HAMAKER, Hendrik Arent. Amsterdam 25.2.1789 — Neerlangbroek, Utrecht Province 7.10.1835. Dutch Oriental Scholar interested in Sanskrit. Professor in Leiden. Studies of classical philology, then of Oriental languages under Wilmet at Athenaeum of Amsterdam. In 1815-17 Professor of Arabic, Chaldaean and Syriac at Athenaeum of Franeker, from 1817 Professor of Arabic at Leiden (1822 ordinarius). Died in his country house. He married 1818 Johanna Camper and had seven children, among them historian Hendrik Gerard H. (1819–1892).
Hamaker was a many-sided and prominent scholar, mainly working on Arabic (among his students were Juynboll, Roorda and Weyers), but he was also interested in classical philology, in Phoenicean and Punic (Semitic epigraphy) and in comparative IE linguistics and Sanskrit. He was one of the first Dutchmen to learn Sanskrit.
Publications: Much on Arabic and Semitic.
– “Over de Sakontala van Calidas”, Mnemosyne 2, 1823, 213-255.
– “Oratio [inauguralis] de vita et meritis Guill. Jonesii”, Annales de l’Univ. de Leyde 1823-24, 18 p.
– Akademische voolezingen over het nut en de belangrijkeid der grammatische verglijking van het griekisch, het latijn en de germaansche Tongvallen met het Sanscrit. 295 p. Leyden 1834.
Sources: Wensinck, Nieuw Nederl. Biogr. Woordenboek 3; Biogr. Woordenb. Ned. 3; Biogr. Univ. 66; Nouv. Biogr. Gen. 23; *H. F. Hofman, Lex. gramm. 1996, 386f.; Dutch Indology homepage; Wikipedia.
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