Alexei Shakhmatov Алексей Шахматов |
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Born |
Narva, Russian Empire |
June 17, 1864
Died | August 16, 1920 Petrograd, RSFSR |
Resting place | Volkovo Cemetery |
Alma mater | Moscow State University |
Occupation | philologist, historian |
Known for | science of textology |
Alexei Alexandrovich Shakhmatov (Russian: Алексе́й Алекса́ндрович Ша́хматов, 17 June [O.S. 5 June] 1864 – 16 August 1920) was a Russian philologist and historian credited with laying foundations for the science of textology.
Born in Narva, present-day Estonia, Shakhmatov was brought up by his uncle near Saratov. He went to a public school in Moscow and developed interest for Old Russian language and literature at an early age. At the age of 16, his articles started to appear in the most authoritative journal of Slavic studies of that time, the Archive of Slavic Philology (German: Archiv für slavische Philologie).
Shakhmatov furthered his education at the Moscow University (1883–1887), later delivering lectures in the same institution. His first monograph, published in 1886, examined the language of ancient Novgorod charters. In 1891 he became so enthusiastic about zemstvo that he gave up his scholarly pursuits for three years and held a minor administrative office in his native village.
In 1894, Shakhmatov returned to Moscow and won great acclaim for his Ph.D. dissertation, entitled Studies in the Sphere of Russian Phonetics. Five years later, he was admitted to the Russian Academy of Sciences, and over the following years became one of the most reputable academicians. He revived the Academy's linguistic periodicals, edited the academic dictionary of Russian language and was elected to represent the Academy at the State Council of Imperial Russia and Imperial State Duma.