James Darmesteter
French Iranist, translator of the Zend-Avesta
- Born
- 1849
- Died
- 1894
- Known for
- English translation of the Avesta, Sacred Books of the East vols. 4 and 23
- Positions
- Ecole des Hautes Etudes (1877); Collège de France (1885)
French scholar who translated the Zoroastrian Avesta for Max Muller's Sacred Books of the East series.
What is James Darmesteter known for?
James Darmesteter was a French scholar of ancient Iranian languages and religion. He taught Persian at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes from 1877 and became a professor at the Collège de France in 1885. He died in 1894 at the age of 45.
For Max Muller's Sacred Books of the East he translated the Zend-Avesta, the scriptures of Zoroastrianism, in volumes 4 and 23. Volume 4 contains the Vendidad, a book of purity laws and myths. Its second chapter tells how the first king, Yima, was warned of a destructive winter and built an enclosure, the Vara, to shelter the best of people, animals and plants. He later produced a fuller French translation (1892–93).
The Vara story is often compared with Noah's Ark. Darmesteter's English is now public domain and is the version usually quoted.
The site quotes Darmesteter's Vendidad translation for Yima's Vara, the shelter built against a killing winter.
Mentioned on these pages
- ChapterOne History 8: The reset
Sources
- Internet Sacred Text Archive, 'The Zend Avesta, Part I (SBE 4)', tr. James DarmesteterPrimary text
- Wikipedia, 'James Darmesteter'Reference
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