Jamaica’s literary community is now in mourning following the passing of noted poet, educator, linguist, and writer, Velma Pollard, known for her passion for the local patwa language.

She passed away at her Kingston home on the weekend at age  87. Born in 1937 in the rural village of Woodside in St Mary, Pollard along with her sister Dr Erna Brodber, who later became a literary icon and folk historian, developed a love for the creative arts, having been raised in an environment steeped in tradition and folk knowledge.

For decades, she was a senior lecturer in language education in the Faculty of Arts and Education at the University of the West Indies (UWI) Mona campus having earned a master’s degree in English from Columbia University, a master’s in education from McGill University, and a Ph.D. in language education at UWI. 

Pollard began to write fiction and poetry seriously in the mid-1970s, with published poems and stories in regional and international journals and anthologies. Her novella “Karl” won the Casa de las Americas Prize.

Her other creative publications include The Best Philosophers I Know Can’t Read and Write (2001), Homestretch (1994), ‘Considering Woman’” (1989) and Crown Point and Other Poems—her first book of poetry, published in 1988. She has published five poetry collections and three short story collections. 

Pollard’s key research interests were Creole languages of the Anglophone Caribbean, the language of Caribbean literature and Caribbean women’s writing. She published From Jamaican Creole to Standard English: A Handbook for Teachers (1994) and a monograph, “Dread Talk: The Language of Rastafari” (1994) which became a classic; a revised edition published in 2000 included a chapter on “Dread Talk in the Diaspora.”

In August 2022, Pollard was elected as an honorary member of the Society for Caribbean Linguistics (SCL) which she served with distinction as an SCL Executive Officer and SCL Financial Officer. However, she was more than an academic. After retirement, she continued to energetically share her knowledge and support for Caribbean writers and writing through public workshops and educational events of all kinds.

Jamaican-born York University Associate Professor Honor Ford-Smith paid tribute on Facebook saying, “Bold and brilliant. No bad mind for her. Just grounded and caring about those coming up behind her. Walk good Velma and may the passage be peaceful and gentle.”