CALLAWAY, John. 17?? — 18??. Rev. British Wesleyan Missionary in Sri Lanka. Arrived in 1815 and worked there about ten years (1816 in Matara, 1817 and 1821-24 Principal of Galle School), then retired to England, apparently lived in London. Publications: A Vocabulary, with Useful Phrases and Familiar Dialogues, in the…
NOVOSAD, Martin (Nyānasatta Mahāthera). Vizovice, Moravia 25.1.1908 — Sri Lanka 1984. Czechoslovakian Buddha in Sri Lanka. Born in Southern Moravia. In 1935 heard of Buddhism through his wife and in 1938 arrived in Sri Lanka. Now became Nyānatiloka’s disciple and soon ordained as a monk. From 1940 leader of Verdant…
MOORE, Osbert John S. (Ñānamoli Thera). Cambridge 25.6.1905 — Veheragama near Mahawa 8.3.1960. British Bauddha and Buddhist Scholar. Lived in Sri Lanka 1949–60. Son of John Edmund Sharrock Moore, a biologist, and Heloise Salvin. Studies at Exeter College, Oxford. During the war served as officer in Italy, read Evola’s Dottrina…
MATZEL, Klaus Hellmuth. Borsdorf near Leipzig 11.10.1923 — 1992. German Linguist, Germanic and Sinhalese Scholar. Professor in Regensburg. Son of Hellmuth Paul M. and Margaretha Werner. Educated in Hamburg. Studies at Halle, Leipzig, Jena and Berlin, mainly German, but also classics, Slavic, IE and Indology. Four years in a G.D.R.…
FAIRBANKS, Gordon Hubert. Calgary, Alberta 1913 — 13.7.1985. Canadian Linguist in the U.S.A., NIA, IE, Russian and Armenian Scholar. Citizen of the U.S.A. Professor in Ithaca, Manoa and Urbana. Educated at Mount Royal College in Calgary, studies at at University of Alberta (B.A. 1937, M.A. 1938). In 1938-39 and in…
STEELE, Thomas. Walton near Brampton, Cumberland 27.5.1834 — Walton 29.12.1895. British Civil Servant in Sri Lanka. Son of William Steele, a poet. Joined the Ceylon service in 1856. Worked in Kurunegala, Galle and Kandy, then Assistant Government Agent in Hambantota (1869 there). Translator, after retirement in 1876 lived in Carlisle,…
SMITH, Helmer. Boo, Stockholms län 26.4.1882 — 9.1.1956. Swedish Indologist. Professor in Uppsala. Son of an engineer, 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…
RUELL (de Ruël), Joannes. Leiden 1659/60 or 1663/64 — Colombo ?.5.1701. Dutch Priest in Ceylon, worked there as predikant in Colombo from 1692 until death, from 1698 also the first Rector of Sinhalese Seminary. He prepared a Sinhalese grammar, which was printed in Amsterdam in 1707 with help of “Sinhala…
ROST, Ernst Reinhold. Eisenberg, Sachsen-Altenburg 2.2.1822 — Canterbury 7.2.1896 (thus both Wikip., Weise & Wollaston; Stache-W. 2007 d. London 15.2.1896). German Indologist and South-East Asian Scholar in the U.K. Son of Christian Friedrich Rost, a Lutheran minister. After school in Altenburg studies of theology and Oriental languages at Jena (under Gildemeister). Ph.D.…
RASK, Rasmus Kristian (bapt. Rasmus Christian Rasch). Brændekilde near Odense 22.11.1787 — Copenhagen 14.11.1832. Danish Linguist and Traveller, also interested in Sanskrit and Old Iranian. Professor in Copenhagen. Son of Niels Hansen Rasch, a smallholder and tailor, and Birthe Rasmusdatter. Educated at home and in Odense, became early interested in…