Jacqueline de Romilly
Encyclopedia
Jacqueline Worms de Romilly, née David (26 March 1913 – 18 December 2010) was a French
philologist
, classical scholar and fiction writer
. Because she was of Jewish ancestry, the Vichy government suspended her from her teaching duties during the Occupation of France. she was the first woman nominated to the Collège de France
, and in 1988, the second woman to enter the Académie Française
. She was also known for her work on the culture and language of ancient Greece
, and in particular on Thucydides
.
, Eure-et-Loir
, she studied at the Lycée Molière, where she was won the Concours général
in Latin and took second prize in Greek
in 1930. She then prepared for the École Normale Supérieure
at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand
. She entered the class of 1933 of the ENS Ulm
. She passed the agrégation
in classics
in 1936, and became a doctor of letters
in 1947.
After being a schoolteacher, she became a professor at Lille University and subsequently at the Sorbonne
, between 1957 and 1973. She later was promoted to the chair of Greek
and the development of moral and political thought at the Collège de France
— the first woman nominated to this prestigious institution. In 1988, she was the second woman (after Marguerite Yourcenar
) to enter the Académie Française
, being elected to Chair #7, which was previously occupied by André Roussin.
In 1995, she obtained Greek nationality
and in 2000 was named as an Ambassador of Hellenism by the Greek government. A one-time president of the Association Guillaume Budé
, she remained an honorary president until her death at a hospital in Boulogne-Billancourt
at the age of 97.
After having only received baptism in 1940, she fully converted to Maronite Catholicism
in 2008, aged 95.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
philologist
Philology
Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics.Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin...
, classical scholar and fiction writer
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
. Because she was of Jewish ancestry, the Vichy government suspended her from her teaching duties during the Occupation of France. she was the first woman nominated to the Collège de France
Collège de France
The Collège de France is a higher education and research establishment located in Paris, France, in the 5th arrondissement, or Latin Quarter, across the street from the historical campus of La Sorbonne at the intersection of Rue Saint-Jacques and Rue des Écoles...
, and in 1988, the second woman to enter the Académie Française
Académie française
L'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...
. She was also known for her work on the culture and language of ancient Greece
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
, and in particular on Thucydides
Thucydides
Thucydides was a Greek historian and author from Alimos. His History of the Peloponnesian War recounts the 5th century BC war between Sparta and Athens to the year 411 BC...
.
Biography
Born in ChartresChartres
Chartres is a commune and capital of the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France. It is located southwest of Paris.-Geography:Chartres is built on the left bank of the Eure River, on a hill crowned by its famous cathedral, the spires of which are a landmark in the surrounding country...
, Eure-et-Loir
Eure-et-Loir
Eure-et-Loir is a French department, named after the Eure and Loir rivers.-History:Eure-et-Loir is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790 pursuant to the Act of December 22, 1789...
, she studied at the Lycée Molière, where she was won the Concours général
Concours général
In France, the concours général is a national competition held every year between students of Première and Terminale in almost all subjects taught in both general, technological and professional high schools...
in Latin and took second prize in Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
in 1930. She then prepared for the École Normale Supérieure
École Normale Supérieure
The École normale supérieure is one of the most prestigious French grandes écoles...
at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand
Lycée Louis-le-Grand
The Lycée Louis-le-Grand is a public secondary school located in Paris, widely regarded as one of the most rigorous in France. Formerly known as the Collège de Clermont, it was named in king Louis XIV of France's honor after he visited the school and offered his patronage.It offers both a...
. She entered the class of 1933 of the ENS Ulm
École Normale Supérieure
The École normale supérieure is one of the most prestigious French grandes écoles...
. She passed the agrégation
Agrégation
In France, the agrégation is a civil service competitive examination for some positions in the public education system. The laureates are known as agrégés...
in classics
Classics
Classics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
in 1936, and became a doctor of letters
Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters is a university academic degree, often a higher doctorate which is frequently awarded as an honorary degree in recognition of outstanding scholarship or other merits.-Commonwealth:...
in 1947.
After being a schoolteacher, she became a professor at Lille University and subsequently at the Sorbonne
University of Paris
The University of Paris was a university located in Paris, France and one of the earliest to be established in Europe. It was founded in the mid 12th century, and officially recognized as a university probably between 1160 and 1250...
, between 1957 and 1973. She later was promoted to the chair of Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
and the development of moral and political thought at the Collège de France
Collège de France
The Collège de France is a higher education and research establishment located in Paris, France, in the 5th arrondissement, or Latin Quarter, across the street from the historical campus of La Sorbonne at the intersection of Rue Saint-Jacques and Rue des Écoles...
