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Richard N. Frye

February 15, 2023

"Richard Frye" redirects here. For the autism researcher, see Richard E. Frye.

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 Birmingham, Alabama, to a family of immigrants from Sweden, "Freij" had four children, his second marriage being to an Iranian-Assyrian scholar, Eden Naby, from Urmia, Iran who teaches at Columbia University. He spoke fluent Russian, German, Arabic, Persian, Pashto, French, Uzbek, and Turkish,[3] and had extensive knowledge of Avestan, Pahlavi, Sogdian, and other Iranian languages and dialects, both extinct and current.[citation needed]

Although Frye is mostly known for his works about Iran, the Iranian peoples and Iranian Central Asia, the scope of his studies was much wider and includes Byzantine, Caucasian, and Ottoman history, Eastern Turkistan, Assyria and the Assyrian people, ancient and medieval Iranian art, Islamic art, Sufism, Chinese and Japanese archeology, and a variety of Iranian and non-Iranian languages including Avestan, Old Persian, Middle Persian, Parthian, Sogdian, 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 Birmingham, Alabama. He first attended the 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 Office of Strategic Services during World War II. He was stationed in Afghanistan and traveled extensively in the Middle East, Central Asia, and South Asia. In 1948 he visited 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 until 1990. He then became a professor emeritus at Harvard. He also served as faculty, guest lecturer, or visiting scholar at:

Professor Frye helped found the Center for Middle Eastern Studies[5] at Harvard, the first Iranian studies program in America. He also served as Director of the Asia Institute in Shiraz (1970–1975), was on the Board of Trustees of the Pahlavi University at Shiraz (1974–78), and Chairman, Committee on Inner Asian Studies, at Harvard (1983–89), and as Editor of the Bulletin of the Asia Institute (1970–1975 and 1987–99).

Among Frye's students were Annemarie Schimmel,[6] Oleg Grabar,[7] Frank Huddle (former US Ambassador to Tajikistan), John Limbert, and Michael Crichton, whose Hollywood film The 13th Warrior is loosely based on Frye's translation of Ibn Fadlan's account of his travels up the river Volga.[8]

Frye was also directly responsible for inviting Iranian scholars as distinguished visiting fellows to Harvard University, under a fellowship program initiated by Henry Kissinger. Examples of such guests include Mehdi Haeri Yazdi (1923–1999), Sadegh Choubak, Jalal al Ahmad, and others.[9]

Frye as a 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, and Arab Muslims in particular. 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 Mosaddegh, prominent Iranian linguist Ali Akbar Dehkhoda gave Frye the title: "Irandoost" (meaning "a friend of Iran").[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 Professor Frye on his lifetime contribution to Iranian Studies, research work on the Persian language, and the history and culture of Iran.

In his will, Professor Frye expressed his wish to be buried next to the Zayandeh River in Isfahan. This 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 Dr. Frye decided to cremate his remains after waiting more than 2 months for official Iranian permission to bury him in Isfahan. His death coincided with growing resentment by Iranian hard-liners 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]

Frye as a public speaker

Frye was a popular public speaker at numerous Iran-related gatherings. In 2005, he spoke at UCLA, encouraging the Iranians present to cherish their culture and identity.[15][16] In 2004, he spoke at an architectural conference in Tehran, expressing 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. doi:10.1086/373570. JSTOR 545826. S2CID 161323237.
  • The heritage of Central Asia from antiquity to the Turkish expansion Markus Wiener, Princeton, 1996
  • Frye, Richard N. (1997). (PDF). Journal of Assyrian Academic Studies. 11 (2): 30–36. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2020-07-13.
  • Frye, Richard N. (1999). (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. ^ Greater Iran, Mazda Publishers, 2005. 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). . Harvard University Center for Middle Eastern Studies. Archived from the original on May 18, 2008.
  6. ^ Greater Iran, Mazda Publishers, 2005. ISBN 1-56859-177-2 p.193
  7. ^ Big Ideas. Big Thinkers. Oleg Grabar | Thirteen/WNET
  8. ^ Greater Iran, Mazda Publishers, 2005. ISBN 1-56859-177-2 p.90, p.150
  9. ^ Greater Iran, Mazda Publishers, 2005. ISBN 1-56859-177-2 p. 103, p.174
  10. ^ Greater Iran, Mazda Publishers, 2005. ISBN 1-56859-177-2 p. 142
  11. ^ http://www.aina.org/articles/frye.pdf[bare URL PDF]
  12. ^ Ahmadinejad allows burial of American professor in Iran, 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. ^ Iran Heritage 2005-04-13 at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ Professor Richard Nelson Frye Lecture at UCLA Royce Hall – March 13, 2005

