George Margoliouth 1853-1924
George Margoliouth was a learned Biblical and Oriental scholar and writer for the British Museum where he was in charge of the Hebrew, Syrial and Ethiopic M.S.S. from 1891 till his retirement in 1914 he did much useful work. This included a descriptive list of the Hebrew and Samaritan M.S.S. in the Museum, published in 1893. To this he added a catalogue of these M.S.S. which appeared in 3 vols at intervals between 1899 and 1915. In 1899 he also published a descriptive list of Syrial and …….. M.S.S. acquired by the Museum since 1873. His other writings were “The SuperlinearPunctuation” 1893 and editions of the Liturgy of the Nile, Palistinian, Syriac and English 1896, of recently discovered portions of the Palistinian Syriac Version of Holy Scripture1896, of Ibn al Hiti’s Arabic Chronicles of Karaite Doctors with an English translation 1897, of the original Hebrew of Ecclesiasticus XXX1 1899, also “Hebrew Babylonian Affinities” 1899.
Margoliouth was born of Jewish parents in Russian Poland on 4 Dec. 1853 and was educated at Dusseldorf and at the University of Bonn. He was a nephew of the Rev. Moses Margoliouth (1820 – 1881), a Hebrew Scholar, Vicar of Little Linford. Having prepared at Cuddesdon, he was ordained in 1881 to the curacy of St Thomas’s, Leeds, and afterwards, while a curate at Cambridge entered at Queens College. He had been naturalised as a British Subject in 1887. Though illness prevented him from obtaining honours in the Semitic Language Tripos, he was bracketed equal for the Lynowhitt Hebrew scholarship in 1891, During his service at the British Museum, he founded the Text and Translation Society for the publication of Oriental works and served as secretary for 3 years. He was also, for 3 years, a member of the Aristotelian Society. On many occasions he examined in Hebrew and Aramaic for the University of London and was a member of the University Board “Studies in Theology”. He contributed articles to the periodical “Quarterly Review” and other reviews and maintained an interest in general literature. He married in 1886, Marian, daughter of John Fearon of Cockermouth. He died Spring 1924 at ..B. They had at least 9 children: –
Herschel Maurice Margoliouth
He served from 1914 to 1919 in the Northamptonshire Regiment and reached the rank of Captain. After the war he was became tutor in English Literature in two Oxford colleges, and lecturer in English Literature at Kings College, London.; and in 1921 he was appointed Professor of English Language and Literature at University College, Southampton. From 1925 to 1947 he was Secretary to Faculties at Oxford. He became in 1935 a senior research fellow, and later emeritus fellow of Oriel College, Oxford. From 1947 to 1951 he edited the Oxford Magazine .
Margoliouth was a learned and able student of English Literature, and his edition of Marvell’s poems and letters (1927) won high praise from the experts. His other published works are Wells of English (1926-29), William Blake (1951), Wordsworth and Coleridge (1953, William Blake’s Vala (1956), and Traherne’s Centuries, Poems and Thanksgivings (1958).
But during many years he had little time for research. The Secretary of Faculties is one of the most important of the permanent officers of the university, and Margoliouth threw himself into the work of the post with the greatest vigour and success. He had a very clear head; He was a rapid and accurate draughtsman; he was uniformly helpful to the professors, readers, and others, who came to him for advice; and he remained cheerful and unperturbed when difficult matters had to be settled. Both the University and his college will long miss a greatly valued and respected colleague.
(The Times, March 23rd, 1959)
Herschel had no children but assisted some of his nephews and nieces.
sources
Bernstein, A. Jewish Witnesses for Christ. new edition, Keren Ahvah Meschichit, 1999