SMITH, Helmer. Boo, Stockholms län 26.4.1882 — Lidingö, Stockh. län 9.1.1956. Swedish Indologist. Professor in Uppsala. Son of an engineer, Karl Henning Smith (of distant British origin), and Fanny Sehlstedt (d. 1929). Matriculated from Stockholm in 1900. Studies at Uppsala: fil.kand. 1904, fil.lic. 1908. In 1909-20 further studies in Berlin, Paris (Bloch) and especially Copenhagen (Andersen). In 1921-35 Docent of Indology at Lund, acting Professor in 1924, 1927-28, 1930-31. In 1936-47 Professor of Sanskrit and Comparative Linguistics at Uppsala. Hon. Ph.D 1925 Lund. Married 1923 Ellen Westerblad (1886–1971, Wikipedia claims she only died in 1996).
Helmer Smith was, as a student of Andersen, mainly a Pāli scholar, also familiar with Sinhalese (important article in 1950) and Sanskrit. He was a skilled linguist who also knew some Hindi, Tamil, Old Norse, Slavic, Finno-Ugrian and Semitic (and of course Latin and Greek). Known as a specialist of metrics, a sharp critic and meticulous scholar. He never took a Ph.D. and published little of his wide learning. The Saddanīti with its indices, concordances and appendices gave a solid basis for ancient Pāli grammar. Among his students were Aalto and Simonsson.
Publications: Edited with D. Andersen: Sutta-nipāta. 226 p. L. P.T.S. 1913; The Pāli Dhātupāṭha and the Dhātumañjūsā. Medd. Danske Vid. Selsk. 4:6. Copenh. 1921.
– Edited: Khuddaka-Pāṭha with Paramatthajotikā. 270 p. L. P.T.S. 1915; Sutta-nipāta commentary. Being Paramatthajotikā II. 1-3. L. 1916-18 (P.T.S. text series 128-130); The Commentary of the Dhammapada. 1:1. 134 p. L. P.T.S. 1925; La grammaire Pāli d’Aggavaṁsa, Saddanīti. 1-5:1. Lund 1928-54 (concluding vol. 5:2 by Simonsson, 1966).
– Four articles in BSL 33-36, 1932-35 dealing with Apabhraṁśa, Sinhalese and Hindi.
– Edited with others: Critical Pāli Dictionary. Fasc. 1:1ff. 1924ff.; “Epilegomena” to vol. 1 of the C.P.D. 99 p. Copenhagen 1948.
– Les deux prosodies du vers bouddhique. 43 p. Humanistiska vetenskapssamf. Årsberättelse 1949–1950:1. Lund 1950.
– “W. Geiger et le vocabulaire singalais classique”, JA 238, 1950, 177-223.
– “Retractationes rhytmicae”, StOr 16:5, 1951, 37 p.; “Analecta rhytmica”, StOr 19:7, 1953 (Fs. Räsänen), 17 p.
– Inventaire rythmique des Pūrva-Mīmāṁsā-sūtra. 141 p. U.U.Å. 1953:8.
– “En marge du vocabulaire sanskrit des bouddhistes”, Or.Suec. 2, 1953, 119-128 & 3, 1954, 31-35 & 4, 1955, 109-113.
Sources: Björn Collinder, Sv. Dagblad 11.1.1956 & Kungl. vitterhets, historie och ant. akademiens årsbok 1956, 55-59, with photo; H. Hendriksen, Cr. Pali Dict. II, 1960, v-viii; Peiris, Buddhism. 226-229 with photo from Sardesai; S. W[i]k[ande]r, Svenska män och kvinnor 7, 1954, 110f.; Uppsala Univ. matrikel 1937–1950 (with bibliogr.); Swedish Wikipedia with bibliography (see also Swedish version).
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