Department of Modern English Language and Linguistics
Professor Deepak Kumar Singh was a distinguished scholar of English grammar whose research made important contributions to the study of grammatical variation, syntactic change and the relationship between grammatical form and communicative function.
Following appointments at several British universities, he joined Bede University as Professor of English Grammar, where he played a central role in developing the department's teaching and research in descriptive linguistics. During his time at Bede, he supervised numerous doctoral students and was particularly committed to supporting early-career researchers.
Professor Singh's research combined close attention to grammatical detail with a broader interest in language use, particularly the changing grammatical conventions of contemporary English. His later work explored the implications of electronic communication for grammatical description, including collaborative research with Professor Teddy Wiley on emerging forms of digital discourse.
Widely respected for his scholarship, generosity and unfailing encouragement of colleagues, Professor Singh remained associated with the department following his departure from Bede.
The department was deeply saddened to learn of his recent death. He is remembered with great affection by former colleagues and students.
Publications
- Singh, D. K. (1989) The Structure of the English Verb Phrase: Form, Function and Variation. Northbridge Academic Press.
- Singh, D. K. (1992) Grammatical gradience and the classification of English auxiliary verbs. Journal of English Grammatical Studies 8(2): 113–142.
- Singh, D. K. (1995) Aspectual distinctions in contemporary British English: A corpus-based investigation. English Grammar and Usage 12(1): 27–59.
- Singh, D. K. (1997) Grammatical Variation in Modern English. Westbridge University Press.
- Singh, D. K. and Matthews, R. (1999) The progressive construction in spoken British English: Distribution, function and variation. Studies in English Grammar 16(3): 201–235.
- Singh, D. K. (2001) The changing functions of modal auxiliaries in late twentieth-century English. Journal of Grammatical Variation 5(2): 89–121.
- Singh, D. K. and Wiley, T. (2003) Grammatical innovation in electronic mail: A comparison of academic and informal correspondence. Language and Electronic Communication 2(1): 15–43.
- Singh, D. K. and Wiley, T. (2005) Beyond the sentence: Grammatical ellipsis and interpersonal meaning in online discussion forums. Journal of Digital Language Studies 4(2): 77–108.
- Singh, D. K. (2007) English Grammar in Context: Structures, Functions and Change. Northbridge Academic Press.
- Singh, D. K. and Wiley, T. (2008) Grammar in transition? Emerging conventions in computer-mediated student communication. International Review of Language and Technology 6(3): 181–209.
- Singh, D. K. (2010) Reconsidering the relationship between grammatical correctness and communicative effectiveness. English Grammar and Usage 27(2): 143–176.
- Singh, D. K. (2013) The Changing Grammar of English: Continuity and Innovation. Westbridge University Press.
- Singh, D. K. (2016) Grammatical description in an age of linguistic diversity. Journal of English Grammatical Studies 32(1): 1–28.
- Singh, D. K. (2019) Fifty years of English grammatical description: Some unresolved questions. Studies in English Grammar 36(2): 95–127.