GOUVEA, Antonio de. Beja, region Alentejo 1575 — Manzanares, Castille-La Manche 18.8.1628. Portuguese Augustinian Missionary and Diplomat. Ordained as priest 1591. From 1597 taught theology in Goa, from there visited Persia in 1602-03 on diplomatic mission, again 1608-09 establishing Augustinian mission in Isfahan, from there proceeded to Spain. In 1611-28…
ČAVČAVADZE, Tinatin Aleksandrovna. Tbilisi 29.4.1928 — 1997. Georgian Indo-Iranian scholar. Daughter of an official, graduated 1949 from Oriental Faculty of Tbilisi University. Kand. filol. nauk 1954, dr. filol. nauk 1987. In 1956-58 taught at Tbilisi University, 1957-60 naučnyj sotrudnik at Linguistic Inst. (Inst. Jazykoznanija) and from 1960 at Oriental Institute…
BEČKA, Jiří. Prague 16.10.1915 — Prague 21.12.2004. Czech Iranian Scholar. Gymnasium in Prague. From 1936 studied law and Oriental languages at Prague, then much belated because of WW II. Dr. juris 1945. Ph.D. 1954. In 1952-76 librarian and research scholar at Institute of Oriental Studies, Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences, then…
COLETTI, Alessandro. Trieste 1928 — Rome 1985 Italian Linguist. Studied law at Bologna. As teacher in Italian school in Egypt learned Arabic. In 1973-74 in Italian Intitute in Teheran (studied Persian and Kurdish), in 1975 visited Afghanistan and Pakistan (now learned Pashto and Urdu). Professor. Married Hanne Grünbaum (of Denmark,…
WOLLASTON, Arthur Naylor. Beulah Hill, Norwood, Surrey 14.10.1842 — Walmer, Kent 8.2.1922. Sir. British Oriental Scholar. Son of Henry Francis W. and Elizabeth Naylor. Educated at Stockwell Grammar School. In 1859 (when only 16) joined Political Department of India Office, worked under John Kaye, later moved to Revenue, Statistic and…
ROBINSON, Thomas. 1790 — Rochester 17.5.1873. Rev. British Clergyman in India. Son of Rev. Thomas Robinson (1749–1813), lost his mother as infant (1791). Educated at Rugby. Studied at Trinity College, Cambridge, B.A. 1813, M.A. 1816. Ordained priest 1816 and left for India as missionary. Worked at Senoot and Poona (Pune),…
KOLLÁR, Ján (Czech Jan K.). Mosóc (now Mošovce) 29.7.1793 — Vienna 24.1.1852. Slovakian Philologist, Poet and Translator. Son of the local mayor Matej Kollár and Katarina Frndová. After gymnasium in Pressburg (Bratislava) worked as teacher. In 1817-19 studied Lutheran theology at Jena. From 1819 priest in Slovakian church in Pest. In…
HAVART, Daniël. Amsterdam (or Utrecht?) 29.12.1650 (?) — Rotterdam ?.6.1724. Dutch Physician, 1672-85 in India. Son of Servaes Havart (d. 1666), a physician, and Elisabeth Vermeer. Studies at Utrecht. In 1671 left for Batavia, 1672-85 living in Coromandel (Paliacatta, Masulipatnam) and Golconda. Returned to Utrecht, M.D. there 1691. From 1703…
GERSHEVITCH, Ilya (Il’ja Arkad‘evič Gerševič). Zürich 24.10.1914 — Cambridge 11.4.2001. Russian Iranian Scholar in the U.K. Professor in Cambridge. Born in Switzerland of Russian parents, Arkadi Gerševič and Mila Mirova, a pianist, who came from Smolensk. They were fleeing the outbreak of WW I as the father was then studying medicine…
FALCONER, Forbes. Aberdeen 10.9.1805 — London 7.11.1853. British (Scottish) Oriental Scholar. Son of Gilbert Forbes, a teacher, educated in Aberdeen, studies of Classics at Marischal College, Aberdeen. Studied nearly five years in Paris Arabic and Persian under Silvestre de Sacy and Hindustani under Garcin de Tassy, in 1834 Sanskrit at…