Punjab: The Punjabi linguistic and academic community mourns the passing of veteran linguist and lexicographer S. Mukhtiar Singh Gill, widely known as M.S. Gill, who breathed his last on July 12, 2025. Born on October 23, 1937, in a village in Sangrur district, located in the heart of Punjab’s Malwa region, Gill dedicated over five decades to the preservation and promotion of Punjabi language and culture.
He completed his early education from Mastuana Sahib and pursued higher studies at Ranbir College, Sangrur. In 1963, he began his career as an editor in the Language Department of Punjab, Patiala, contributing to lexicographical research and linguistic surveys across Punjab villages. By 1968, he joined the Department of Anthropological Linguistics at Punjabi University, Patiala, where he played a significant role in landmark projects including the Linguistic Atlas of Punjab and surveys of Punjabi-speaking areas in Haryana and Chandigarh under the mentorship of world-renowned semiotician Dr Harjeet Gill.
During 1970–72, Gill was on deputation to the Central Institute of Indian Languages, Mysore, where he co-developed the Recall Vocabulary of Punjabi. He later earned his M.Lit. in Phonology of Malwai and went on to teach PG-level courses in Phonetics, Phonology, Lexicography, and Language Teaching until his retirement in 1999. He also served as the Head of the Anthropological Linguistics Department from 1993 to 1996.
Under his leadership, the Department of Lexicography was established at Punjabi University in 1992. As incharge, Gill oversaw critical publications, including revised editions of the Punjabi-English and English-Punjabi dictionaries in collaboration with late Dr S.S. Joshi. He also edited two volumes of the journal Pàkha Sanjam and played a key role in the Punjabi Mahan Kosh Project (2006–2012), producing the two-volume Encyclopaedia of Punjabi Language and Culture and a four-volume Phonetic Transcription of Adi Granth.
Despite age-related ailments in his later years, he remained intellectually engaged, with care provided by his son, Prof. (Retd.) Pushpinder Singh Gill. He was recently hospitalized due to health complications and passed away shortly thereafter.
His demise marks the end of an era in Punjabi linguistics. S. Mukhtiar Singh Gill’s contributions will continue to inspire scholars committed to the advancement of Punjabi language and lexicography.