Simon Digby (oriental scholar)
Encyclopedia
Professor Simon Everard Digby MA (17 October 1932 – 10 January 2010) was an English orient
al scholar, translator, writer and collector who was awarded the Burton Medal of the Royal Asiatic Society
and was a former Fellow
of Wolfson College, Oxford
, the Honorary Librarian of the Royal Asiatic Society and Assistant Keeper in the Department of Eastern Art of the Asmolean Museum in Oxford
. He was also the foremost British scholar of pre-Mughal
India.
, and was the grandson of William Digby, a member of the Indian Civil Service who, in the late 19th century, wrote extensively about the poverty created by British rule in India. William Digby was a friend the Bihari barrister-politician Syed Hasan Imam
once the leader of the Indian National Congress
. His father was Kenelm George Digby
, a judge of the Indian High Court, and his mother was Violet M. Kidd, an accomplished painter. As his father was a friend of J. F. Roxburgh, the first headmaster of Stowe School
, Digby was sent to that school after attending a preparatory school
in North Wales. In 1951 he went with his mother on a painting expedition to Delhi
, Rajasthan
and Kashmir
. On his return to Britain he attended Trinity College, Cambridge
, where, in 1954, he obtained first-class honours with distinction in History
.
and Hindi
, and while at the University of Cambridge
he attended classes in Persian
and began to publish his own translations of Persian poems. He lived in Whewell’s Court and it was here that he welcomed Amartya Sen
when he arrived in Cambridge
in the summer of 1954. In 1957 he returned to India for two years sponsored by a grant from the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths
. During this time he learned about Indian art history
and museology
. In 1959 he travelled to Pakistan
, where he visited Lahore
, Rawalpindi
, Balakot
, the Kaghan Valley
and Peshawur, among other places. On his return to London Digby lived in a tiny house in Camberwell
while he studied for a PhD at the School of Oriental and African Studies
where he focused on the Sultanate period.
during which period he wrote on Indian history and contributed an article on the Emperor Humayun
to the Encyclopaedia of Islam
. This was his first article for this work. He also contributed to the first volume of The Cambridge Economic History of India. His first major article was Dreams and Reminiscences of Dattu Sarvani, a Sixteenth Century Indo-Afghan Soldier, which sprang from Digby's interest in medieval Indian warfare and Indian Sufism
. On his return to London he became a regular reviewer in The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society
, the Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies
and The Times Literary Supplement
. From 1969 to 1985 he was the Honorary Librarian of the Royal Asiatic Society, which involved him in ordering and cataloguing the Society's collections.
In 1971 Digby hitch-hiked to Venice
with his friend Richard Harris, who later was the BBC
World Service’s regional manager in Delhi. The two left Venice and travelled by sea to Rhodes
and Anatolia
, and then on public transport through Turkey to Tehran
, Kirman, Zahidan and Quetta
. Digby was in Karachi
when war broke out between India
and Pakistan
, and here he privately published his book War-Horse and Elephant in the Delhi Sultanate. In 1972 he was appointed Assistant Keeper in the Department of Eastern Art of the Ashmolean Museum
in Oxford
. This was to be his only full-time paid position, he having benefitted from a number of legacies from deceased relatives. At the Ashmolean, and on a tight budget, he made a series of purchases of Indian decorative arts that were exceptional for their quality.
As an ex-officio member of the Oriental Faculty of the University of Oxford
, Digby was responsible for supervising postgraduate students, and gave instruction in Hindi
, Urdu
and Persian
. In addition, he examined postgraduate theses including that of Michael Nazir-Ali
. Digby also served as visiting professor in Paris
and Naples
, where he lectured on Sufism
and architecture. In 1999 Digby was awarded the Burton Medal of the Royal Asiatic Society
and delivered a paper later published as Richard Burton
: the Indian Making of an Arabist. In his latter years Digby lived in a cottage in Jersey
which had been left to him by a relative. From here he made annual visits to India.
Simon Digby died of pancreatic cancer
in Delhi
on January 10, 2010, having been diagnosed with the disease only on December 28, 2009. He was cremated in India on January 14, 2010 and his ashes immersed in flowing water. Digby was unmarried and left no close relatives.
Orient
The Orient means "the East." It is a traditional designation for anything that belongs to the Eastern world or the Far East, in relation to Europe. In English it is a metonym that means various parts of Asia.- Derivation :...
al scholar, translator, writer and collector who was awarded the Burton Medal of the Royal Asiatic Society
Royal Asiatic Society
The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland was established, according to its Royal Charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encouragement of science, literature and the arts in relation to Asia." From its incorporation the Society...
and was a former Fellow
Fellow
A fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
of Wolfson College, Oxford
Wolfson College, Oxford
Wolfson College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Located in north Oxford along the River Cherwell, Wolfson is an all-graduate college with over sixty governing body fellows, in addition to both research and junior research fellows. It caters to a wide range of...
