SCHIEFNER, Franz Anton von (Anton Antonovič Šifner). Reval (Tallinn) 6.(18.)7.1817 — St. Petersburg 4.(16.)11.1879. Russian (German of Estonia) Indologist and Tibetan Scholar. Academician in St.Petersburg. Son of Franz Schiefner (1774–1848), a glass merchant who had moved to Estonia from Bohemia, and Christiane Schneider. After school in Reval began in 1836 studies of law at St.Petersburg (where his uncle was Professor of Roman Law), but also attended Graefe’s lectures on comparative philologyand Dorn’s Sanskrit classes. In 1840 he went to Berlin to study under Savigny, but soon turned entirely to philology under Boeckh, Bopp, Lachmann and Trendelenburg. From 1843 schoolteacher of Latin, later also of Greek in St.Petersburg, until 1852, continued his studies of Greek. Now he became also interested in Tibetan. From 1848 one of the librarians of Imperial Academy, 1863 director of its second section. From 1852 Adjunkt (in Tibetan), from 1853 eo. Academician. From 1856 Director of Ethnographic Museum. In 1860-73 also Professor of Classical Languages at Roman Catholic theological seminary. In 1863 he visited England, in 1870 Germany and Austria, but never any part of Asia. Councillor of State 1865. Correspondant or honorary member of many learned societies.Married 1849 Rosa Buwa (1821–1903, of Bohemia), five children (three died young). Died after brief illness.
Schiefner was mainly a Tibetologist, especially interestedBuddhism, linguistics and folklore, but he also worked on Indology, Iranian, Mongolian, Caucasian andFenno-Ugrian. He edited important collections of others, especially those of M. A. Castrén (1813–1852) on Uralic and Siberian languages and of Russian General, Baron von Uslar (1816–1875) on Caucasian, with his own comments. He was much interested in mythology and in narrative literature and a pioneer of Bon studies. Dealing with Tibetan texts he also used their Mongolian translations. He had wide corresponcence with scholars in Europe and the U.S.A., but letters sent to him are not preserved.
Publications: “Beiträge zur Kritik des Bhartṛhari”, Bull. Acad. Imp. 4:18, 1847, 273-284; “Einige Bemerkungen zum Poley’schen … Devīmāhātmya”, ibid. 4:6-8, 1847, 125-128; “Über Indras Donnerkeil”, ibid. 5:2, 1848, 17-21; “Über die nepalischen, assamischen und ceylonischen Münzen des Asiatischen Museums”, ibid. 12:9-10, 1855, 150-154 (all also in Mél. as.); “Über ein indisches Krähen-Orakel”, ibid. 1, 1860, 438-448 & Mél. as. 4, 1863, 1-14; smaller articles.
– With A. Weber: “Über ein indisches Würfel-Orakel”, MbBeAW 1859, 158-180, again with transl. in Weber, Ind. Streifen 1, 1868, 274-307.
– “Eine tibetische Lebensbeschreibung Çâkjamuni’s”, Mém. Acad. Imp. 6:3, 1851, 231-333; “Tibetische Studien”, Bull. Ac. Imp. 8, 1851 & 8, 1865, also Mél. as. 1, 1852, 324-394 & 5, 1868, 178-194; “Das buddhistische Sûtra der zweiundvierzig Sätze”, Bull. Acad. Imp. 9:5, 1852 & Mél. as. 1, 1852, 435-452.
– Ergänzungen und Berichtigungen zu Schmidt’s Ausgabe des Dsanglun. 2+94 p. St.P. 1852; Carminis indici “Vimalapraçnottararatnamâlâ” versio tibetica. 26 p. St.P. 1858; Buddhistische Triglotte, d. h. sanskrit-tibetisch-mongolische Wörterverzeichniss. 4+37 p. St.P. 1859 (Mahāvyutpatti).
– Edited: Tā-ra-nā-thai rgya-gar-chos-’byur-bnugs. Târanâthae de doctrinae Buddhicae in India propagatione narratio. 10+220 p. St.P. 1868; tr. Târanâtha’s Geschichte des Buddhismus in Indien. 12+346 p. St.P. 1869.
– Bharatae responsa tibetice cum versione latina. 4+46 p. St.P. 1875.
– Mahâkâtjâjana und König Tschanda-Pradjota. Ein Cyklus buddhistischer Erzählungen. 8+67 p. Mém. Ac. Imp. 7:12:7. St.P. 1875.
– “Indische Erzählungen”, Bull. Acad. Imp. 21:5, 1876, 433-493, 22:1, 1876, 123-138, 23:1, 1877, 1-70, 23:4, 1877, 529-565, 24:4, 1878, 449-508, also in Mél. as. 7, 1876, 673-760, 773-795; 8, 1881, 89-188, 281-333, 449-534.
– Über das Bonpo-Sûtra: “Das weisse Nâga-Hunderttausend”. 4+86 p. Mém. Ac. Imp. 7:28:1. St.P. 1880.
