ERSKINE, William. Edinburgh 8.11.1773 — Edinburgh 20.5.1852. British (Scottish) Civil Servant and Lawyer. 1804-23 in India. Son of David E., a lawyer, and Jean Melvin. Educated at Royal High School and Edinburgh University (dr. iuris). He “was a lawyer’s apprentice, 1792-9, went to India in 1803-4 with Sir James Mackintosh”,…
DARMESTETER, James. Château-Salins (Meurth, Lorraine) 28.3.1849 — Maisons-Laffitte near Paris 19.10.1894. French Iranian Scholar. Professor in Paris. Son of Calmann D., a Jewish bookbinder, and Rosalie Brandeis, younger brother of the philologist Arsène D. (1846–1888). Educated in Paris, matriculated from Lycée Concordet in 1866. Then studied philology (lic. 1868) and…
CUMONT, Franz Valéry Marie. Aalst 3.1.1868 — Brussels 20.8.1947. Belgian Scholar of Ancient Religions, History and Archaeology. Son of Florent C., a textile factory owner, and Maria Faider, educated in Brussels. Studies at Ghent, Ph.D. 1887. Then further studies at Bonn, Berlin, Vienna and Paris. From 1892 taught, from 1906…
CORBIN, Henry. Paris 14.4.1903 — Paris 7.10.1978. French Philosopher, Theologian and Scholar of Iranian Religion and Islam. Son of Henri Arthur C. and Eugénie Fournier. Born in a Protestant family, but had catholic education. Studied philosophy in Paris (degree 1925), in 1928 led by Massignon to Suhrawardi. Now also studied…
CLOSS, Alois. Neumarkt in Steiermark 27.10.1893 — Graz 10.1.1984. Austrian Iranian Scholar. Librarian in Graz. Son of Alois Closs, a court official, and Rosa Halm, elder brother the Germanist August Closs (1898–1990). Educated in Graz, 1911-15 studies of theology at Graz (Dr.theol.), ordained 1916. In 1916-21 minister and teacher of…
CHRISTENSEN, Arthur Emanuel. Copenhagen 9.1.1875 — Copenhagen 31.3.1945. Danish Iranian Scholar. Professor in Copenhagen. Son of post official Vilhelm Chr. and Dorothea Kjerstine Marcussen. Matriculated in Copenhagen 1893. Studied languages, mainly French, at Copenhagen, mag. 1900. He had early become interested in the East and studied also Oriental languages: Arabic…
CASARTELLI, Louis Charles. Manchester 14.11.1852 — Salford near Manchester 18.1.1925. Right Rev. British (of Italian origin) Iranian Scholar and Catholic Bishop. Son of an Italian exile from Como, North Italy, Joseph Louis C., working as optician in Manchester, and Jane Henrietta Ronchetti, educated at Salford Catholic Grammar School. Studies at…
CARNOY, Albert Joseph. Louvain (Leuven) 7.11.1878 — Louvain 12.1.1961. Belgian Linguist. Professor in Louvain. Son of a Professor of Philosophy. Studied at Louvain Romance and classical philology, wrote dr. dissertations in both (in 1901 and 1902). From 1902 Docent, from 1904 eo. Professor and from 1908 ord. Professor at Louvain,…
BLOCHET, Gabriel Joseph Edgar. Bourges 12.12.1870 — Paris 5.9.1937. French Oriental (Arabic and Iranian) Scholar and Historian of Religions. After studies in Paris (i.al. ancient Iranian under Darmesteter at É.P.H.É. and Arabic at É.L.O.V.), from 1895 Assistant, then Librarian in Manuscript Department of Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris, retired as conservateur-adjoint…
BLEICHSTEINER, Robert. Vienna 6.1.1891 — Vienna 10.4.1954. Austrian Linguist, Scholar of Iranian and Caucasian Languages and Ethnology, later also of Mongolian and Tibetan. Son of Josef Ludwig Bl. School and studies in Vienna. Ph.D. 1913 Vienna, then worked in a library. From 1922 PD for Caucasian Linguistics there, tit. ao.…