Baillie, John, of Leys, 1772-1833 (Member of Parliament, and East India Company Official)
Dates
- Existence: 1772 - 1833
Biography
Hailing from Inverness, John Baillie of Leys entered the Bengal army of the East India Company in 1790 C.E., reaching the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in 1814. His competence as a linguist led to his appointment as Professor of Arabic and Persian and of “Mohammedan Law” at Fort William College, Calcutta, from 1801-1807, during which time he published a Course of Lectures on Arabic Grammar (1801), and An Entire and Correct Edition of the Five Books upon Arabic Grammar (1802-1805). He also fought during the second Anglo-Maratha War 1803-1805, and held the position of Political Officer at Bundelkhand 1804-1806. In 1807 he was appointed British Resident (Political Agent) at the court of the Sa‘adat ‘Alī Khān, Nawwāb of Awadh (reigned 1798 – 1814), at Lucknow. He held this position for eight years.
On his retirement and return to Britain in 1816 he became a Member of Parliament, first for Heddon in England 1820-1830, and then for Inverness, Scotland, 1830-1833. He was also a Director of the East India Company at various times between 1823 and 1833. When Baillie died in London in 1833 his substantial manuscript collecion was overlooked. It was rediscovered there six years later by Duncan Forbes, Professor of Oriental Languages at King's College London, and subsequently returned to Baillie’s family in Scotland.
His grandson John B. Baillie of Leys bequeathed his grandfather's collection of 166 mainly Arabic and Persian manuscripts to the University Library in 1876. They are also listed in M. Hukk’s A descriptive catalogue of the Arabic and Persian manuscripts in Edinburgh University Library (1925).
Found in 10 Collections and/or Records:
الصّحاح في الّلغة al-Ṣahah fī al-lughah, 667 A.H., 1269 C.E.
A splendid old copy of the famous Arabic Lexicon of Abū Naṣr al-Fārābī, Muslim philosopher and polymath of the 4th century A.H./ 10th century C.E.
الصراح من الصحاح al-Ṣurah min al-ṣaḥah (volume 1), 1227-1230 A.H., 1812-1815 C.E.
A dictionary of Arabic words explained in Persian, being a translation (completed, 681 A.H., 1282 C.E.) of the famous Arabic dictionary entitled al-Ṣaḥah, of Abū Naṣr Ismā'il b. Ḥammād Jawharī, d. 398 A.H., 1007 C.E.), by Abū al-Faz̤l Muḥammad b. 'Umar b. Khālid, commonly called "Jamāl al-Qurashī." The work is across two volumes, Or Ms 139 and 140.
الصراح من الصحاح al-Ṣurah min al-ṣaḥah (volume 2), 1227-1230 A.H., 1812-1815 C.E.
A dictionary of Arabic words explained in Persian, being a translation (completed, 681 A.H., 1282 C.E.) of the famous Arabic dictionary entitled al-Ṣaḥah, of Abū Naṣr Ismā'il b. Ḥammād Jawharī, d. 398 A.H., 1007 C.E.), by Abū al-Faz̤l Muḥammad b. 'Umar b. Khālid, commonly called "Jamāl al-Qurashī." The work is across two volumes, OR MS 139 and 140.
تاج المصادر وتاج الاسامي Tāj al-maṣādir wa-tāj al-asāmī, 842 A.H., 1438 C.E.
A dictionary of Arabic nouns and infinitives, including their derivations and equivalents in Persian by Abū Ja'far Aḥmad b. 'Alī Maqrī Bayḥaqī (nicknamed Ja'farak), d. 544 A.H. (1159 C.E.). It is stated by the author that this work refers in the first place to the Qur'ān, next to the traditions, and finally to ancient poetry.
حیاة الحیوان Ḥayāt al-Ḥayawān, 805 A.H., 1402 C.E.
A famous zoological dictionary, but it is something more. The work contains chapters on the history of the Arab rulers, on religion and law, annotations on the Qur'ān and dissertations on science, poetry, diction, etc. The author was Kamāl al-Dīn Muḥammad b. Mūsá b. 'Īsá b. 'Alī al-Damīrī (d. 808 A.H., 1406 C.E.), who compiled it in 773 A.H. (1371 C.E.).
شمس العلوم و دواء کلام العرب من الکلوم Shams al-'ulūm wa dawā' kalām al-Arab min al-kulūm, undated copy (original text composed 12th cent. C.E.)
فقه اللغات Fiqh al-lughāt, undated copy (original text composed 11th cent. C.E.)
This is an Arabic glossary arranged according to subjects, by Abū Mansūr 'Abd al-Malik b. Muḥammad b. Ismā'īl al-Tha'ālibī (d. 429 A.H., 1037 C.E.).
قاموس المحیط Qāmūs al-muḥīṭ, 1030 A.H., 1620 C.E.
A very famous dictionary of the Arabic language, by Shaykh al-Islām Majd al-Dīn Abū Ṭahir Muḥammad b. Ya'qūb al-Fīrūzābādī (d. 817 A.H., 1414 C.E.), who extracted material for it chiefly from his earlier work entitled as al-'Ubāb w-al-Muḥkam, which was in 65 vols. The manuscript is in good preservation and complete.
قاموس المحیط Qāmūs al-muḥīṭ, undated copy (original text composed 15th cent. C.E.)
A very famous dictionary of the Arabic language, by Shaykh al-Islām Majd al-Dīn Abū Ṭahir Muḥammad b. Ya'qūb al-Fīrūzābādī (d. 817 A.H., 1414 C.E.), who extracted material for it chiefly from his earlier work entitled as al-'Ubāb w-al-Muḥkam, which was in 65 vols. This copy is missing a few pages at the end.
منتخب اللغات شاهجهانی Muntakhb al-lughāt-i Shāhjahānī, undated copy (original text composed 17th cent. C.E.)
A well-known dictionary of Arabic words explained in Persian. It was compiled, according to the chronogram muntkhab-i bī dil, 1046 A.H. (1636-1637 C.E.) and dedicated to the Mughal Emperor Shāhjahān, by 'Abd al-Rashīd b. 'Abd al-Ghafūr al-Ḥusaynī al-Madanī al-Tatawī (still alive, 1069 A.H., 1659 C.E.).