External links

  • Iranians pay tribute to Richard Nelson Frye, Mehr News Agency, July 5, 2004.
  • Waghmar, Burzine. Obituary: Richard Nelson Frye (1920–2014). Societas Iranologica Europaea [1].
  • Professor Frye, a great American Iranologist wills to be buried in Iran
  • Photos of Dr. Frye's lecture at UCLA, March 13, 2005
  • Dr. Frye criticized the architectural development of modern Tehran.
  • Excerpts from The Greater Iran: A 20th-Century Odyssey, the memoirs of R. N. Frye
  • Dr. Frye's page at the Vohuman.org
  • Former President of Iran Mr. Khatami praised Dr. Frye
  • Frye, R. N. Reforms of Khosrow Anoushirvan, the Sasanian Shahanshah of Iran, The History of Ancient Iran, 1983.
  • Video on YouTube Syria and Assyria
  • Frye, R. N. "Ethnic Identity in Iran." 2002.
  • Prof. Richard Frye’s Memoirs in Persian [2]

February 15, 2023
richard, frye, richard, frye, redirects, here, autism, researcher, richard, frye, richard, nelson, frye, january, 1920, march, 2014, american, scholar, iranian, central, asian, studies, khan, professor, emeritus, iranian, studies, harvard, university, professi. Richard Frye redirects here For the autism researcher see Richard E Frye 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 Richard N FryeBornRichard Nelson Frye 1920 01 10 January 10 1920Birmingham Alabama U S DiedMarch 27 2014 2014 03 27 aged 94 Boston Massachusetts U S NationalityAmericanAlma materUniversity of Illinois Harvard UniversitySpouseEden NabyAwardsFarabi International Award Khwarizmi International AwardScientific careerFieldsIranian studiesInstitutionsGoethe University Frankfurt University of Hamburg Shiraz University Tajik State National University Harvard UniversityAcademic advisorsArthur Pope Walter Bruno HenningNotable studentsAnnemarie Schimmel Oleg Grabar Frank Huddle John Limbert Michael CrichtonRichard CottamBorn in Birmingham Alabama to a family of immigrants from Sweden Freij had four children his second marriage being to an Iranian Assyrian scholar Eden Naby from Urmia Iran who teaches at Columbia University He spoke fluent Russian German Arabic Persian Pashto French Uzbek and Turkish 3 and had extensive knowledge of Avestan Pahlavi Sogdian and other Iranian languages and dialects both extinct and current citation needed Although Frye is mostly known for his works about Iran the Iranian peoples and Iranian Central Asia the scope of his studies was much wider and includes Byzantine Caucasian and Ottoman history Eastern Turkistan Assyria and the Assyrian people ancient and medieval Iranian art Islamic art Sufism Chinese and Japanese archeology and a variety of Iranian and non Iranian languages including Avestan Old Persian Middle Persian Parthian Sogdian Khotanese and Bactrian New Persian Arabic Turkish and even Chinese beside research languages which include French German Italian and Russian 4 Contents 1 Early life and career 2 Frye as a proponent of Persian culture 3 Frye as a public speaker 4 Bibliography 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksEarly life and career EditFrye was born in Birmingham Alabama He first attended the 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 Office of Strategic Services during World War II He was stationed in Afghanistan and traveled extensively in the Middle East Central Asia and South Asia In 1948 he visited 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 until 1990 He then became a professor emeritus at Harvard He also served as faculty guest lecturer or visiting scholar at Habibiya College in Kabul 1942 44 Frankfurt University 1959 60 Hamburg University 1968 69 Pahlavi University of Shiraz 1970 76 University of Tajikistan 1990 92 Professor Frye helped found the Center for Middle Eastern Studies 5 at Harvard the first Iranian studies program in America He also served as Director of the Asia Institute in Shiraz 1970 1975 was on the Board of Trustees of the Pahlavi University at Shiraz 1974 78 and Chairman Committee on Inner Asian Studies at Harvard 1983 89 and as Editor of the Bulletin of the Asia Institute 1970 1975 and 1987 99 Among Frye s students were Annemarie Schimmel 6 Oleg Grabar 7 Frank Huddle former US Ambassador to Tajikistan John Limbert and Michael Crichton whose Hollywood film The 13th Warrior is loosely based on Frye s translation of Ibn Fadlan s account of his travels up