Sir Israel Gollancz, FBA (13 July 1863 – 23 June 1930) was a scholar of early English literature and of

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

. He was Professor of English Language and Literature at

King's College, London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King G ...

, from 1903 to 1930. Gollancz was born 13 July 1863, in London, sixth of seven children of Rabbi Samuel Marcus Gollancz (1820–1900), cantor of the Hambro Synagogue, London, and his wife, Johanna Koppell. He was the younger brother of Sir

Hermann Gollancz Sir Hermann Gollancz (30 November 1852 – 15 October 1930) was a British rabbi and Hebrew scholar. Gollancz was the first Jew to earn a doctor of literature degree from London University and the first holder of the degree to be ordained as a ra ...

and the uncle of the publisher

Victor Gollancz Sir Victor Gollancz (; 9 April 1893 – 8 February 1967) was a British publisher and humanitarian. Gollancz was known as a supporter of left-wing causes. His loyalties shifted between liberalism and communism, but he defined himself as a Chris ...

. In 1910, he married Alide Goldschmidt in London. He was a founder member and the first Secretary (1902–1930) of the

British Academy The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences. It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars spa ...

and of the committee for a Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, which eventually became the Royal National Theatre in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, and he was the Director of the Early English Text Society. He edited the "Temple" Shakespeare, a uniform edition of the complete works in pocket size volumes which was the most popular Shakespeare edition of its day. In 1916, as Honorary Secretary of the Shakespeare Tercentenary Committee, he also edited '' A book of homage to Shakespeare'', an anthology of responses to Shakespeare from scholars, thinkers and other prominent figures from around the world. He also produced a translation in modern English of the important medieval Christian allegorical poem ''

Pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...

'', which he theorized may have been the work of Ralph Strode. He contributed works to the Dictionary of National Biography. Gollancz was knighted in 1919. In 1922 he delivered the British Academy's Shakespeare Lecture. Gollancz died on 23 June 1930, in London and was buried at the Jewish Cemetery at Willesden on 26 June. In the year of his death, the British Academy held a memorial lecture in his name, at which they unveiled a bust of Sir Israel. The British Academy awards the

Sir Israel Gollancz prize Sir Israel Gollancz Prize is awarded biannually by the British Academy in honour of Israel Gollancz, a founder member and its first secretary, since 1924. Originally named "Biennial Prize for English Literature" and renamed after Gollancz's death ...

for Early English Studies.

Obituary

References

1864 births 1930 deaths 19th-century British people 20th-century British people Shakespearean scholars People educated at the City of London School English Jews English people of German-Jewish descent Fellows of the British Academy Academics of King's College London Knights Bachelor Israel Gollancz Corresponding Fellows of the Medieval Academy of America Burials at Willesden Jewish Cemetery {{UK-academic-bio-stub