We are deeply saddened to inform you of the death of Ian Maddieson. Ian passed away on 2 February 2025 already. His influential work on the typology of sounds, notably the UCLA Phonological Inventory of Languages (UPSID), has significantly advanced our understanding of linguistic diversity. A respected field researcher and theorist, Maddieson contributed significantly to our knowledge of language universals and phonological theory.

His services to the International Phonetic Association were highly valued and will never be forgotten. Ian was a lifetime IPA member, the vice president of the IPA 2003-2007, and served on both the IPA Council and the Executive Council for more than 30 years in total (1989-2019), and chaired IPA's Phonetic Documentation of Languages Committee 2017-2019. Last but not least he steered the fortunes of the IPA also in his role as the editor-in-chief of JIPA from 1989 to 1995. He leaves behind a rich scholarly legacy.

We will miss him very much!

If you would like to know more about his vita, you will find more information here:
https://lx.berkeley.edu/news/passing-ian-maddieson
https://www.unm.edu/~ianm/

The IPA Executive Council
Katerina Nicolaidis (President),
Sónia Frota,
Oliver Niebuhr,
Marija Tabain,
Ghada Khattab.