, the Honorary Librarian of the Royal Asiatic Society and Assistant Keeper in the Department of Eastern Art of the Asmolean Museum in Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
. He was also the foremost British scholar of pre-Mughal
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
India.
Early life
Digby was born in 1932 at Jabalpur in Madhya PradeshMadhya Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....
, and was the grandson of William Digby, a member of the Indian Civil Service who, in the late 19th century, wrote extensively about the poverty created by British rule in India. William Digby was a friend the Bihari barrister-politician Syed Hasan Imam
Syed Hasan Imam
Syed Hasan Imam born in year 1871, was an Indian politician who served as the President of the Indian National Congress.He was the fourth Muslim to become the President of Indian National Congress. One of his ancestors was the private tutor to Aurangzeb. Hasan Imam's father was a professor of...
once the leader of the Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
. His father was Kenelm George Digby
Kenelm George Digby
Kenelm George Digby was a British civil administrator and High Court judge in India.Digby was the son of Colonel T. Digby and Alice Isabella Sherard. He was educated at Haileybury College and studied Classics at Trinity College, Cambridge. In 1913 he passed the entrance requirements for the...
, a judge of the Indian High Court, and his mother was Violet M. Kidd, an accomplished painter. As his father was a friend of J. F. Roxburgh, the first headmaster of Stowe School
Stowe School
Stowe School is an independent school in Stowe, Buckinghamshire. It was founded on 11 May 1923 by J. F. Roxburgh, initially with 99 male pupils. It is a member of the Rugby Group and Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. The school is also a member of the G20 Schools Group...
, Digby was sent to that school after attending a preparatory school
Preparatory school (UK)
In English language usage in the former British Empire, the present-day Commonwealth, a preparatory school is an independent school preparing children up to the age of eleven or thirteen for entry into fee-paying, secondary independent schools, some of which are known as public schools...
in North Wales. In 1951 he went with his mother on a painting expedition to Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
, Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
and Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
. On his return to Britain he attended Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
, where, in 1954, he obtained first-class honours with distinction in History
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
.
Cambridge
Digby knew how to read UrduUrdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
and Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
, and while at the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
he attended classes in Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
and began to publish his own translations of Persian poems. He lived in Whewell’s Court and it was here that he welcomed Amartya Sen
Amartya Sen
Amartya Sen, CH is an Indian economist who was awarded the 1998 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for his contributions to welfare economics and social choice theory, and for his interest in the problems of society's poorest members...
when he arrived in Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
in the summer of 1954. In 1957 he returned to India for two years sponsored by a grant from the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths
Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths
The Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The Company, which has origins in the twelfth century, received a Royal Charter in 1327. It ranks fifth in the order of precedence of Livery Companies. Its motto is Justitia Virtutum Regina, Latin for Justice...
. During this time he learned about Indian art history
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
and museology
Museology
Museology is the diachronic study of museums and how they have established and developed in their role as an educational mechanism under social and political pressures.-Overview:...
. In 1959 he travelled to Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, where he visited Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
, Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi , locally known as Pindi, is a city in the Pothohar region of Pakistan near Pakistan's capital city of Islamabad, in the province of Punjab. Rawalpindi is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad...
, Balakot
Balakot
Balakot , is a town in Mansehra District in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. The town was destroyed during the 2005 earthquake and later rebuilt with the assistance of the Government of Pakistan and Saudi Public Assistance for Pakistan Earthquake Victims , a Saudi relief organization...
, the Kaghan Valley
Kaghan Valley
The Kaghan Valley is a valley in the north-east of Mansehra District of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistan. It attracts many tourists from around the world. The inhabitants were affected by the earthquake disaster on 8 October 2005....
and Peshawur, among other places. On his return to London Digby lived in a tiny house in Camberwell
Camberwell
Camberwell is a district of south London, England, and forms part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is a built-up inner city district located southeast of Charing Cross. To the west it has a boundary with the London Borough of Lambeth.-Toponymy:...
while he studied for a PhD at the School of Oriental and African Studies
School of Oriental and African Studies
The School of Oriental and African Studies is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the University of London...
where he focused on the Sultanate period.
Later years
In 1962 he returned to India where he spent almost a year in Hyderabad and another year in DelhiDelhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
during which period he wrote on Indian history and contributed an article on the Emperor Humayun
Humayun
Nasir ud-din Muhammad Humayun was the second Mughal Emperor who ruled present day Afghanistan, Pakistan, and parts of northern India from 1530–1540 and again from 1555–1556. Like his father, Babur, he lost his kingdom early, but with Persian aid, he eventually regained an even larger one...
to the Encyclopaedia of Islam
Encyclopaedia of Islam
The Encyclopaedia of Islam is an encyclopaedia of the academic discipline of Islamic studies. It embraces articles on distinguished Muslims of every age and land, on tribes and dynasties, on the crafts and sciences, on political and religious institutions, on the geography, ethnography, flora and...
