Margaret Brooks Robinson Research Professor of Celtic Languages and Literatures, 2006-; Margaret Brooks Robinson Professor of Celtic Languages and Literatures, chair, 1991–2005; Director of Graduate Studies, 1991-1996. Honorary Professor of Welsh at Bangor University, 2007-. BA, Michigan State University, 1959; AM, Harvard University, 1966; PhD, Harvard University, 1969. Assistant Professor of English, Stanford University, 1968-70. Assistant Professor of Indo-European studies, UCLA, 1970-71; Assistant Professor of English, UCLA, 1970-74 (Fulbright Research Scholar, Aberystwyth, 1973-74); Associate Professor of English, UCLA, 1974-79; Professor of English and Celtic studies, UCLA, 1979-91. Honorary Research Fellow, Center for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies, University of Wales, 1999-.

Author of The Poetry of Llywarch Hen (California, 1974); The Mabinogi and Other Medieval Welsh Tales (California, 1977); co-author (with Bjork, Calder, Melia) Sources and Analogues of Old British Poetry: II, Celtic and Germanic (D.S. Brewer, 1983); editor, Celtic Folklore and Christianity (McNally and Loftin, 1983); author, Ystoria Taliesin (Board of Celtic Studies, UWP, 1991); co-author, translator, The Irish Literary Tradition (Cardiff, 1991); author, The Celtic Poets (Ford and Bailie, 1999); editor, Math uab Mathonwy (Ford and Bailie, 1999); editor, Manawydan uab Llyr (Ford & Bailie, 2000); various articles and reviews in scholarly journals, 1968-. Teaching and research interests include early Irish and Welsh languages and literatures; medieval poetry and its performance.