised by Pléiade-like language features, such as diminutives and ablative absolutes. Besides, de Gournay's gender politics even permeate her translations. She underscored Dido's royal status and power by regularly referring to her with a royal title where the original Latin does not do so, and occasionally expanded the text to elaborate on Dido's romance, tragedy, and nobility.
Anna Maria van Schurman (1607–1678 CE)
Anna Maria van Schurman was a German-born woman of noble birth who received an excellent education. She mastered Latin, Greek, and Hebrew and by corresponding in these languages she contributed to international scholarly communication. Furthermore, the publication of her 1641 Dissertatio de ingenii muliebris ad doctrinam et meliores litteras aptitudine (A Treatise on the Aptitude of the Female Spirit for Science and Arts) resulted in her acceptance into the University of Utrecht, making her the first female university student in the Netherlands. Integral to her accomplishments was the mentorship of the men in her life. Her father taught her Latin and Greek, and she was further supported by her brother Johan Godschalk as well as Jacob Cats and André Rivet. Most indispensable to her linguistic achievements, however, was Gisbertus Voetius, Professor of Oriental Languages in Utrecht. In addition to privately tutoring her in Greek, he also made his vast library available to her studies and research.