O’CONNOR, William Frederick Travers. Longford, Ireland 30.7.1870 — Chelsea, London 14.12.1943. Sir. British (Irish) Officer and Diplomat in British Service in India. Son of land agent Matthew Weld O’Connor and Georgina O’Reilly. Educated at Charterhouse School in Surrey. After Royal Military Academy joined Royal Artillery in 1890. Lieutenant 1893, Captain 1899,…
MORGENSTIERNE, Georg Valentin von Munthe af. Christiania (Oslo) 3.1.1892 — Oslo 3.3.1978. Norwegian Indo-Iranian Scholar. Professor in Oslo. Son of Professor (lawyer) Bredo von Munthe af M. (1851–1930) and Bertha Ludwigsen Schjelderup (1857–1943). Matriculated from Christiania 1909. Studies at Christiania, of classical philology, comparative linguistics and Indology (under Konow), then…
LEWIN, Thomas Herbert. London 1.4.1839 — Abinger, Surrey 11.2.1916. British Colonial Officer in India. Lieutenant-Colonel. Son of George Herbert Lewin (1808–1856) and Mary Friend (1811–1890). Educated at Littlehampton and Addiscombe, in 1857 to India. Until 1874 served in Chittagong Hill Tracts. From 1875 Deputy Commissioner of Cooch Behar and from…
JISL, Lumír. Svijanský Újezd, Liberec region 18.4.1921 — Prague 22.11.1969. Czech Scholar of Tibetan, Mongolian and Japanese, a Specialist of Buddhist Art. After school in Toruń from 1940 studies of archaeology and ethnography at Prague. In the wartime worked as insurance official in Liberec, then continued studies (graduated 1949). From…
HETÉNYI-HEIDLBERG, Ernő (Ernest H., Láma Dharmakírti Padmavadzsra). Budapest 13.2.1912 — Budapest 17.9.1999. Hungarian Bauddha and Tibetologist. Son of the operetta composer Albert Hetényi-Heidelberg (1875–1951) and Erzsébet Brunner. He became interested in Buddhism, especially Lama Anagarika Govinda, and in 1951 founded the Buddhist society of Hungary and in 1956 the Alexander…
FRANÇOIS-MARIE DE TOURS (Francesco Maria Da Tours, Franciscus M. Turonensis). 16?? — Patna ?.5.1709. Father. French Capuchin Missionary in India and Tibet. Came from Tours and joined the order in Italy. Worked first as Capuchin Missionary in Diarbekir, Turkey, came to India in 1680. Worked in Pondicherry and Surat, in 1701 left…
FERRARI, Alfonsa. Aquila 1.11.1918 — 1.1.1954. Italian Indologist. Professor in Rome. Grew up in Milano, studied in Rome, graduated in 1941 under Formichi and 1945 under Tucci (Indian religion and philosophy). From 1945 assistente straordinario di sanscrit. In 1946 and 1947-48 further studies of Buddhism, Tibetan and Sanskrit literature in…
DUNCAN, Marion Herbert. Celina, co. Mercer, Ohio 17.1.1896 — Boonsboro, co. Washington, Maryland ?.1.1977. U.S. Missionary in Khams (Eastern Tibet). Son of John Stephen D. (1872–1912) and Sarah Jane Russell (1874–1904), graduated from Hiram College. In 1921-35 served as missionary of the Disciples of Christ in Batang (‘Ba‘-thams) in Khams (Lopez)…
STEPANOV, Gurij (Aleksej Ivanovič St.). Čeboksary 3.10.1880 — Gorkij (Nižni Novgorod) 1.11.1937. Russian Ecclesiastic, Mongolian and Tibetan Scholar. Archimandrit, then Archbishop of Russian Orthodox Church. Son of a minor official. After Kazan Seminary studied 1902-06 at Kazan Spiritual Academy (cand. theol.). Intending to become missionary he concentrated on Mongolian language…
SZERB, János. Budapest 7.1.1951 — Vienna 6.10.1988. Hungarian Tibetologist. Son of Dr. Antal Szerb and Klára Bálint. Studies at Budapest. Ph.D. 1982. In 1984-88 in Ö.A.W, Forschungsstelle für Kultur- und Geistesgeschichte Asiens, in Vienna. Interested in Tibetan history and religion, also including Mongolian Buddhism. Also a poet. Committed suicide. Married…