Ajayi Crowther University, Oyo, has mourned the death of Professor Emeritus Ayo Bamgbose, Nigeria’s first Professor of Linguistics, describing him as a towering intellectual figure whose contributions shaped linguistic studies in Nigeria and Africa.
The university disclosed this in a statement made available to PUNCH Online on Tuesday, following the death of the renowned scholar on July 25, 2026, at the age of 94.
Prof. Bamgbose was celebrated for his groundbreaking research and lifelong commitment to the development of linguistics, indigenous languages and education.
In a condolence letter addressed to Bamgbose’s family and the National President of the St. Andrews College Old Boys Association, the Vice-Chancellor of Ajayi Crowther University, Prof. Ebunoluwa Oduwole, described him as “a titan whose influence spanned generations and continents.”
“As the first Professor of Linguistics in Nigeria, he did not merely occupy a chair – he built the discipline itself. His works remain timeless classics
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