Richard N. Frye

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Richard Nelson Frye (January 10, 1920 – March 27, 2014) was an American scholar of Iranian and Central Asian studies, and Aga Khan Professor Emeritus of Iranian Studies at Harvard University.[1][2] His professional areas of interest were Iranian philology and the history of Iran and Central Asia before 1000 CE.

Born in

Pahlavi, Sogdian, and other Iranian languages and dialects, both extinct and current.[citation needed
]

Although Frye is mostly known for his works about

Khotanese, and Bactrian, New Persian, Arabic, Turkish, and even Chinese, beside research languages which include French, German, Italian, and Russian.[4]

Early life and career

Frye was born in

University of Illinois, where he received a BA in history and philosophy in 1939. He received his MA from Harvard University in 1940 and his PhD from Harvard in 1946, in Asiatic history.[citation needed
]

Frye served with the

Sar Masshad, and was the first European to find and report the existence of the Gur-e Dokhtar tomb (meaning "Tomb of the Maiden" in Persian
).

He returned to Harvard to teach. He was a member of the Harvard faculty from 1948 to 1990. He then became a professor emeritus at Harvard. He also served as faculty, guest lecturer, or visiting scholar at the following:

Professor Frye helped found the Center for Middle Eastern Studies

Shiraz
(1974–1978), and Chairman, Committee on Inner Asian Studies, at Harvard (1983–1989), and as Editor of the Bulletin of the Asia Institute (1970–1975 and 1987–1999).

Among Frye's students were

Volga River.[8]

Frye was also directly responsible for inviting Iranian scholars as distinguished visiting fellows to Harvard University, under a fellowship program initiated by

Jalal al Ahmad, and others.[9]

Proponent of Persian culture

The Qavam House, where the famous Shiraz University Asia Institute was founded. Frye headed the institute from 1969 to 1974.

Frye felt that Persian civilization was under-appreciated by other Muslims, particularly Arabs. Frye wrote:

Arabs no longer understand the role of Iran and the Persian language in the formation of Islamic culture. Perhaps they wish to forget the past, but in so doing they remove the bases of their own spiritual, moral and cultural being... without the heritage of the past and a healthy respect for it... there is little chance for stability and proper growth.

— R. N. Frye, The Golden Age of Persia, London: Butler & Tanner Ltd., 1989, page 236

In August 1953, shortly before the fall of

Ali Akbar Dehkhoda gave Frye the title "Irandoost" (meaning 'iranophile').[10]

In addition, Frye was a long-standing supporter of Assyrian continuity, and valued the historical and ancestral connection between modern Assyrians and the Ancient Mesopotamians.[11]

A ceremony was held in Iran on June 27, 2004, to pay tribute to the six-decade endeavors of Frye on his lifetime contribution to

Iranian Studies, research work on the Persian language, and the history and culture of Iran
.

In his will, Frye expressed his wish to be buried next to the

Isfahan. The request was approved by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in September 2007.[12]
Two other American scholars of Iranian Studies,
Arthur Pope and Phyllis Ackerman
, are already buried there. In 2010 the Iranian government gave a house in
Isfahan to Professor Frye in recognition of his services to Iranian studies.[13]

On June 8, 2014, the family of Frye decided to cremate his remains after waiting more than two months for official Iranian permission to bury him in Isfahan. His death coincided with growing resentment by Iranian hardliners over signs of reconciliation with the United States after decades of estrangement. It is not clear what the family intended to do with his ashes.[14]

Richard Foltz dedicated his book A History of the Tajiks: Iranians of the East to Frye's memory.[15]

Public speaker

Frye was a popular public speaker at numerous Iran-related gatherings. In 2005, he spoke at UCLA and encouraged the Iranians present to cherish their culture and identity.[16][17] In 2004, he spoke at an architectural conference in Tehran and expressed his dismay at hasty modernization that ignores the beauties of traditional Iranian architectural styles (see Architecture of Tehran).[citation needed]

