MINAEV (Minayeff), Ivan Pavlovič. Tambov 9.(21.)10.1840 — St.Petersburg 1.(13.)6. 1890. Russian Indologist. Professor in St.Petersburg. Son of a modest official, educated at home and at gymnasium of Tambov. Studies of Chinese and Sanskrit at St.Petersburg (under Vasil’evand Kossovič) and then under Weber at Berlin.Also visited Paris and London for manuscript studies. Ph.D. 1872. From 1869 PD at St.Petersburg, from 1873 Professor there. From 1871 Member of Russian Geographical Society. In 1874-75, 1880, and 1885-86 travelled in India, Ceylon, Burma, and Nepal. Unmarried.
Minaev was mainly a Buddhist scholar, but also had broad interests in many sides of Indology extending to geography and ethnography. He is considered to be the founder of the Russian Indological school. He was among the pioneers of Western Pāli philology and author of the first useful Pāli grammar. In his research he worked on Buddhist chronology and the relationship between Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna. During his travels he collected a great number of Pāli and Sanskrit manuscripts. In his travel notes he often criticized the colonial rule in India. Among his students were Kudrjavskij, Ol’denburg and Ščerbatskoj.
Publications: “Novye fakty otnositel’no svjazi drevnej Indii s zapadom”, Žurnal Ministerstva narodnago prosveščenija 1870:8, 225-239; articles on Jatakas, in Russian, ibid. 1871:11, 87-133; 1872; 1874:11, 68-104; 1876:2, 185-224 & 368-403; 1876:4, 314-340; 1876:5, 69-97.
– Edited: Staraja Indija. Zametki na Hoženie za tro morja Afanasija Nikitina. 174 p. St.P. 1881.
– Očerk fonetiki i morfologij jazyka pali. 44+96 p. St.P. 1872, French transl. Grammaite palie. P. 1874, and from this English Pali Grammar. 1883.
– Očerki Cejlona i Indii. Iz putevyh zametok russkogo. 1-2. 5+284+238 p. St.P. 1878, English transl. Sketches of Ceylon and India. 1878.
– Edited: Petavatthu. 8+100 p. L.: P.T.S. 1888; “Chakesadhātuvamsa”, JPTS 1885, 5-16; “Sandesakathā”, JPTS 1885, 17-28; “Kassapa: Anāgatavamsa”, JPTS 1886, 33-53; “Nandapañña’s Gandhavamsa”, JPTS 1886, 54-80; “Sīmāvivādavinicchayakathā”, JPTS 1887, 17.34; “Kathāvatthu Commentary”, JPTS 1889, 1-199.
– Buddizm: Issledovanija i materialy. 1:1-2. 1887, French tr. Recherches sur le Bouddhisme et La communauté des moines bouddhistes. 15+315 p. AMG, Bibl. d’Ét. 4. P. 1894.
– Paradigmy sanskritskoj grammatiky. 59 p. S.Pb. 1889.
– Edited: “Śāntideva, Bodhicaryāvatāra”, Zapiski 4, 1889, repr. in JBuddhTextSoc 1894; “Mahāvyutpatti”, in his Buddizm. 1:2. 1887, repr. in Bibl. buddh. 13. St.P. 1911.
– Indijskie skazki i legendy: sobrannye v Kamaone v 1875 godu. 20+249 p. St.P. 1876, new ed. 264 p. M. 1966.
– Edited by S. F. Ol’denburg: “Materialy i zametki po buddizmu (iz bumag pokojnogo) 1. Perevody iz Petavatthu”, ZVORAO 6, 1891, 332ff. “2. ??”; “3. Perevody iz Suttanipāta Mahāvagga (Vinaya)”, Ibid. 10, 1896, 93ff.
– Transl. (ed. by V. Bartol’d): Putešestvie Marko Polo. 29+355 p. St.P. 1902, new ed. M. 1955.
– Edited by A. P. Barannikov: Dnevniki putešestvij v Indii i Birmu: 1880 i 1880-1886. 252 p. M. 1955, transl. by H. Sanyal, Travels in and diaries of India & Burma. Calcutta 1958.
Sources: *A.P. Barannikov, biography Minaev’s Dnevniki, 17-32, also a good photo; Bongard-Levin & Vigasin, The Image of India. 1984, 82-97 with photo; *T.V. Ermakova, “Naučnoe značenie putešestvija I. P. Minaeva v Nepal”, Mitrasampradānam. A collection of papers in honour of Y. Vassilkoff. St.Petersburg 2018, 609-624; S. Gopal, Indo-Asian Culture 18:1, 1969, 64f.; *S.F. Ol’denburg, Zivaja starina 1, 1890, liii-lxi & *Otčet Imp. Russkoe Geogr. Obščestvo za 1890 g. M. 1891, 8-11 & *ZVORAO 10, 1896 (1897), 57-77 (with photo); *A. Schneider, “Professor J.P.M., the Russian Indologist, 1840–1890”, IHQ 10, 1934, 811-826; Sengupta 1996, 163-171; Stache-Weiske 2017, 545; *V. Vasil’evskij & B. Rozen, ŽMNPr 1890:7, 36-40; *Ja.V. Vasil’kov, “I.P.M. i peterburgskaja indologija”, Indija. Istorija i sovremennost’. St.P. 2009, 128-169; *Vigasin et al., Istorija otečestvennogo vostokovedenija s serediny XIX veka do 1917 goda. Moscow 1997, 392-406; *Vigasin 2008, 140-153, with photo, and 161-191; Great Soviet Encyclopedia; *I.P. Minaev. Sbornik statej. Moskva 1967; photo also in Walravens & Stache-Weiske 2015, 59 and in Vigasin 2008, 142. Stache-Weiske 2017, 380 points out that Rau 24 is not young Böhtlingk, but probably Minaev; Wikipedia (more in Russian version).;
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