Umar Bin Mohammad Daudpota (25 March 1896 – 22 November 1958) ( sd, عمر بن محمد داؤد پوٽو; ur, عمر بن محمد داؤد پوتہ ) was a researcher, historian, linguist and scholar of the

Indus Valley The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmir, ...

Life

Daudpota was born on 25 March 1896 at

Talti Tailtiu or Tailltiu (; modern spelling: Tailte) (also known as Talti) is the name of a presumed goddess from Irish mythology. The goddess's name is linked to Teltown (< OI ''Óenach Tailten'') in Co. Meath, site of the

< ...

, Dadu District. His family was poor. His father, Mohammad Daudpota, was a farmer and

Carpenter Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, Shipbuilding, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. ...

. His primary education was in his hometown. For secondary education, he went to Larkana in 1914 and later to the Madressah school of

Naushahro Feroze Naushahro Feroze ( ur, , sd, نوشهرو فیروز), is the capital city of Naushahro Feroze District in Sindh province of Pakistan. The district is located at 26°50'0N 68°7'0E with an altitude of 38 metres (127 feet). Naushahro Fero ...

. Eventually, he matriculated from

Sindh-Madrasa-tul-Islam Sindh Madressatul Islam University ( ur, ; sd, سنڌ مدرسۃ الاسلام), also known as SMI University, is a university in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Founded in 1885, it is one of the oldest educational institutions in South Asia. Hi ...

in Karachi. He got first position in 1917. After passing his Matriculation, he went to

D. J. Science College Dayaram Jethamal Sindh Government Science College, ( sd, ) commonly known as DJ Science College, is a public community college that is affiliated with the University of Karachi — it is located near Burns Road in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Pr ...

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

at Karachi, where he received his BA and MA degrees. Government of India awarded him a scholarship for higher studies at Cambridge University where he received his Ph.D. degree. In 1927, he wrote his doctoral thesis entitled "The effect of Arabic Poetry on Persian Poetry" and received the degree of Ph.D. After completion of his doctoral degree, he returned to his homeland in 1927 and was appointed as Principal of

. Later on, he joined Ismail Yusuf College, Bombay as professor of Arabic. He worked there for nine years. He was appointed Director of Public Instruction in

in 1939 taking over from

Khan Bahadur Ghulam Nabi Kazi Khan Bahadur Ghulam Nabi Kazi MBE (b: 1884 Naushero Feroze, British India – 1955) was an educator in Sindh, which is one of the four provinces of what is now Pakistan. He rose to the position of first Director of Public Instruction, Sin ...

. He was given the honorary title of Shams-ul-Ulama ("Sun of the Scholars") from the British Government in 1940. He was a member of the

Pakistan Public Service Commission The Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) ( ur, ) is a federal agency of Government of Pakistan that is responsible for recruiting civil servants and bureaucrats for Government of Pakistan. History The Public Service Commission was set ...

from 1950 to 1955. He performed

Hajj The Hajj (; ar, حَجّ '; sometimes also spelled Hadj, Hadji or Haj in English) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried ...

in 1955. He served as superior (care taker) of ''

Quarterly Mehran ''Mehran'' ( sd, مهراڻ) is a quarterly literary magazine of Sindhi Adabi Board. It is the oldest magazine of Pakistan and was started in 1947. Thousands of ''Mehran'' editions have been published. The magazine writes about all Sindhi literary ...

'' in 1957. Daudpota was the father of the famous Air Marshall Azim Daudpota who also was a

Governor of Sindh The governor of Sindh is the appointed head of the province of Sindh, Pakistan. The office of the governor as the head of the province is largely a ceremonial position; the executive powers lie with the Chief Minister of Sindh, chief minister and t ...

and a former chairman of Pakistan International Airlines. Daudpota did his scholarly research in English, Arabic, Persian, and Sindhi. His fields of research included history, poetry,

criticism Criticism is the construction of a judgement about the negative qualities of someone or something. Criticism can range from impromptu comments to a written detailed response. , ''"the act of giving your opinion or judgment about the good or bad q ...

, biography, religion and Sindhi literature. He wrote more than two dozens books and a number of columns and essays.

Death

Daudpota died on 22 November 1958 at Karachi. His last resting place is at the Shrine of

Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai ( sd, شاھ عبداللطيف ڀٽائي, ur, ; 1689/1690 – 21 December 1752), commonly known by the honorifics ''Lakhino Latif'', ''Latif Ghot'', ''Bhittai'', and ''Bhit Jo Shah'', was a Sindhi Sufi mystic, an ...

at Bhitshah,

, Pakistan.

Bibliography

* ''Maro je Malir Ja'' by Khadim Hussain Chandio * ''A Sindhi Scholar'', by Muhammad Umar Chand * ''Mangrio'' * ''The Chachnama (Persian Text) - Edited by Umar Bin Muhammad Daudpota * ''Murshid-ul-Mubtada'' (Arabic reader for students) * ''Minhaj-ul-Ashqeen'' ("The Path of the Lovers") * ''Shah Abdul Karim Bulri Wari Jo Kalam'' * ''Abdul Raheem Grohiri Jo Kalam'' * ''Abyat-e-Sindhi'' (Verses of Muhammad Zaman Luwaree Shareef) * ''Munhnji Mukhtasir Aatam Kahani'' ("My short autobiography") * ''Surha Gul'' ("Perfumed Flowers") * Hindustan Mein Aam Taleem ("Mass Education in India") * ''Sindhi Nazam'' * ''Choonda Sindhi Nasar Ain Nazam'' * ''Bayan-ul-Arfeen'' (A short version of ''Malfoodhaat'' of Shah Abdul Kareem of Bulri) * ''Selection from Hafiz and Arif'' ( English) * ''Tarikh-i-Masumi'' written by Mir Masum Shah, edited by Umar Bin Muhammad Daudpota (1938)History of Sindh: Endowment Fund to launch three books tomorrow
Business Recorder (newspaper), Published 25 September 2014, Retrieved 29 May 2021

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daudpota, Umar Bin Muhammad 1896 births 1958 deaths Sindhi people D. J. Sindh Government Science College alumni Pakistani writers People of British India Sindhi-language writers Academics from Karachi Writers from Karachi University of Mumbai alumni Sindh Madressatul Islam University alumni Scholars from Sindh Pakistani scholars

Life

Death

Bibliography

See also

References