Joseph Gulsoy

Joseph Gulsoy died peacefully at 100 years of age. Beloved husband of 51 years of the late Hildegard; father of Andrea (Donald Nichols), Angela (Gary Halbert), Christopher; grandfather of Joshua Nichols, Christian, Michaela and Felicity Halbert. Joseph was Professor Emeritus of the Department of Spanish- Portuguese between 1959-1995 at University of Toronto, and a distinguished linguist.

Joseph was born on August 15, 1925 in Ordu (Turkey), son of M. Lutfi, an insurance broker who spoke several languages and was interested in etymology, the origin of words.

Joseph was born to be a linguist and philologist.

He attended the University of British Columbia (1950-1953) where he was inspired to study Spanish in addition to his English and German courses. He obtained his Master's degree at the University of Toronto (1955) and his PhD at the University of Chicago where he studied under, and helped in the research and writing of notable Catalan linguist Professor Joan Coromines author of Diccionario Crítico Etymologica de la Lengua Castellano (1951-58).

The future work of Joseph went in the direction of Catalan. Joseph, at the University of Toronto lectured about the history of Spanish in accordance with the teaching of Coromines. He directed the doctoral dissertations of students that would go on to become professors themselves, and had established scholarships in his name to support students in the study of linguistics. He led the creation and the development of Catalan Studies, which eventually expanded to include graduate studies offering Masters and Doctoral degrees. To support this program Professor Gulsoy participated in the selection and acquisition of world class collections at the University of Toronto library and the Pontificial Institute of Mediaeval Studies. With the support of Professor Stagg, Professor Gulsoy succeeded in creating one of the best collections at the University of Toronto on Catalan and Valencian philology in the world. He also offered courses on mediaeval Spanish; in addition, mediaeval Catalan literature and later modern Catalan literature. The Robarts library and the library of the Pontifical institute became centers of research for students from overseas- Spain and Catalunya, doctoral students as well as from Europe and the United States.

In terms of academic research, Gulsoy studied various aspects of Catalan, Spanish, and Portuguese, focusing especially on historical grammar, dialectology, and etymology. He collaborated with Joan Coromines in the preparation and writing of the Etymological and Complementary Dictionary of the Catalan Language and in the enormous etymological work Onomasticon Cataloniae. In 1989 he was awarded the Ramon Llull International Prize by the Fundació Congrés de Cultura Catalana and the Catalonia International Prize by the Institute of Catalan Studies, an institution of which he had been a corresponding member since 1994. In 1998 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Barcelona, sponsored by Joan Veny, and in 1999 by the University of Valencia. In 1998 he received the Cross of Saint George. Throughout his career, he participated assiduously in the activities of the International Association of Catalan Language and Literature. He was also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada from 1982. In 2013 he was named Enguera's adopted son. At a very advanced age he worked on the publication of the books: Els parlars d'Enguera, Anna, Xella, Bolbait, Navarrés, Quesa i Bicorb; and he finally completed his magnum opus 'El Vocabulario de Enguera y de la Canal de Navarrés' (July 2024).

A visitation for Joseph will be held Saturday, August 23, 2025 from 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM at Thompson Funeral Home, 530 Industrial Parkway South, Aurora, ON L4G 6W8 followed by a funeral service at 1:00 PM in the Tribute Hall. A committal service will follow at Aurora Cemetery, 14253 Yonge St, Aurora, ON L4G 0P2. A reception will follow back at Thompson Funeral Home in the Heritage Room.

The family of Gulsoy is grateful for the care given by the kind staff at Sunrise, his niece Gozde Gulay as well as his physician Dr Afshin Arya.

Gulsoy considered himself a simple person who wanted to treat all his friends with kindness. He will be remembered with love by many.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the University of Toronto, Department of Spanish & Portuguese Departmental Trust (https://engage.utoronto.ca/site/SPageServer?pagename=donate#/fund/819)