Reland

Adriaan Reland (also known as Adriaen Reeland/Reelant, Hadrianus Relandus) (17 July 1676, De Rijp, North Holland – 5 February 1718, Utrecht ) was a noted Dutch Orientalist scholar, cartographer and philologist. He is considered to have made a long-lasting and significant contribution to research of the historical geography of early Palestine.

Reland was the son of Johannes Reland, a Protestant minister, and Aagje Prins in the small North Holland village of De Rijp. Adriaan's brother, Peter (1678–1714), was an influential lawyer in Haarlem. Reland first studied Latin language in Amsterdam at age 11, and enrolled at University of Utrecht in 1693, at age 17, to study theology and philosophy. Initially interested in Hebrew and Syriac, he later began studying Arabic. In 1699, after obtaining his doctorate in Utrecht, Reland moved to Leiden and tutored the son of Hans Willem Bentinck, 1st Earl of Portland. The latter invited him to move to England, but Reland declined because of his father's deteriorating health.

In 1699, Reland was appointed Professor of Physics and Metaphysics at the University of Harderwijk. By this point, he had achieved fluency in Arabic, Hebrew, and other Semitic languages. In 1701, at age 25, he was appointed Professor of Oriental Languages at the University of Utrecht. Beginning in 1713, he also taught Hebrew Antiquities. This was extended with a Chair in Jewish Antiquity.

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