Kamil Zvelebil
Encyclopedia
Kamil Václav Zvelebil was a distinguished Czech scholar in Indian literature
and linguistics
, notably Tamil
, Sanskrit
, Dravidian
linguistics
and literature and philology
.
from 1946 to 1952 where majored in Indology
, English language, literature and philosophy. After obtaining his Ph.D in 1952 between then and 1970 he was a senior research fellow in Tamil and Dravidian linguistics and literature at the Oriental Institute of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences. He held the role of associate professor of Tamil and Dravidian at Charles University in Prague
until 1968 when he and his family were forced to leave Czechoslovakia
after the Soviet-led invasion
of the country.
During the late 1960s he made many field trips included those to South India and from 1965-66 he was a was a temporary professor in Dravidian studies at the University of Chicago
in the United States and visited the University of Heidelberg between 1967 and 1968.
In 1970 after some more time at the University of Chicago
he was a visiting professor at the Collège de France
in Paris. After more travel through European universities he became the professor of Dravidian linguistics and South Indian literature and culture at the University of Utrecht until his retirement in 1992.
Kamil Zvelebil died on 17 January 2009.
Some of them are:
Literature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...
and linguistics
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
, notably Tamil
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
, Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
, Dravidian
Dravidian languages
The Dravidian language family includes approximately 85 genetically related languages, spoken by about 217 million people. They are mainly spoken in southern India and parts of eastern and central India as well as in northeastern Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Iran, and...
linguistics
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
and literature and philology
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...
.
Biography
Zvelebil studied at the Charles University in PraguePrague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
from 1946 to 1952 where majored in Indology
Indology
Indology is the academic study of the history and cultures, languages, and literature of the Indian subcontinent , and as such is a subset of Asian studies....
, English language, literature and philosophy. After obtaining his Ph.D in 1952 between then and 1970 he was a senior research fellow in Tamil and Dravidian linguistics and literature at the Oriental Institute of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences. He held the role of associate professor of Tamil and Dravidian at Charles University in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
until 1968 when he and his family were forced to leave Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
after the Soviet-led invasion
Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia
On the night of 20–21 August 1968, the Soviet Union and her main satellite states in the Warsaw Pact – Bulgaria, the German Democratic Republic , Hungary and Poland – invaded the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic in order to halt Alexander Dubček's Prague Spring political liberalization...
of the country.
During the late 1960s he made many field trips included those to South India and from 1965-66 he was a was a temporary professor in Dravidian studies at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
in the United States and visited the University of Heidelberg between 1967 and 1968.
In 1970 after some more time at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
he was a visiting professor 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...
in Paris. After more travel through European universities he became the professor of Dravidian linguistics and South Indian literature and culture at the University of Utrecht until his retirement in 1992.
Kamil Zvelebil died on 17 January 2009.
Books
He has authored numerous books and articles on Dravidian linguistics and literature.Some of them are:
- Comparative Dravidian Phonology, Published by Mouton, ASIN: B0006BZAIK
- Dravidian Linguistics: An Introduction, PILC (Pondicherry Institute of Linguistics and Culture), 1990
- Tamil Literature, E.J. Brill, Leiden, 1975, ISBN 90-04-04190-7
- Companion Studies to the History of Tamil Literature, Handbuch Der Orientalistik Series, Brill Academic Publishers, ISBN 9004093656
- The Smile of Murugan: On Tamil Literature of South India, ISBN 9004035915, Brill Academic Publishers (Beware of another book with similar title by one Michael Wood!)
- The Poets of the Powers: Magic, Freedom, and Renewal, ISBN 0091159016
- Literary Conventions in Akam Poetry
- Two Tamil Folktales: The Story of King Matanakama, the Story of Peacock Ravana, UNESCO Collection of Representative WorksUNESCO Collection of Representative WorksThe UNESCO Collection of Representative Works was a UNESCO translation project that was active for about 57 years, from 1948 to about 2005. The projects purpose was to translate masterpieces of world literature, primarily from a lesser known language into a more international language such as...
: Indian Series, ISBN 8120802128 - Lexicon of Tamil Literature, ISBN 9004100725, Handbuch Der Orientalistik, Brill Academic Publishers
- Nilgiri areal studies, Acta Universitatis Carolinae, Charles University in Prague, Karolinum Press, 1st ed edition (2001), ISBN 8071849456
- Introducing Tamil literature, ASIN: B0007JK3TC
- Ananda-tandava of Siva-sadanrttamurti: The development of the concept of Atavallan-Kuttaperumanatikal in the South Indian textual and iconographic tradition, Institute of Asian Studies; 1st ed edition (1985), ASIN: B0006EL29I
- Introduction to the Historical Grammar of the Tamil Language, Oriental Institute in Academia (1970), ASIN: B0006CIL44
- The Irulas of the Blue Mountains, Foreign & Comparative Studies (June 1988), ISBN 0915984911
- Tamulica et Dravidica: A Selection of Papers on Tamil and Dravidian Linguistics, Prague: KAROLINUM/CHARLES UNIVERSITY PRESS, 1998
Articles
Kamil Zvelebil has reportedly authored more than 500 bibliographic items including books, articles and reviews and translations.External links
- Prof. Dr. Kamil Vaclav Zvelebil (tamilnation.org bio)
- Prof. Dr. Kamil Vaclav Zvelebil (marketaz.co.uk bio)