Frits Hermann ('Kees') van Naerssen (1904 – 7 June 1974)Naerssen, Frits Herman van
dutchstudies-satsea.nl. Retrieved 14 November 2022. was a scholar of Javanese

epigraphy Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...

and an early figure in

Asian studies Asian studies is the term used usually in North America and Australia for what in Europe is known as Oriental studies. The field is concerned with the Asian people, their cultures, languages, history and politics. Within the Asian sphere, Asian ...

post-war In Western usage, the phrase post-war era (or postwar era) usually refers to the time since the end of World War II. More broadly, a post-war period (or postwar period) is the interval immediately following the end of a war. A post-war period c ...

Australia."Professor Van Naerssen Memorial Fund" opgericht
Dutch Australian Weekly, 25 July 1975, p. 2. Retrieved 14 November 2022.

Education and career

F. H. van Naerssen was born in

Semarang Semarang ( jv, ꦏꦸꦛꦯꦼꦩꦫꦁ , Pegon: سماراڠ) is the capital and largest city of Central Java province in Indonesia. It was a major port during the Dutch colonial era, and is still an important regional center and port today. ...

Netherlands East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...

(now

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

) in 1904 and studied

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

and Indonesian languages at

Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince o ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, earning a doctorate ("Dr. Ph. et Litt.")
Calendar of the University of Sydney for the Year 1963
', Sydney: V. C. N. Blight, 1962, p. 45. Retrieved 14 November 2022. in old Javanese epigraphy in 1941 under , a Dutch epigrapher, archaeologist, historiographer and researcher into early Indonesian history and traditional culture. He worked as adjunct secretary for the Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde (KITLV) (English, "Royal Institute for the Linguistics, Geography and Ethnology"), which was at that time located in

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

, and as curator of the Javanese collections at the Koloniaal Instituut (English, "Colonial Institute") in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

in the years 1939-46 before teaching as a

lector Lector is Latin for one who reads, whether aloud or not. In modern languages it takes various forms, as either a development or a loan, such as french: lecteur, en, lector, pl, lektor and russian: лектор. It has various specialized uses. ...

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...

at the Agricultural University of Wageningen from 1946 to 1956. He taught at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

from 1957 to 1970, an appointment that was the result of an Australian government grant for Indonesian studies. He was the first appointment (as reader), the first acting head and then in 1966 the foundation professor of Sydney University's Department of Indonesian and Malayan Studies, and at the time, "he alone in Australia has the equipment necessary to begin, among other things, old Javanese studies." His student Stuart Robson would recall "he came from an old Indies family and had grown up in Klaten (

Central Java Central Java ( id, Jawa Tengah) is a province of Indonesia, located in the middle of the island of Java. Its administrative capital is Semarang. It is bordered by West Java in the west, the Indian Ocean and the Special Region of Yogyakarta in t ...

), so he had a strong affinity with Java and had the almost 'mystical' air of a silver-haired sage." He contributed to the journal ''

Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde ''Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde'' (English title: ''Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences of Southeast Asia and Oceania'') also known by the abbreviated name BKI (Bijdragen Koninklijk Instituut) is a peer reviewed academic j ...

'' (English title: Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences of Southeast Asia and Oceania); to the '' Cultureel Indië'', a monthly magazine about cultural life in the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...

that was published between 1939 and 1946; and the ''

Journal of the Oriental Society of Australia A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to: *Bullet journal, a method of personal organization *Diary, a record of what happened over the course of a day or other period *Daybook, also known as a general journal, a ...

''. An annual memorial prize, the F. H. van Naerssen Memorial Prize for Indonesian Studies, is given for Indonesian Studies at the University of Sydney.Prizes Awarded 2020: Arts and Social Sciences
sydney.edu.au. Retrieved 14 November 2022. Van Naerrsen belonged to a small pioneering group of scholars working towards the spread of Asian studies in Australia, and the Australian public's growing interest in Asia, in the decades following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. In addition to his university endeavours, he was first chairman of a committee responsible for assembling book lists for the study of

Indonesian Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to: * Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia ** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago ** Indonesian ...

secondary schools A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Personal life

After guiding the new department for many years, F. H. van Naerssen retired from the university in 1970 but still came into the faculty office a few times a week. He lived in

Gordon, New South Wales Gordon is a suburb on the Upper North Shore of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia north-west of the Sydney Central Business District and is the administrative centre for the local government area of Ku-ring-gai Council. East Go ...

, a suburb on

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

's upper north shore. He died in 1974 in the Netherlands during a visit to see his daughter there. He was survived by his wife, his daughter and two grandchildren."Grondlegger van de Indonesische studie overleden"
''Dutch Australian Weekly'', 14 June 1974, p. 2. Retrieved 14 November 2022.

Select bibliography

"Twee Koperen Oorkonden van Balitung in het Koloniaal Instituut te Amsterdam"
in: ''

'' (English, "Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences of Southeast Asia"), 95:1, 1 January 1937, pp. 441–461.
"Ancient Javanese recording of the past"
in: ''Arts: The Journal of the Sydney University Arts Association'', (1968), 5: 30-46. *
The Economic and Administrative History of Early Indonesia
', Leiden and Cologne:

E. J. Brill Brill Academic Publishers (known as E. J. Brill, Koninklijke Brill, Brill ()) is a Dutch international academic publisher founded in 1683 in Leiden, Netherlands. With offices in Leiden, Boston, Paderborn and Singapore, Brill today publishes 275 ...

, 1977 (Handbook of Oriental Studies, Section 3: Southeast Asia, Volume 7). Joint author: R. C. De Jongh. A lengthier bibliography can be see
here

Education and career

Personal life

Select bibliography

References

Further reading