James Bassett (1834–1906) was a born at Glenford, near Hamilton in Canada on 31 January 1834. He graduated from

Lane Theological Seminary Lane Seminary, sometimes called Cincinnati Lane Seminary, and later renamed Lane Theological Seminary, was a Presbyterian theological college that operated from 1829 to 1932 in Walnut Hills, Ohio, today a neighborhood in Cincinnati. Its campus ...

in Ohio in 1859. He then served as chaplain in the United States volunteer army during the American Civil War in 1862-3. From 1863 until 1871 he held pastorates in the USA, at the Presbyterian Churches of Newark, New York and later at

Englewood, Chicago Englewood is a neighborhood and community area located on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is also the 68th of the 77 community areas in the city. At its peak population in 1960, over 97,000 people lived in its approxima ...

in Illinois. In 1871 became a missionary for the Presbyterian board. He travelled extensively in Europe, and lived many years in the Ottoman Empire. From 1871 to 1885 he lived in Iran. In 1872, under the auspices of the American Mission Board, he founded the first American mission at

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

(now

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

). Under his supervision other mission stations were founded, and in 1882 he became senior missionary and head of the Eastern Mission of Persia. He wrote a volume of ''Hymns in Persian'' (1875). He also wrote ''A Grammatical Note on the Simnuni Dialects of the Persian'', ''Among the Turcomans'' (1880), ''Persia, the Land of the Imams - A Narrative of Travel and Resident 1871 to 1885'' (1886) and ''Persia, Eastern Mission'' (1890). He also translated the Gospel of Matthew into

Turkmen Turkmen, Türkmen, Turkoman, or Turkman may refer to: Peoples Historical ethnonym * Turkoman (ethnonym), ethnonym used for the Oghuz Turks during the Middle Ages Ethnic groups * Turkmen in Anatolia and the Levant (Seljuk and Ottoman-Turkish desc ...

, which was the first portion of the Bible in that language. He revised it in 1884 and these were published by the

British and Foreign Bible Society The British and Foreign Bible Society, often known in England and Wales as simply the Bible Society, is a non-denominational Christian Bible society with charity status whose purpose is to make the Bible available throughout the world. The Soc ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bassett, James 1834 births 1906 deaths American Presbyterian missionaries Canadian Presbyterian missionaries Pre-Confederation Canadian emigrants to the United States American expatriates in Iran Presbyterian missionaries in Iran American expatriates in the Ottoman Empire Lane Theological Seminary alumni