Arthur Berriedale Keith (5 April 1879 – 6 October 1944) was a Scottish constitutional lawyer, scholar of

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

and

Indologist Indology, also known as South Asian studies, is the academic study of the history and cultures, languages, and literature of the Indian subcontinent, and as such is a subset of Asian studies. The term ''Indology'' (in German, ''Indologie'') is ...

. He became Regius Professor of Sanskrit and Comparative Philology and Lecturer on the Constitution of the British Empire in the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

. He served in this role from 1914 to 1944.

Biography

Arthur Berriedale Keith was born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

, the fourth child and third son of Davidson Keith (1842–1921), an advertising agent, and Margaret Stobie Keith, '' née'' Drysdale (1851–1911). All his five siblings were associated with the British Empire in Burma and India: Sir William John Keith KCSI, ICS, was acting governor of Burma in 1925, Steuart Keith (died 1925) was a sessions judge in Burma, Alan Davidson Keith (died 1928) was a barrister in Burma. Both of his sisters married British expatriates in the region. Keith was educated at the

Royal High School, Edinburgh The Royal High School (RHS) of Edinburgh is a co-educational school administered by the City of Edinburgh Council. The school was founded in 1128 and is one of the oldest schools in Scotland. It serves 1,200 pupils drawn from four feeder primar ...

, the

(MA 1897; DLitt 1914), and Balliol College, Oxford (BA 1900; BCL 1905; DCL 1911). At Oxford he took Firsts in firsts in

classical moderations Honour Moderations (or ''Mods'') are a set of examinations at the University of Oxford at the end of the first part of some degree courses (e.g., Greats or '' Literae Humaniores''). Honour Moderations candidates have a class awarded (hence the ' ...

(1899), in Sanskrit and Pali (1900), and in '' literae humaniores'' (1901). He was called to the bar by the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and ...

in 1904 and became a member of the

Faculty of Advocates The Faculty of Advocates is an independent body of lawyers who have been admitted to practise as advocates before the courts of Scotland, especially the Court of Session and the High Court of Justiciary. The Faculty of Advocates is a constit ...

in 1921. He joined the

Colonial Office The Colonial Office was a government department of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, first created to deal with the colonial affairs of British North America but required also to oversee the increasing number of c ...

as a clerk in 1901, having ranked first in the Home and Indian civil service examinations; he was said to have received the highest marks ever. He remained in the department until 1914, except for a period with the

Crown Agents Crown Agents Ltd is a not-for-profit international development company with head office in London, United Kingdom, and subsidiaries in USA and Japan. Crown Agents fully owns Greenshields Cowie, a freight forwarding limited company incorporated in ...

from 1903 to 1905. From 1912 to 1914 he was private secretary to the permanent under-secretary, Sir John Anderson. In 1914, he became Regius Professor of Sanskrit and Comparative Philology at the University of Edinburgh. In 1927 he additionally became Lecturer on the Constitution of the British Empire. Keith was awarded an honorary LLD from the

University of Leeds , mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased , established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds , ...

in 1936. He was elected a Fellow of the British Academy in 1935, but resigned in 1939. He is buried in

Grange Cemetery The Grange (originally St Giles' Grange) is an affluent suburb of Edinburgh, just south of the city centre, with Morningside and Greenhill to the west, Newington to the east, The Meadows park and Marchmont to the north, and Blackford Hil ...

with his wife, Margaret Balfour Allan (died 1934). The grave lies on the south side of the central vaults, adjacent to the central archway through the vaults.

Works

Constitutional law and history

* * (Revised Edition, 1912 , , ) (Second Edition, 1928 , ) * * , * * * * , * * * * * * * * * * * * * , * *

Indian culture and literature

* * * * () * * *
‘The Period of the Later Samhitās, the Brahmaņas, the Āraņyakas, and the Upanishads
�� in ''The Cambridge History of India'', vol. i (Cambridge: University Press, 1922). * * * * *

Translations

* * * * *

References

; Bibliography * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Keith, Arthur Berriedale 1879 births 1944 deaths Academics from Edinburgh People educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford Academics of the University of Edinburgh British Sanskrit scholars Scottish civil servants 20th-century Scottish historians Scottish Indologists Scottish legal writers Scottish philologists Scottish religious writers Scottish political writers Scottish translators British barristers Lawyers from Edinburgh Burials at the Grange Cemetery