Udai Prakash Arora (born 1944) is an Indian

Historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

well known for his pioneering works in the field of Graeco-Indian Studies.

Early life

Career

He started his teaching career at

Allahabad University , mottoeng = "As Many Branches So Many Trees" , established = , type = Public , chancellor = Ashish Chauhan , vice_chancellor = Sangita Srivastava , head_label ...

(1965–1985). Thereafter, he was Professor and Founder Head, Department of

Ancient History Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient history cove ...

and Culture, MJP Rohilkhand University,

Bareilly Bareilly () is a city in Bareilly district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is among the largest metropolises in Western Uttar Pradesh and is the centre of the Bareilly division as well as the historical region of Rohilkhand. The c ...

(1985–2006), where he also acted as Pro Vice Chancellor (1995) and twice as Acting Vice Chancellor (1996–2006). In 2006 he was invited by

Jawaharlal Nehru University Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) is a public major research university located in New Delhi, India. It was established in 1969 and named after Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister. The university is known for leading faculties and r ...

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament Ho ...

to occupy the position of its prestigious Greek Chair Professor. After his retirement he was reappointed Visiting Professor of Greek Studies in JNU in which capacity he still continues. Professor Arora is an author of 4 books and edited 13. Among his important publications include ''Motifs in Indian Mythology, Their Greek'' and other Parallels'' (1981), ''Graeco-Indica'' (1991), ''Greeks on India (1996), ''Yunan Itihas aur Samskriti'' (in

Hindi Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

2010), and ''Alexander and India'' (in press). He has contributed nearly 120 articles in various journals. He is founder General Secretary of Indian Society for Greek and Roman Studies and edits its annual journal ''

Yavanika ''Yavanika'' () is a 1982 Indian Malayalam-language mystery thriller film written and directed by K. G. George, and starring Mammootty, Bharath Gopi, Nedumudi Venu, Jalaja and Thilakan in lead roles. The film is regarded as one of the finest m ...

''.Review of Yavanika in Greek
/ref> He was General President UP History Congress (1996–97) and Sectional President (Ancient India)

Indian History Congress Indian History Congress is the largest professional and academic body of Indian historians with over 35,000 members. It was established in 1935. The name of any new applicant for membership needs to be proposed and seconded by existing Ordinary or L ...

(2002).

Awards

As a visiting fellow he has visited U.S., Canada, and several countries in Europe, Asia and Africa. His contribution earned him the most prestigious Greek civilian honor Golden Cross-Order of Honor from the

President of Greece The president of Greece, officially the President of the Hellenic Republic ( el, Πρόεδρος της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας, Próedros tis Ellinikís Dimokratías), commonly referred to in Greek as the President of the Rep ...

(1996). In his honor was published the Felicitation Volume Udayana-New Horizons in History Classics, and Intercultural Studies (2006).

References

Greek Sources on India: Alexander to Megasthenes

External links

Living people 20th-century Indian historians Historians of India 1944 births {{India-historian-stub