Abstract
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>This book offers an introduction to the life and work of the French linguist Paul Passy (1859–1940) and his substantial contributions to the field of linguistics. Best remembered as a pioneering pedagogue, Passy was also a talented philologist and dialectologist, and the driving force behind the creation of the International Phonetic Alphabet. His precise descriptions of the French language remain invaluable for understanding its diachronic evolution and reveal a substantial stability in its structure when compared with modern corpus data. The book underscores how his lifelong campaigns—for spelling reform and for the adoption of the Direct Method in French language teaching—were deeply intertwined with his social engagement as a Christian socialist. It also highlights the impact of contemporary British linguists on his thinking and his fruitful collaboration with Daniel Jones. Through a close examination of his work, the book portrays Passy as a forward-looking and influential figure whose legacy continues to resonate in modern linguistics.</jats:p>