OBRY, Jean-Baptiste-François. Villers-Bretonneux (Somme) 17.9.1793 — 1871. French Literate interested in Indology and Religions. Son of wool merchant Firmin Obry and Marie Floride Debrie. Worked as attorney and judge in Amiens. “Juge honoraire, membre de l’académie d’Amiens”. He was much interested in Hebrew and in the 1830s he invented a…
OBERMILLER, Evgenij Evgen’evič. Petergof (Petrodvorec) 29.10.1901 — Leningrad 3.6.1935. Russian Indologist and Tibetan Scholar. Dr. 1935. Worked in Petrograd/Leningrad. Son of an official, Eugen von Obermiller (1863–1916) and Esther Gottliebe von Ettinger (1872–1916), a family with German background. He lost early his parents and lived with his aunts, who taught…
NYERUP, Rasmus. Nyrup, Ørsted Sogn, Funen 12.3.1759 — Copenhagen 28.6.1829. Danish Scholar interested in India. Son of Christen Rasmussen, a poor villain, and Karen Simonsdatter. In 1773 came to Odense Latin school, matriculated 1776 and went to Copenhagen. Studies of philology and theology at Copenhagen University, M.A. 1784. In 1784-1803…
NYBERG, Henrik Samuel. Söderbärke, Dalarne 28.12.1889 — Uppsala 9.2.1974. Swedish Semitic and Iranian Scholar. Professor in Uppsala. Born in humble conditions as the son of Anders Fredrik Nyberg (1854–1912), a poor curate, and Ida Mathilda Jansson (1867–1911), educated at home and in Västerås. In 1908 started Classical and Oriental studies…
NURMEKUND, Pent (until 1936 Arthur Roosman). Kilingi near Pärnu 16.12.1906 — Tartu 26.12.1996. Estonian Linguist, Polyglot and Oriental Scholar, specialized in Chinese and Indian languages and literatures. Born in a poor family as the son of an agrarian worker, Peet Roosman, and Julie Rüütel, he could only proceed slowly with…
NUNES (Nuniz), Fernão. 1500? — 1550?. Portuguese Jewish Horse Trader in India. In 1535-37 stayed in Vijayanagar and then wrote an account, including a short history of the Vijayanagara Empire. The manuscript came to Portugal and was used by Barros, but then forgotten for many years. Later on he was…
NOWOTNY, Fausta (née Pedain). Hollabrunn, Niederösterreich 9.4.1903 — 1991. Austrian Indologist. Ph.D. 1942 Vienna (under Frauwallner). Married 1940 Karl Anton Nowotny (1904–1978), an Austrian ethnologist, mainly working on Amerindian cultures. In 1943-51 she was employed as Mitarbeiterin in Museum für Völkerkunde in Vienna. In 1945 she was accused of Nazi…
NOVIKOV, Nikolaj Ivanovič. Tihvinskoje-Avdotjino near Bronnicky (SE of Moscow) 8.5.(27.4.)1744 — ibid. 12.8.(31.7.)1818. Russian Literate, one of the leading representatives of Enlightenment in Russia. Born in a noble family, son of Ivan Vasil’evič Novikov (1699–1763), educated in Moscow. After military service in 1762-67 worked in the committee for the renovation…
NOUETTE, Charles Georges. Montlhéry near Paris 6.5.1869 — Paris 2.5.1910. French Traveller, the photographer of the Pelliot expedition in Central Asia in 1906-09. After the cossack destruction of the 1920s his and Stein’s photographs are the only remaining document of many Dunhuang murals. He was son of merchant Albert Charles…
NORSA, Umberto. Mantua 16.12.1866 — Mantua 5.4.1943. Italian Polyglot Author and Translator. Born in a Jewish family, educated in Mantua, already then (1881) translated Catull’s poems, in 1884 Heine and W. von Humboldt. Law studies at Bologna, following his father’s wishes, but he also attended the classes of Giosuè Carducci.…