FRENKIAN, Aram. Constanţa 19.3.1898 — Bucharest 10.9.1968. Romanian Classical (Greek) Scholar interested in Indology. Son of Armenian refugees, Haroutioun Fr. and Zarouhi Essayan. Studies of Greek, linguistics and Sanskrit in Paris in the 1920s under Meillet, Bloch, Finot et al., also philosophy under Bréhier. Ph.D. 1931 Bucharest. Professor of Greek at Universities of Cernauti and Bucharest. Never taught Sanskrit. Interested in Greek and Indian philosophy. Married Nicole, at least one son and two daughters.
Publications: Diss. Cosmologia lui Heraclit din Efes. Bucharest 1931
– “Puruṣa–Gayomard–Anthropos. Quelques problèmes concernant la communaité indo-iranienne et la Grèce antique”, REIE 3, 1943, 118-131.
– “Punarmṛtyu et la seconde mort”, REIE 3, 1943, 214-222.
– L’Orient et les origines de l’idéalisme subjectif dans la pensée européenne. 1. La Doctrine théologique de Memphis (L’Inscription du roi Shabaka). 167 p. P. 1946.
– “La théorie du sommeil d’après les Upaniṣads et le Yoga”, St&AO 1, 1957, 149-162
– Scepticismul grec şi filozofia indianŭ. 74 p. Bucharest 1957; German transl.: Bibliotheca classica orientalis 3, B. 1958, 212-249.
– “Sextus Empiricus and Indian Logic”, The Philosophical quarterly (Amalner) 30, 1957, 115-126; “Where there is Smoke, there is Fire”, Acta Logica 4, 1961, 65-68
– Studies on Presocratic philosophy, etc., also wrote on ancient Near East and Egypt.
Sources: V. Banateanu; C. Poghirc, “Sanskrit Studies in Romania”; S. N. Ionescu, Who Was Who in 20th Century Romania. N.Y. 1994; *Titus Lates, Romanian articles on A.F. in institutuldefilosofie.ro with bibliography, 153-158; family details by A. Vladesco in levantineheritage.com; *Romanian Wikipedia.