HAMILTON, Alexander. 3.10.1762 — Liverpool 30.12.1824. British (Scottish) Pioneer of Indology. Born in Scotland (if not in India), son of William Hamilton (1722–1783), a merchant in Greenock (Inverclyde), and Jean Donald, and grandson of Alexander Hamilton, Laird of Grange in Ayrshire, brother of Major Walter Hamilton (1779–1818), who also wrote…
HAAS, Ernst Anton Max. Coburg 18.4.1835 — London 3.7.1882. German Indologist in London. Son of Friedrich Haas. After school in Coburg studies of Germanic and Romance philology at Berlin and Bonn. Through comparative linguistics he became interested in Sanskrit and went to Tübingen to study under Roth, then also Weber’s…
GRIMBLOT, Jean Paul Auguste. Marseille 28.6.1817 — Florence 23.5.1870. French Diplomat and Indologist. Studies of Indology in Paris under Burnouf. Traveled in Germany, U.K. and Italy. From 18?? French Consul in Ceylon and Burma. In Ceylon he learned Pāli and studied Buddhism, and achieved a fine collection of manuscripts for…
GORRESIO, Carlo Guido Gaspare. Bagnasco (Como) 18.1.1807 — Turin 20/21.5.1891. Abate. Italian Indologist. Librarian in Turin. Son of Giovanni Battista Gorresio, a notary, and Clotilde Dealberti. According to Piovano, who has checked the book of births, the often mentioned birth date at 20.6.1808 is not correct. Educated at Bagnasco and…
GHEYN, Joseph-Marie-Martin van den. Ghent 25.5.1854 — Brussels 29.1. 1913. S.J. Belgian scholar of Religion, Ethnology, Sanskrit and Theology. Son of Edouard van den Gheyn (1814–1888), Professor of chemistry, and Clementia de Gottal. School in Ghent, joined Jesuit order in 1871 in Drongen. Studies at Louvain (Leuven) under de Harlez,…
FORBES, Duncan. Kinnaird, Pertshire 28.4.1798 — London 17.8.1868. British (Scottish) Oriental Scholar (Persian and Urdū). Born in a poor family, in 1801 remained with his grandfather, when the parents moved to the U.S.A. In the age of 12 he still knew not English (or was illiterate in it), but as…
FINCK, Franz Nikolaus. Krefeld, Ruhr 26.6.(26.2.?)1867 — Berlin-Südende 3./4.5.1910. German Linguist (Indo-Europaean, Celtic and Gipsy, but also Bantu, Polynesian and Caucasian). Professor in Berlin. Son of the factory-owner Jakob Finck and Agnes Neumann. Gymnasium in Krefeld. After interrupted law studies served in army in 1886-91, then studied linguistics at Munich,…
FILLIOZAT, Jean Lucien Antoine. Paris 4.11.1906 — Paris 27.10.1982. French Indologist. Professor in Paris. Son of a physician, educated in Paris (Lycée Henri IV and Louis le Grand). After studies of medicine in Paris (Dr. med. 1930) he practised as ophthalmologist until 1947. But he became early interested in India…
FAUSBØLL, Michael Viggo. Hove near Lemvig 22.9.1821 — Charlottenlund near Copenhagen 3.6.1908. Danish Indologist. Professor in Copenhagen. Son of Rev. Christian Nissen Fausbøll (1779–1840) and Dorothea Appolone Haksen. Educated in Aarhus, matriculated 1838. Studied at Copenhagen philosophy, aesthetics and theology, with the only intention of securing a living, as he…
EWALD, Georg Heinrich August (von). Göttingen 16.11.1803 — Göttingen 4.5.1875. German Oriental, especially Hebrew and Semitic Scholar, but also Indologist, and Theologian. Son of Heinrich Andreas Ewald (d. 1829), a master weaver, and Catharina Maria Ilse. After gymnasium studied theology and Oriental languages at Göttingen. Ph.D. there 1823. After a…