– On Fenno-Ugrian: the first German translation of the Kalevala (1859), articles on Finnish and Estonian mythology in Bull. Acad. Imp.; edited M. A. Castrén‘s posthumous Nordische Reisen und Forschungen. 1-12. St.P. 1853-62.
– On Turcology: “Über die Heldensagen des minussinschen Tataren”, Bull. Acad. Imp. 15:23-24, 1858, 353-390, also in Mél. as. 3; Ausführlicher Bericht über Baron P. v. Uslar’s Kasikumükische Studien. 8+136 p. Mém. Acad. Imp. 7:10:12, 1866; also articles on Tungusic.
– On Caucasology: “Versuch über die Thusch-Sprache”, Mém. Acad. Imp. 6:9, 1859, 1-160; Versuch über das Awarische. 2+54 p. Mém. Acad. Imp. 7:5:8, 1862; Ausführlicher Bericht über des Generals Baron Peter von Uslar Abchasische Studien. 62 p. Mém. Acad. Imp. 7:6:12, 1863; Versuch über die Sprache der Uden. 110 p. Mém. Acad. Imp. 7:6:8, 1863; Tschetschenische Studien. 7+72 p. Mém. Acad. Imp. 7:7:5, 1864; Ausführlicher Bericht über Baron P. v. Uslar’s Hürkanische Studien. 4+200 p. Mém. Acad. Imp. 7:17:8, 1871; Ausführlicher Bericht über Baron P. v. Uslar’s awarische Studien. 8+180 p. Mém. Acad. Imp. 7:17:6, 1872; Ausführlicher Bericht über Baron P. v. Uslar’s Kürinische Studien. 4+256 p. Mém. Acad. Imp. 7:20:2, 1873; Awarische Texte. 50+113 p. Mém. Acad. Imp. 7:19:6, 1873; smaller articles.
– On Iranian: “Ossetische Sprüchwörter”, Bull. Acad. Imp. 5, 1863, 435-453, 492-495 (also in Mél. russes 4); “Ossetische texte”, Bull. Acad. Imp. 6, 1863, 446-474 (& Mél. as. 5); Osetinskie teksty. 2+104 p. Zap. Ak. 14:4. St.P. 1868; “Ossetische sagen und Märchen”, Bull. Acad. Imp. 12, 1868, 180-212 (& Mél. as. 5).
– H. Walravens (ed.), Anton Schiefner: Übersetzungen aus dem tibetischen Kanjur, Beiträge zur Buddhismusforschung und zur zentralasiatischen Märchenforschung. Wb. 2007 (with Schiefner’s bibliography, viii–xxxix).
Sources: Buckland, Dictionary; *Hallik & Klaassen 2002, 154-156; B. Le Calloch, “F.A.S.: maître des études finno-ougriennes, caucasiennes et tibétaines”, JSFOu 84, 1992, 31-52; *R. Rost, IA 9, 1880, 111-11?; Stache-Rosen 1990, 52f.; Stache-Weiske 2017, 86-89, 556; H. Walravens, N.D.B. 22, 2005, 736-738; *Wiedemann, Bull. Acad. Imp. 26, 1880, 30-44 (with bibliography); JRAS 1880, Proc. ix-xiii, also in Max Müller, Biogr. Essays. 2nd ed. = Chips 2, 1895, 454-457; bibliography in Livotov & Portulak 1966 (academy publications); Wikipedia with photo, the same in Rau 26, another earlier in Le Calloch’s article.
*H. Walravens (ed.), “Freilich lag in den zu überwindenden Schwierigkeiten ein besonderer Reiz…” Briefwechsel der Sprachwissenschaftler Hans Conon von der Gabelentz, Wilhelm Schott und Anton Schiefner, 1834–1874. Sinologica Coloniensia 26. Wb. 2008; *H. Walravens (ed.), St.Petersburg und Livland – und die Entwicklung der estnischen Literatur. Anton Schiefner (1817–1879) und Friedrich R. Kreuzwald (1803–1882) im Briefwchsel (1853–1879. 396 p. Wb. 2013; H. Walravens & A. Stache-Weiske (eds.), Anton Schiefner (1817–1879) und seine indologischen Freunde. Seine Briefe an die Indologen… S.Ö.A.W. 868. Vienna 2015; bibliography by *H. Walravens, ZASt 2007, 131-169; *H. Walravens & A. Stache-Weiske (eds.), Anton Schiefner (1817–1879), Briefe und Schriftenverzeichnis. S.Ö.A.W. 884. Vienna 2017 & Der Linguist Anton Schiefner (1817–1879) und sein Netzwerk. 937 p. S.Ö.A. 908. Vienna 2021 & A.S. (1817–1879): Briefe an Theodor Benfey (1809–1881) und skandinavische, russische und ungarische Kollegen. S.Ö.A.W. 923. Vienna 2022.
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