the river Volga 8 Frye was also directly responsible for inviting Iranian scholars as distinguished visiting fellows to Harvard University under a fellowship program initiated by Henry Kissinger Examples of such guests include Mehdi Haeri Yazdi 1923 1999 Sadegh Choubak Jalal al Ahmad and others 9 Frye as a proponent of Persian culture Edit 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 and Arab Muslims in particular 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 amp Tanner Ltd 1989 page 236 In August 1953 shortly before the fall of Mosaddegh prominent Iranian linguist Ali Akbar Dehkhoda gave Frye the title Irandoost meaning a friend of Iran 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 Professor Frye on his lifetime contribution to Iranian Studies research work on the Persian language and the history and culture of Iran In his will Professor Frye expressed his wish to be buried next to the Zayandeh River in Isfahan This 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 Dr Frye decided to cremate his remains after waiting more than 2 months for official Iranian permission to bury him in Isfahan His death coincided with growing resentment by Iranian hard liners 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 Frye as a public speaker EditFrye was a popular public speaker at numerous Iran related gatherings In 2005 he spoke at UCLA encouraging the Iranians present to cherish their culture and identity 15 16 In 2004 he spoke at an architectural conference in Tehran expressing his dismay at hasty modernization that ignores the beauties of traditional Iranian architectural styles see Architecture of Tehran citation needed Bibliography EditNotes 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 amp Nicolson London 1988 Frye Richard N 1992 Assyria and Syria Synonyms Journal of Near Eastern Studies 51 4 281 285 doi 10 1086 373570 JSTOR 545826 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 XSee also EditFamous Americans in Iran IranisticsOther 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 ZarrinkoubReferences Edit http www fas harvard edu turkish relfaculty html Richard Nelson Frye Aga Khan Professor of Iranian Emeritus Near Eastern Languages amp Civilizations Harvard IOHP Richard N Frye Transcripts Greater Iran Mazda Publishers 2005 ISBN 1 56859 177 2 Yarshater Ehsan March 31 2014 Richard Nelson Frye January 10 1920 March 27 2014 Encyclopaedia Iranica Retrieved 20 April 2014 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 Greater Iran Mazda Publishers 2005 ISBN 1 56859 177 2 p 193 Big Ideas Big Thinkers Oleg Grabar Thirteen WNET Greater Iran Mazda Publishers 2005 ISBN 1 56859 177 2 p 90 p 150 Greater Iran Mazda Publishers 2005 ISBN 1 56859 177 2 p 103 p 174 Greater Iran Mazda Publishers 2005 ISBN 1 56859 177 2 p 142 http www aina org articles frye pdf bare URL PDF Ahmadinejad allows burial of American professor in Iran The Associated Press Published September 13 2007 Ahmadinejad donates house in Isfahan to American Iranologist Iran Harvard Scholar s Body Cremated After Request for Burial in Iran Falters The New York Times Published June 24 2014 Iran Heritage Archived 2005 04 13 at the Wayback Machine Professor Richard Nelson Frye Lecture at UCLA Royce Hall March 13 2005External links EditIranians pay tribute to Richard Nelson Frye Mehr News Agency July 5 2004 Waghmar Burzine Obituary Richard Nelson Frye 1920 2014 Societas Iranologica Europaea 1 Professor Frye a great American Iranologist wills to be buried in Iran another Dr Frye s statements at UCLA in March 2005 Photos of Dr Frye s lecture at UCLA March 13 2005 Dr Frye criticized the architectural development of modern Tehran Excerpts from The Greater Iran A 20th Century Odyssey the memoirs of R N Frye Dr Frye s page at the Iran Heritage website Dr Frye s page at the Vohuman org Former President of Iran Mr Khatami praised Dr Frye Frye R N Reforms of Khosrow Anoushirvan the Sasanian Shahanshah of Iran The History of Ancient Iran 1983 Video on YouTube Syria and Assyria Cover story on Dr Frye in OCPC magazine Frye R N Ethnic Identity in Iran 2002 Prof Richard Frye s Memoirs in Persian 2 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Richard N Frye amp oldid 1138758093, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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