SPRINGER (Sprenger), Balthasar. Vils, Ausserfern, Tyrol 14?? — 1509/11. Austrian Traveller in service of Welser trading house of Augsburg. Probably son of Johannes (Hans) Springer who was in service of the local prince, and Anastasia Steidlin (?). Very little is known of Balthasar’s own life. In Welser service he went…
SCHULZ, Siegfried Anton. 15.2.1925 — Washington, DC 25/26.1.2002. German Indologist in the U.S.A. Ph.D. Professor of Comparative Philology at Catholic University of America in Washington, DC (1969/87). Married, one daughter. Publications: “Hindu Mythology in Mann’s Indian Legend”, Comparative Literature 14, 1962, 129-142; “Die vertauschten Köpfe: Thomas Manns indische Travestie”, Euphorion: Zeitschrift für Literaturgeschichte 57,…
GIROLAMO DA SANTO STEFANO. 14?? — 15??. Italian (Genoan) Merchant and Traveller. Son of n.n. and Susanna Mainieri. In 1494 he left Genoa, together with Girolamo Adorno, for the East on a commercial venture. They went via Cairo to the Red Sea and from Aden to Bengal, then to Ceylon and Coromandel coast…
PIRES, Tomé. Lisbon or Leiria 1468? — China 1540? or little earlier. Portuguese Traveller. Son of an apothecary, followed his father on this profession. Came to India in 1511, as apothecary and not very young, obtained soon official position under Albuquerque and went to Malacca. From there he also visited…
CORSALI, Andrea. Florence 29.6.1487 — 15??. Italian Traveller. Son of Giovanni C., had good education. In the service of de Medicis he went to India in a Portuguese ship in 1515 and sent to Giuliano and Lorenzo de Medici two letters describing the lands and people. First in Goa, visited…
BARROS, João de. Vila Verde, Viseu (?), Portugal 1496? — Ribeira de Litém near Pombal 20.10.1570. Portuguese Humanist, Civil Servant, and Contemporary Historian of Early Colonial India. Illegitimate son of nobleman Lopo de Barros from Northern Portugal. Attracted attention of the court with his literary products. In 1522 he was sent to…
PAES (Pais), Domingo. 14?? — 15??. Portuguese Merchant in India. In a group of merchants from Goa he went to Vijayanagara c. 1520 and then wrote his account, characterized by reliable and exact observations and including important information about the Hindu state. The manuscript came to Portugal and was used…
VARTHEMA, Ludovico di (Barthema, Vertomannus). Bologna 1470? — Rome before June 1517. Italian Traveller in India. Claiming to have started his travels only in order to win fame he left Italy late in 1502 and travelled on the route Venice–Cairo–Beyrout–Damas–Mecca (the first known non-Muslim there), using Muslim robe (under the…
NIKITIN, Afanasij. Tver 1433 (?) — Smolensk 1472 or 1475 (?). Russian Traveller in India. A merchant from Tver, he visited Persia and India, and wrote a good account of these countries. The chronology of his travel is uncertain. He left Tver in 1466, 1469, or 1471 and travelled down…
JORDANUS CATALANI DE SÉVÉRAC (Jourdain). fl. 1280/1330. Father. French Dominican Missionary in India, of Catalan background. Probably born in Sévérac-le-Château north-east of Toulouse. Arrived in India in 1321 (if not earlier), when he narrowly escaped the killing of missionaries in Thana. After a while in Gujarat he worked many years…