VIENNOT, Odette. 23.1.1910 — 18.11.1992. French Indologist and Art Historian. Born in an artist family, studied ethnology, soon Indology at É.P.H.É. and Indian Art at Ecole du Louvre, under Ph. Stern. In 1951 chargée de mission in Musée Guimet, soon joined C.N.R.S. As an art historian she specialized in the…
VEYSSIÈRE DE LACROZE, Mathurin (M. V. de La Croze). Nantes 4.12.1661 — Berlin 21.5.1739. French Oriental Scholar and Polyhistor. Son of a rich merchant, he left school and went to the colony of Guadeloupe to learn trade. Back in Nantes (1677) and after the bankruptcy of his father studied medicine,…
VÉRTESY, Dezső. Pásztó 24.6.1881 — Budapest 12.7.1917. Hungarian Greek and Sanskrit Philologist. Son of Gyula Vértesy, an advocate, and Izabella Patzek, educated in Debrecen and Budapest. Studies at Budapest, Ph.D. 1902. Schoolteacher in Budapest. Publications: Diss. on Peleus-Thetis myth, 1902 (in Hungarian); translated Theocritus. – Translated excerpts from the Hitopadeśa,…
VENTURA, Giovanni Battista Rubino (Jean-Baptiste Ventura, originally Rubino ben Torah). Finale near Modena 25.5.1794 — Lardenne near Toulouse 3.4.1858. Italian Officer in India. Son of Gavriel Massarani (Reuben Ben Torah) and his wife Vittoria. He had traditional Jewish education, but joined army in the age of 17. Rising into colonel…
VENIS, Arthur (born Arthur Venis Lazarus). Calcutta 4.10.1857 — Uttarkhand 5.6.1918. British (Anglo-Indian) Educator and Indologist in India. Professor in Varanasi and Allahabad. Son of Edward John Lazarus, a converted Jew with Indian background, a physician also interested in Sanskrit. After studies at Edinburgh and Oxford (Balliol College, B.A. 1878,…
VENIERO, Alessandro. 18?? — 19??. Italian Philologist. Perhaps in Sicily. In 1917 mentioned as professor in Catania. One A. Veniero was 1918-19 Principal of the lyceum of Macerata in Basilicata. Publications: Translated: Dall’ epopea indiana. Saggio di versione. 74 p. Catania 1912; writings on Classical philology 1892/1916. Sources: Nothing except…
VENDRYES, Joseph (Joseph Jean-Baptiste-Marie V.). Paris 13.1.1875 — Paris 30.1.1960. French IE, Celtic and General Linguist. Professor in Paris. Son of a civil servant, Albert Vendryes (1849–1916) and Marguerite Lambert. School in Paris (Lycée Louis-le-Grand). Studies in Paris under Meillet et al. (Sanskrit under V. Henry and S. Lévi). Agrégé…
VAUGHAN, John Luther. Leicester St. Martin 6.3.1820 — Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent 2.1.1911. Sir. British Colonial Officer in India. Son of Rev. Edward Thomas Vaughan (1777–1829) and Agnes Pares (1785–1878), educated at Rugby. Joined Indian Army in 1840, served in Maharajpur. In 1855 in Crimea. In 1857 commanded a Field…
VASCONCELOS (DE) ABREU, Guilherme Augusto (de). Coimbra 20.5.1842 — Lisbon 1.2.1907. Portuguese Indologist. Professor in Lisbon. Son of Victor Madail de Abreu (1811–1868), an official and liberal activist, and Guilhermina de Vasconcellos Abreu. School in Coimbra and 1854-56 in Porto, then some time in Brazil, also visited India. Then studied then…
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…