Bibliography

  • Notes on the Early Coinage of Transoxania; Numismatic Notes, 113, American Numismatic Association, New York 1949
  • The Near East and the Great Powers, Harvard University Press, 1951
  • Iran, George Allen and Unwin, London, 1960
  • The Heritage of Persia: The pre-Islamic History of One of the World's Great Civilizations, World Publishing Company, New York, 1963. Reprinted by Mazda Publishers, 2004. www.mazdapublishers.com
  • Bukhara: The Medieval Achievement, University of Oklahoma Press, 1965. Reprinted by Mazda Publishers, 1997. www.mazdapublishers.com
  • The Histories of Nishapur, Harvard University Press, (Harvard Oriental Series, 45) 1965
  • Corpus Inscriptionum Iranicarum, vol. III, Dura-Europos, London, 1968
  • Persia (3rd edition) Allen and Unwin, London, 1969
  • The United States and Turkey and Iran, Archon Books, 1971
  • Sasanian Remains from Qasr-i Abu Nasr. Seals, Sealings, and Coins, Harvard University Press, 1973
  • Neue Methodologie in der Iranistik, Wiesbaden, 1974
  • The Golden Age Of Persia: The Arabs in the East, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, London, 1988
  • Frye, Richard N. (1992). "Assyria and Syria: Synonyms". Journal of Near Eastern Studies. 51 (4): 281–285.
    S2CID 161323237
    .
  • The heritage of Central Asia from antiquity to the Turkish expansion Markus Wiener, Princeton, 1996
  • Frye, Richard N. (1997). "Assyria and Syria: Synonyms" (PDF). Journal of Assyrian Academic Studies. 11 (2): 30–36. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2020-07-13.
  • Frye, Richard N. (1999). "Reply to John Joseph" (PDF). Journal of Assyrian Academic Studies. 13 (1): 69–70. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2020-07-11.
  • Greater Iran, Mazda Publishers, 2005,
    ISBN 1-56859-177-2
  • Ibn Fadlan's Journey To Russia, 2005, Markus Wiener Publisher,
    ISBN 1-55876-366-X

See also
Other notable scholars of Iranian studies
Mehrdad Bahar
Mary Boyce
Roman Ghirshman
Michael Roaf
James R. Russell
Erich Schmidt
Alireza Shapour Shahbazi
David Stronach
Ahmad Tafazzoli
Ehsan Yarshater
Abdolhossein Zarrinkoub

References

  1. ^ http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~turkish/relfaculty.html Richard Nelson Frye, Aga Khan Professor of Iranian-Emeritus Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations
  2. ^ "Harvard IOHP | Richard N. Frye Transcripts".
  3. ISBN 1-56859-177-2
  4. ^ Yarshater, Ehsan (March 31, 2014). "Richard Nelson Frye (January 10,1920 – March 27, 2014)". Encyclopædia Iranica. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
  5. ^ Kafadar, Cemal (November 22, 2005). "Crossing Boundaries: Remapping the Study of Middle East History". Harvard University Center for Middle Eastern Studies. Archived from the original on May 18, 2008.
  6. ISBN 1-56859-177-2
    p.193
  7. ^ Big Ideas. Big Thinkers. Oleg Grabar | Thirteen/WNET
  8. ISBN 1-56859-177-2
    p.90, p.150
  9. ISBN 1-56859-177-2
    p. 103, p.174
  10. ISBN 1-56859-177-2
    p. 142
  11. ^ http://www.aina.org/articles/frye.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  12. The Associated Press
    , Published: September 13, 2007.
  13. ^ "Ahmadinejad donates house in Isfahan to American Iranologist".
  14. ^ Iran: Harvard Scholar’s Body Cremated After Request for Burial in Iran Falters, The New York Times, Published: June 24, 2014.
  15. ISBN 978-1784539559
    .
  16. ^ Iran Heritage Archived 2005-04-13 at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ Professor Richard Nelson Frye Lecture at UCLA Royce Hall – March 13, 2005

External links

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