FERGUSON, Charles Albert (“Fergie”). Philadelphia, PA 6.7.1921 — Palo Alto, CAL 2.9.1998. U.S. Linguist and Bengali Scholar. Professor in Stanford. Born in a working-class family, grew up in Philadelphia From 1939 studies at University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia: B.A. 1942, A.M. 1943 (thesis on Arabic), Ph.D. 1945 (Bengali). In 1946-55…
ESTELLER Y MELIÀ, Adolfo. Alcanar (Montsià) near Valencia 10.1.1899 — 18.3.1984. S.J. Spanish Indologist in India. Professor in Bombay. Son of estate manager Hermengildo Esteller and Elisa Melia. Joined the S.J. 1914. Educated in Castellon and Zaragoza, then studies of philosophy at Pontificia Universitá Gregoriana in Rome (Ph.D. there 1921).…
ERDMAN, Axel. Stockholm 6.2.1843 — Uppsala 8.11.1926. Swedish Linguist. Professor of English in Uppsala. Son of the mineralogist Axel J. Erdman (1814–1869) and Sophia Charlotta Nyström, educated in Stockholm. From 1861 studies of classical and modern languages at Uppsala, fil.kand. 1869. Then school-teacher of classical languages and English. In 1871…
ELLIS, Francis Whyte. 1777? — Ramnad (Ramanathapuram), Tamil Nadu 10.3.1819. British Civil Servant and Pioneer of Indology in India. From 1796 in Madras Civil Service, 1898 Deputy Secretary and 1802 Secretary to the Board of Revenue, 1810 Collector of Madras. Died of cholera (?). He was a pioneer of Dravidian…
EDGERTON, Franklin. Lemars, Iowa 24.7.1885 — Laramie, Wyoming 7.12.1963. U.S. Indologist. Professor in New Haven. Son of a civil servant, Charles Eugene Edgerton (1861–1932), and Annie Benedict White, his younger brothers were the lawyer Henry White Edgerton (1888–1970) and the Egyptologist William Franklin Edgerton (1893–1970). Though born in the West,…
DRESDEN, Mark Jan. Amsterdam 26.4.1911 — Philadelphia 16.8.1986. Dutch Indologist and Iranian scholar in the U.S.A. Citizen of the U.S.A., Professor in Philadelphia. Son of the composer Sem Dresden (1881–1957) and Jacoba Dhont, educated in Amsterdam. Studies of classical and especially Indo-Iranian philology at Amsterdam, B.A. 1933, M.A. 1937 (under…
DONNER, Otto. Kokkola 15.12.1835 — Helsinki 17.9.1909. Finnish Indologist and Finno-Ugrian Linguist. Professor in Helsinki. Son of Anders Donner (1796–1857), a wealthy businessman and shipowner in Kokkola on the west coast of Finland, and Olivia Matilda Dahlström (1803–1857). Matriculated in 1857 from Vaasa, then studied Finnish at Helsinki and passed…
DELIUS, Nikolaus. Bremen 19.9.1813 — Bonn 18.11.1888. German Linguist. Professor of English in Bonn. Son of a merchant, Everhard Delius (1777–1866) and Magdalena Gloystein (1793–1833), educated at Gymnasium in Bremen. Then studies of classical and Indian philology at Bonn (von under Schlegel and Lassen) and Berlin (Bopp). Ph.D. Bonn 1838,…
DE GUBERNATIS, Angelo. Turin 7.4.1840 — Rome 26.12.1913. Count. Italian Indologist. Professor in Florence and Rome. Born in a noble family, son of Giambattista De Gubernatis, a revenue official, and Maria Cleofe Turchetti; his brother was the diplomat and geographer Enrico De Gubernatis (1836–1914), his sister the educator Teresia De…
DEECKE, Ernst Georg Wilhelm. Lübeck 1.4.1831 — Strassburg (Strasbourg) 2.1.1897. German Linguist, Founder of Etruscology. Son of Konrektor Ernst Deecke (1805–1862) and Christine Müller (1805–1838). Gymnasium in Lübeck, studies of Classical and Comparative IE Philology at Leipzig and Berlin (under Bopp et al.). Ph.D. 1870 Leipzig. Taught at schools in…