The University of Oxford has announced that the new Balliol College building would be named after Indian scholar Dr. Lakshman Sarup, which is a source of great pride for the Indian community. Sarup (1894–1946) was the first student at Oxford to apply for a DPhil degree, according to a statement made by the institution. Yaska’s Nirukta, the oldest Sanskrit treatise on etymology, was the subject of the degree in 1919 (1894–1946).
“The Master’s Field’s newest structures are named after historic Balliol graduates and scholars who embody the College’s diversity, principles, and history. Dr. Lakshman Sarup (Balliol 1916) is honored in Block C1 “according to Balliol College’s statement.
“Oxford University had introduced the DPhil as the first doctorate degree in Britain in 1917, inspired by research degrees introduced in Germany. Lakshman Sarup was one of two students first enrolled on Oxford’s degree, the other being James Gatenby from New Zealand,” added the statement.
As per the information uploaded by the University, Sarup was born in Lahore (Earlier a part of India, now in Pakistan) in 1894. He went to Balliol College in 1916 on an Indian state scholarship after completing his MA in Sanskrit from Lahore’s Oriental College. While at Balliol, Sarup was captain of the University cricket team.
Sarup established Between 700 and 500 BCE, Niruktat was written.
According to the institution, his DPhil was supervised by Arthur Macdonell, the Boden Professor of Sanskrit and a Fellow of Balliol, who is one of the leading British academics in the discipline.
“Sarup’s English translation of Nirukta was the first critical edition of the text, examining the contribution of ancient India and Greece to modern linguistics. He established that it was written sometime between 700 and 500BCE,” released by the University of Oxford. “At the end of the First World War, Sarup travelled around Europe for further research, including in Paris and Strasbourg,” added the statement.
Later after completing his degree, Sarup was appointed Professor of Sanskrit Literature at Punjab University in 1920. Apart from his regular activities, he also translated two of Moliere’s plays into Hindi.