. This was his first article for this work. He also contributed to the first volume of The Cambridge Economic History of India. His first major article was Dreams and Reminiscences of Dattu Sarvani, a Sixteenth Century Indo-Afghan Soldier, which sprang from Digby's interest in medieval Indian warfare and Indian Sufism
Sufism
Sufism or ' is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a '...
. On his return to London he became a regular reviewer in The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society
Royal Asiatic Society
The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland was established, according to its Royal Charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encouragement of science, literature and the arts in relation to Asia." From its incorporation the Society...
, the Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies
School of Oriental and African Studies
The School of Oriental and African Studies is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the University of London...
and The Times Literary Supplement
The Times Literary Supplement
The Times Literary Supplement is a weekly literary review published in London by News International, a subsidiary of News Corporation.-History:...
. From 1969 to 1985 he was the Honorary Librarian of the Royal Asiatic Society, which involved him in ordering and cataloguing the Society's collections.
In 1971 Digby hitch-hiked to Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
with his friend Richard Harris, who later was the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
World Service’s regional manager in Delhi. The two left Venice and travelled by sea to Rhodes
Rhodes
Rhodes is an island in Greece, located in the eastern Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within...
and Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
, and then on public transport through Turkey to Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
, Kirman, Zahidan and Quetta
Quetta
is the largest city and the provincial capital of the Balochistan Province of Pakistan. Known as the "Fruit Garden of Pakistan" due to the diversity of its plant and animal wildlife, Quetta is home to the Hazarganji Chiltan National Park, which contains some of the rarest species of wildlife in the...
. Digby was in Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
when war broke out between India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, and here he privately published his book War-Horse and Elephant in the Delhi Sultanate. In 1972 he was appointed Assistant Keeper in the Department of Eastern Art of the Ashmolean Museum
Ashmolean Museum
The Ashmolean Museum on Beaumont Street, Oxford, England, is the world's first university museum...
in Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
. This was to be his only full-time paid position, he having benefitted from a number of legacies from deceased relatives. At the Ashmolean, and on a tight budget, he made a series of purchases of Indian decorative arts that were exceptional for their quality.
As an ex-officio member of the Oriental Faculty of the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The 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...
, Digby was responsible for supervising postgraduate students, and gave instruction in Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
, Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
and Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
. In addition, he examined postgraduate theses including that of Michael Nazir-Ali
Michael Nazir-Ali
Michael James Nazir-Ali was the 106th Bishop of Rochester in the Church of England: he retired in September 2009, taking up a position as director of the Oxford Centre for Training, Research, Advocacy and Dialogue...
. Digby also served as visiting professor in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, where he lectured on Sufism
Sufism
Sufism or ' is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a '...
and architecture. In 1999 Digby was awarded the Burton Medal of the Royal Asiatic Society
Royal Asiatic Society
The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland was established, according to its Royal Charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encouragement of science, literature and the arts in relation to Asia." From its incorporation the Society...
and delivered a paper later published as Richard Burton
Richard Francis Burton
Captain Sir Richard Francis Burton KCMG FRGS was a British geographer, explorer, translator, writer, soldier, orientalist, cartographer, ethnologist, spy, linguist, poet, fencer and diplomat. He was known for his travels and explorations within Asia, Africa and the Americas as well as his...
: the Indian Making of an Arabist. In his latter years Digby lived in a cottage in Jersey
Jersey
Jersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey is a British Crown Dependency off the coast of Normandy, France. As well as the island of Jersey itself, the bailiwick includes two groups of small islands that are no longer permanently inhabited, the Minquiers and Écréhous, and the Pierres de Lecq and...
which had been left to him by a relative. From here he made annual visits to India.
Simon Digby died of pancreatic cancer
Pancreatic cancer
Pancreatic cancer refers to a malignant neoplasm of the pancreas. The most common type of pancreatic cancer, accounting for 95% of these tumors is adenocarcinoma, which arises within the exocrine component of the pancreas. A minority arises from the islet cells and is classified as a...
in Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
on January 10, 2010, having been diagnosed with the disease only on December 28, 2009. He was cremated in India on January 14, 2010 and his ashes immersed in flowing water. Digby was unmarried and left no close relatives.
Select bibliography
- Digby, Simon 'Sufis and Soldiers in Awrangzeb’s Deccan', Delhi, Oxford University Press, 2001.
- Digby, Simon 'Wonder Tales of South Asia', Jersey, Orient Monographs, 2000.
- Digby, Simon 'War-Horse and Elephant in the Delhi Sultanate', Oxford, Orient Monographs, 1971.
- Digby, Simon 'Toy Soldiers and Ceremonial in Post-Mughal India', Oxford, The Ashmolean Museum, 1982 (with James Harle)
- Digby, Simon 'The Royal Asiatic Society : its History and Treasures', Leyden and London 1979. (edited with Stuart Simmonds)
External links
- http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/obituaries/article7003455.eceDigby's Obituary in The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
January 27, 2010] - Digby's Obituary in The Telegraph, Calcutta January 21 2010
- Obituary on History News Network