Earlier this month, John DeFrancis, a man whose name was, for many, synonymous with Chinese language study in the U.S., died in Hawaii at the age of 97. His passing was deeply felt in the worlds of academia and publishing, and we at the Yale University Press, who have been proud to publish DeFrancis’s works for more than 40 years, particularly mourn his loss.

In the time since his death, several tributes to DeFrancis have cropped up online. We particularly recommend the fascinating tales and photographs collected here. A testament to his lasting impact, DeFrancis’s landmark work, Beginning Chinese, is still in print and in use at several institutions.