Leitner (to G. Zeller)

[Klaus Karttunen]

As I suppose this might be interesting to others, too, I send it through 
the list.

Liebe Frau Dr. Zeller,
leider war ich weg in Leiden und konnte darum nicht frueher diese 
Information zu senden. Ich habe keine besonders gute Quellen ueber 
Leitner gefunden, aber jedenfalls scheint es mir, dass ich ein bisschen 
mehr als die andere habe.
Mit besten Gruessen

Klaus Karttunen

LEITNER, Gottlieb Wilhelm. Pest 14.10.1840 - Bonn 22.3.1899. Hungarian 
Indologist in the U.K. and India. Professor in Lahore. Son of a 
physician, moved in 1847 to Constantinople, educated there and in 
London. In the age of 15 he served as interpreter to the British in the 
Crimean war. From 1859 Lecturer in Arabic, Turcic and Modern Greek at 
King's College in London, from 1861 Professor of Arabic and Mohammadan 
Law ibid. Ph.D. 1862 Freiburg (Breisgau or Switzerland?). In 1864 
"borrowed" to India (keeping his London chair) to assist in the 
foundation of Lahore University, in 1864-84 served as Director of the 
Government Oriental College and Registrar of the University there. In 
1866-67 travelled in Kashmir, Ladakh and Dardistan on behalf of Panjab 
government. In 1887 retired from India and became the Director of Royal 
Dramatic College in Woking, which he turned into an Oriental Institute.
GWL was the founder of Dardic philology and the first to study and 
describe several new languages found during his field tour. He was also 
interested in Buddhist antiquities and the Gandharan art.
Publications: Results of a Tour in Dardistan, Kashmir, Little Tibet, 
Ladak. 1-5. 1866-71 (perhaps same as the next).
- The Races and Languages of Dardistan. 1-3. 1867-71, 2nd ed. 1877.
- The People and Language of Hunza. 18??.
- further articles and books on Indology, Arabic and Turkish.
Sources: Das Gelehrte Ungarn; O.B.L. 5; Buckland, Dictionary; not in 
Magy. Eletr. lex.; a defective bibliography in Bollettini del quarto 
Congresso intern. degli Orientalisti. Firenze 1878, 24-26.
(Diacritics have been removed for e-mail. I have not yet had time to 
check his publications from the N.U.Catalogue and the B.L.Catalogue)