The Encyclopedia Americana (1920)/Lagarde, Paul Anton

LAGARDE, lạ'gärd', Paul Anton, German Orientalist: b. Berlin, 2 Nov. 1827; d. Göttingen, 22 Dec. 1891. He studied theology and Oriental languages at Berlin and became (1851) adjunct instructor of the Halle University, but continued (1852-53) his studies at London and Paris, returning to Halle to lecture. He taught at several schools of science, from 1866, at Berlin and Schleusingen and was made (1869) professor of Oriental languages at Göttingen University. The most important of his astonishingly numerous and many-sided philological works are ‘Gesammelte Abhandlungen’ (Leipzig 1866) ‘Mitteilungen’ (Göttingen 1884-91); ‘Uebersicht über die im Aramäischen, Arabischen und Hebräischen übliche Bildung der Nomina’ (ib. 1889); ‘Semitica’ (Göttingen 1878-79); ‘Orientalia’ (ib. 1879-80); ‘Symmicta’ (ib. 1877-80); ‘Petri Hispani de lingua Arabica libri’ (Göttingen 1883); ‘Ægyptiaca’ (ib. 1875); ‘Bibliothecæ Syriacæ’ (ib. 1892); ‘Armenische Studien’ (ib. 1877); ‘Persische Studien’ (ib. 1884). He also wrote several poems which were published by Anna de Lagarde (Göttingen 1897). His great learning and gifts were curiously mixed with dogmatism and distrust in the activities of others. His ‘Deutsche Schriften’ (4th ed., Göttingen 1903) deals with the position of the German state to theology, the Church and religion. His library now belongs to the New York University. Consult Lagarde, Anna de, ‘Paul de Lagarde, Errinnerungen aus seinem Leben’ (Göttingen 1894).