Pr3+‐doped SrAl12O19has been investigated spectroscopically as a visible laser material. Its3P0fluorescence lifetime is rather long for an oxide, about 35 &mgr;s. This excited state exhibits only mild concentration and temperature quenching, so that concentrations high enough to give good ground state absorption into the3P0and3P1manifolds still give strong, long‐lived emission. The ground state absorption spectra indicate that excited state absorption into the 4f5dconfiguration is less likely to be significant at laser wavelengths in this host than in Y3Al5O12. The stimulated emission cross sections of major emission lines have been estimated, and are quite realistic for laser operation. Laser pumped laser operation has been demonstrated in the red (3P0→3F2) at room temperature and in the blue‐green (3P0→3H4) at cryogenic temperatures. ©1996 American Institute of Physics.