LULIUS VAN GOOR, Maria Elisabeth. Gouda 5.9.1866 — Leiden 2.7.1929. Dutch Indologist (Pāli Scholar). Daughter of Dirk L. van G. (1842–1882), a publisher, who supported women’s higher education, and Elisabeth Romijn. In 1881-85 she was the first female student admitted to the Hogere Burger Highschool. But the father died in 1882, before the matriculation (1885) of his daughter, and mother did not allow university studies. These she could only begin after the death of mother and, after thorough preparation through various auxiliary studies, started at Leiden in 1904, first several subjects, later mainly Indology under Speyer. Cand. 1908, 1912 Doctorans, and Ph.D. 1915 Leiden. After further studies of Sanskrit, epigraphy and Javanese she obtained a placement as Adjunct-oudheid­kundige in Dutch East Indies and left in January 1917 for Java. In Indonesia she was mainly engaged in Hindu and Buddhist iconographical studies, assisting F. D. K. Bosch. As the only woman in service she found it not always easy to go on and eventually she resigned. After a brief period as teacher at women’s school in Bandoeng she went to Hanoi and remained as attachée at É.F.E.O. in 1922-23 studying the documents of the Dutch factory in Tonkin in the 17th century. In March 1924 she returned to the Netherlands and Leiden and was nominated Praeceptor of Pāli at University. During Vogel’s Indian journey in 1925-26 she taught Sanskrit, too. In spring 1929 she became ill and had to stop her teaching.

Publications: Diss. De Buddhistische non geschets naar gegevens der Pali-literatuur. 8+247 p. Leiden 1915.

– Articles on Indonesian art and iconography in Indonesian publications, a few reviews in BEFEO.

– De Pāli-letterkunde als bron voor de kennis van het Buddhisme en van de Buddhistische archaeologie. Publ. lecture. 21 p. Leiden 1924.

Sources: J.-Ph. Vogel, Levensberichten van de Maatschappij der Nederlandsche Letterkunde te Leiden 1929-30, 49-53; Dutch Indology homepage with small photo.