Andreja Legan Ravnikar (2 May 1964) is the head of the Department of the History of the Slovenian Language at the Fran Ramovš Institute of the Slovenian Language and a researcher at this Department. Her research focuses on Slovenian literary language in the 16th century and later periods of language history until the end of the 19th century. She is a co-author and co-editor of the Dictionary of the 16th-Century Slovenian Literary Language (Vol. 1 A–D published in 2021, an ongoing dictionary on the Fran portal since 2022). She is interested in Slovenian terminology of different fields from 16th to 19th century, especially in Slovenian Christian terminology and the formation of terminology of other technical fields. She is chief editor of the monographic series Linguistica et philologica. She is Assistant Professor at the Postgraduate School ZRC SAZU and Visiting Professor at University of Ljubljana Faculty of Arts. She publishes articles on lexicology and semantics, lexicography, terminology, Slovenian in contact with other languages and word formation. Through her scientific work and appearances in media she informs the general public of important Slovenian achievements in historical linguistics and culture.

Research Areas

• historical lexicology
• historical lexicography
• historical terminology
• historical word-formation
• Slovenian literary language in the16th century
• contact linguistics

Education, Academic and Scientific Titles

• 2015–: senior research fellow
• 2014–: assistant professor of linguistics (linguistic module), Postgraduate School ZRC SAZU
• 2009–2014: assistant professor of the Slovenian language, Department of Slovenian Studies, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana
• 2002: PhD: Obredna terminologija v razvoju slovenskega knjižnega jezika: Od Brižinskih spomenikov do ustalitve enotne knjižne norme sredi 19. stoletja (Liturgical Terminology in the Development of the Slovenian Literary Language (From Freising Manuscripts to the Establishment of a Unitary Literary Norm in the Mid-19th Century), Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana
• 1996: MA: Valentin Vodnik – oblikovalec slovenske terminologije: Upravno-politična in vojaška terminologija – Lublanske novice 1797 (Valentin Vodnik – Developer of Slovenian Terminology: Administrative-Political and Military Terminology – Lublanske Novice 1797), Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana
• 1988: BA degrees in A –­ Slovenian Language and Literature and B – Russian Language and Literature, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana
• 1983: matura exam, Gimnazija Novo Mesto, Novo Mesto

Employments, Leadership and Competences

Employments:

• 2023–2024: visiting professor, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana
• 2014–: secondary employment, Postgraduate School ZRC SAZU
• 2013: visiting researcher, Institute of Croatian Language and Linguistics, Zagreb, Croatia
• 2005–2021: temporary employment, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana
• 1989–: ZRC SAZU, Fran Ramovš Institut of the Slovenian Language
• 1989: Preska Elementary School, Medvode

Leadership Positions:

• 2024–: President of the Scientific Council of the Fran Ramovš Institute of the Slovenian Language
• 2020–2024: member of the Scientific Council of the Fran Ramovš Institute of the Slovenian Language
• 2019–: field editor (transcript), Corpus 16: Text Corpus of Slovenian 16th-Century Protestant Writers
• 2019: president of the Interdisciplinary Science Symposium »Revived Vodnik«
• 2018–: head of the Department of the History of the Slovenian Language
• 2014–: chief editor of the monographic series Linguistica et philologica
• 2013–: head of the Linguistics Section, Slovenian Association for Research of the 18th Century

Supervision:

• Initiation of new colleagues into lexicographical work: Eva Trivunović, Mitja Trojar, Maruša Žibred
• Young researcher: Maruša Žibred
• PhD supervision: Eva Trivunović
• Doctoral co-supervisor: Simon Atelšek, Maruša Žibred

Other experience:

• Visits and guest lectures: Monošter (2021), Zagreb (2019), Moscow (2016), Čakovec (2015), Zagreb (2014), Minsk (2013), Monošter/Szentgotthárd/St. Gotthard (2009), Opatija (2006)

Work in Editorial Boards and Expert Commissions

• 2024–: member of the Expert Council of the Fran Dictionary Portal
• 2019–: member of the executive committee of the Slovenian Association for Research of the 18th Century
• 2017–: member of the editor council for New Etymological Dictionary of the Slovenian Language (NESSJ) authored by Metka Furlan
• 1998–: member of the Slovenian Committee of Slavists at International Committee of Slavists
• 1997–1999: member of the Managing Committee and treasurer of the Slavic Society of Slovenia

Outstanding Achievements, Awards and Grants

• 2023–2024: co-editor of the critical edition Rokopisna zbirka slovenskih krajevnih imen iz Metelkove zapuščine
• 2023: chief editor and co-author of the 2023 addition to the Dictionary of the 16th-Century Slovenian Literary Language
• 2022: main editor (together with Alenka Jelovšek, Metod Čepar, Eva Trivunović and Mitja Trojar) of the Slovenian-German-Latin Dictionary based on a manuscript dictionary Dictionarium trilingue (1711–1712) by Hippolytus Rudolphswertensis: including scanned material produced by Jože Stabej
• 2021: main editor and co-author of the Dictionary of the 16th-Century Slovenian Literary Language, Vol. 1: A–D; the dictionary was among the achievements chosen for the Excellent in Science 2022 prize awarded by the Slovenian Research Agency   
• 2019: organization and leadership of the Interdisciplinary Science Symposium »Revived Vodnik«: at the 200th anniversary of the death of Valentin Vodnik
• 2019: co-editor and co-author of the scientific monograph Oživljeni Vodnik: Razprave o Valentinu Vodniku (Vodnik Revived: Discussions on Valentin Vodnik)
• 2016: co-editor of the scientific monograph Lipalja vas in njena slovenska govorica (Lipalja Vas and its Slovenian Speech)
• 2011: co-author of the scientific monograph Besedje slovenskega knjižnega jezika 16. stoletja (Lexis of the 16th-Century Slovenian Literary Language)
• 2008: author of the scientific monograph Slovenska krščanska terminologija (Slovenian Christian Terminology)