OSTHOFF, Caspar Carl Heinrich Gottfried Emil Franz Hermann. Billmerich, Westfalen 18.4.1847 — Heidelberg 7.5.1907. German IE Scholar. Professor in Heidelberg. Son of Franz Osthoff, an estate owner, and Lisette Theodore Birnberg. Gymnasium in Gütersloh. Studies of Classics and Sanskrit at Bonn (Gildemeister), then at Tübingen (Roth) and Berlin (Weber). Ph.D.…
OERTEL, Hanns. Geithain, Sachsen 20.4.1868 — Munich 7.2.1952. German Indologist, for a while in the U.S.A. Professor in New Haven and Munich. Son of Colonel Philipp Julius Oe. (1821–86) and Evelyn Lassnitzer. Gymnasium in Plauen and Meissen. After father’s death in 1886 moved with the family to the U.S.A., studied…
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…
NORRIS, Edwin. Taunton, Somerset 24.10.1795 — Brompton, London 10.12.1872. British Oriental and Celtic Scholar. Son of a printer. Educated by his uncle Henry Norris, himself uncle of —> J. Dowson. As young he spent six years in France and Italy as tutor in an English family and, in addition to…
NÖLDEKE, Theodor Eduard. Harburg 2.3.1836 — Karlsruhe 25.12.1930. German Semitic Scholar, also interested in Iranian. Professor in Kiel and Strassburg. Son of Carl Nöldeke (1800–1866), teacher, then rector of gymnasium, and Auguste Klingemann (1802–1846), educated in Harburg and Lingen. Studies at Göttingen, mainly under Ewald, apparently also Benfey. Ph.D. 1856…
NIEDERMANN, Max Jakob. Winterthur 19.5.1874 — Neuchâtel 12.1.1954. Swiss Linguist (Classical and IE). Professor in Basel and Neuchâtel. Son of merchant Jakob N. and Regula Susanna Stolz. Educated in Winterthur. Studies at Zürich (1893-94) and Basel (1894-97, especially under Wackernagel), Ph.D. 1897 Basel. Then further studies in Paris (Meillet and L.…
NESSELMANN, Georg Heinrich Ferdinand. Fürstenau, Kr. Elbing (now Kmiecin in Poland) 24.2.1811 — Königsberg 1.7.1881. German Indo-Iranian, Baltic and IE Linguist. Professor in Königsberg. Son of Rev. George Ferdinand N., and Eleonore Gericke. Taught by father at home until 16, then at Elbing Gymnasium. From 1831 he studied mathematics at…
NEHRING, Alfons. Bischwitz bei Trebnitz, Niederschlesien (now Biskupice-Oławskie near Trebnica in Poland) 12.8.1890 — Würzburg 9.12.1967. German IE Scholar. Professor in Würzburg, in 1938-52 in the U.S.A. Son of Nicolaus Nehring (1852–1908), a trader, and Paula Riesenfeld (1861–1926). Studies at Breslau and Berlin, Ph.D. 1915 under O. Schrader at Breslau.…
NAZARI, Oreste. Turin 20.5.1866 — 1923. Italian Indologist and Linguist. Professor in Palermo. Student of Gorresio. For a while teacher in Turin, 1898-1901 also PD at the university, then professore ordinario di sanscrito (Crisanti first straordinario) e incaricato di storia comparata delle lingue classiche e neolatine at Reale Università di…
MÜLLER, Friedrich Max. Dessau 6.12.1823 — Oxford 28.10.1900. German Indologist, Linguist and Scholar of Comparative Religion in England. Professor in Oxford. Son of the poet Wilhelm Müller (1794–1827) and Adelheid Basedow (1800–1883), grew up in the small Saxonian principality of Anhalt-Dessau. After Nikolaischule in Leipzig (1836-41) studied classical philology at…