Author Description

The groundbreaking studies contained in this volume present a history of Sanskrit philology and comparative-historical linguistics that is fully integrated with German political and intellectual history ranging from the Enlightenment to Cold War eras. These thoroughly researched essays examine the accounts of German travellers to India, the early Indological project of Friedrich Schlegel, the politics and history of the university disciplines of Indology and comparative linguistics, the scholarly reception and reaction to the Bhagavadgita and Buddhism, Indology's relation to racial theory, and more.