— the first woman nominated to this prestigious institution. In 1988, she was the second woman (after Marguerite Yourcenar
Marguerite Yourcenar
Marguerite Yourcenar was a Belgian-born French novelist and essayist. Winner of the Prix Femina and the Erasmus Prize, she was the first woman elected to the Académie française, in 1980, and the seventeenth person to occupy Seat 3.-Biography:Yourcenar was born Marguerite Antoinette Jeanne Marie...
) to enter the Académie Française
Académie française
L'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...
, being elected to Chair #7, which was previously occupied by André Roussin.
In 1995, she obtained Greek nationality
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
and in 2000 was named as an Ambassador of Hellenism by the Greek government. A one-time president of the Association Guillaume Budé
Association Guillaume Budé
The Association Guillaume Budé, named after the 16th century humanist Guillaume Budé, is a French cultural and learned society dedicated to the promotion of Humanities. The current president of the society is the hellenist Jacques Jouanna....
, she remained an honorary president until her death at a hospital in Boulogne-Billancourt
Boulogne-Billancourt
Boulogne-Billancourt is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Boulogne-Billancourt is a sub-prefecture of the Hauts-de-Seine department and the seat of the Arrondissement of Boulogne-Billancourt....
at the age of 97.
After having only received baptism in 1940, she fully converted to Maronite Catholicism
Maronite Church
The Syriac Maronite Church of Antioch is an Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See of Rome . It traces its heritage back to the community founded by Maron, a 4th-century Syriac monk venerated as a saint. The first Maronite Patriarch, John Maron, was elected in the late 7th...
in 2008, aged 95.
Honours and awards
- Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour (2007)
- Grand Cross of the Ordre national du MériteOrdre National du MériteThe Ordre national du Mérite is an Order of State awarded by the President of the French Republic. It was founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle...
- Commander of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques
- Commander of the Ordre des Arts et des LettresOrdre des Arts et des LettresThe Ordre des Arts et des Lettres is an Order of France, established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture, and confirmed as part of the Ordre national du Mérite by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963...
- Commander of the Order of the Phoenix (Greece)
- Commander of the Order of Honour (Greece)
- Elected to the Académie françaiseAcadémie françaiseL'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...
(24 November 24, 1988) - First woman professor at the Collège de FranceCollège de FranceThe Collège de France is a higher education and research establishment located in Paris, France, in the 5th arrondissement, or Latin Quarter, across the street from the historical campus of La Sorbonne at the intersection of Rue Saint-Jacques and Rue des Écoles...
(Chair: Greece and the formation of the moral and political thought) - First woman member of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-LettresAcadémie des Inscriptions et Belles-LettresThe Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres is a French learned society devoted to the humanities, founded in February 1663 as one of the five academies of the Institut de France.-History:...
(1975) - President of the Academy of Inscriptions and Belles-Lettres (1987)
- Member of the Ehrenzeichen für Wissenschaft und Kunst (Austria)
- Appointed by Greece as Ambassador of Hellenism (which it receives citizenship in 1995)(2000)
- Ambatielos Prize of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres (1948)
- Croiset Prize of the Institut de FranceInstitut de FranceThe Institut de France is a French learned society, grouping five académies, the most famous of which is the Académie française.The institute, located in Paris, manages approximately 1,000 foundations, as well as museums and chateaux open for visit. It also awards prizes and subsidies, which...
(1969) - Langlois Prize of the Académie française (1974)
- Grand Prize of the Académie française (1984
- Onassis Prize (Athens, 1995)
- Daudet Prize for defence of the French language (2000)
- Prize of the Greek ParliamentHellenic ParliamentThe Hellenic Parliament , also the Parliament of the Hellenes, is the Parliament of Greece, located in the Parliament House , overlooking Syntagma Square in Athens, Greece....
(2008) - Corresponding member of foreign academies: Denmark, Great Britain, Vienna, Athens, Bavaria, the Netherlands, Naples, Turin, Genoa and the United States.
- Honorary doctorates from the universities of OxfordUniversity of OxfordThe University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, Athens, DublinUniversity of DublinThe University of Dublin , corporately designated the Chancellor, Doctors and Masters of the University of Dublin , located in Dublin, Ireland, was effectively founded when in 1592 Queen Elizabeth I issued a charter for Trinity College, Dublin, as "the mother of a university" – this date making it...
, Heidelberg, Montreal and Yale UniversityYale UniversityYale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...