GIRARD DE RIALLE, Julien. Paris 27.9.1841 — Santiago (Chile) 23.11.1904. French Civil Servant and Diplomat interested in Indology and Ethnology. Graduated in 1861, travelled anonymously in the Balkans and wrote travel accounts. In 1865-66 by the order of French government in Syria. Privately he studied Sanskrit, Avestan and linguistics (also under Chavée) and is said to have lectured on them at Sorbonne (perhaps in the “courses libres”, which were a preliminary stage of the É.P.H.É. – at Sorbonne the teaching of Sanskrit was started by Bergaigne in 1877). In 1870 on duty in Erlangen, 1871 Préfet des Basses-Alpes, 1872 elsewhere (?), in 1873-80 served in the Foreign Ministry as the editor of La Republique Française. In the end of the 1870s also directeur of Revue de linguistique. From 1880 sous-directeur and from 1882 directeur in the archives of Foreign Ministry. In 1885 in the French-Portuguese and in 1886 in the French-Spanish frontier commission. All the time he pursued ethnographic studies. From 1886 ministre plenipotentiaire de 2e classe in Paris, in 1894 officer of the Legion of Honour. From 1898 until his death ministre plenipotentiaire at Santiago of Chile. Married in 1869.
Publications: Agni, petit-fils des eaux, dans le Véda et l’Avesta. 16 p. P. 1869.
– “Études védiques”, RL 1, 1867-68, 67-84, 215-222, 328-348, 422-431 & 2:1, 1868, 104-114; Les études védiques et éraniennes dans l’histoire: discours d’ouverture du cours de Sanskrit védique et de Zend. 40 p. P. 1870.
– “Les dieux du vent Vâyu et Vâta dans le Rig-Véda et dans l’Avesta”, RL 1871, 14 p.
– Instructions anthropologiques pour l’Asie centrale. 55 p. 1874.
– Mémoire sur l’Asie Centrale, son histoire, ses populations. 108 p. P. 1875.
– De l’anthropophagie, étude d’éthnologie comparée. 31 p. P. 1875; La mythologie comparée. 1. 12+363 p. P. 1878; and other works on ethnology, etc.
– A number of articles in RL 1874-91, etc.
Sources: H.C[ordier], TP N.S. 6, 1905, 237; *L. Léjéal, Journal de la Société des Américanistes N.S. 3:2, 1906, 307; *J. Vinson, RL 38, 1905, 1; D.B.F. fasc. 91, 1982; works in N.U.C.; briefly French Wikipédia, with portrait; photo in http://data.bnf.fr/12462613/julien_girard_de_rialle/.
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