Azizur Rahman Mallick (December 31, 1918 – February 4, 1997) was a Bangladeshi historian and

educationist Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education also fol ...

Early life and education

Azizur Rahman Mallick was born in his ancestral village home in Rajapur, Dhamrai in

Dhaka district Dhaka District () is a Districts of Bangladesh, district in central Bangladesh, and is the densest district in the nation. It is a part of the Dhaka Division. Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, rests on the eastern banks of the Buriganga River ...

in the then erstwhile Bengal Province of

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

on December 31 1918 to Ismail Mallick who was from a ''Zamindar'' family of the region. His great-grandfather Mallick Khan had migrated to Bengal from Afghanistan and had established himself as a ''Zamindar'' alongside his brother. He spent his early life in

Rangoon Yangon, formerly romanized as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar. Yangon was the List of capitals of Myanmar, capital of Myanmar until 2005 and served as such until 2006, when the State Peace and Dev ...

, Burma. He and his family returned to Dhaka when he was at seventh grade. He passed SSC from Manikganj Model High School in 1934 and HSC from

Dhaka College Dhaka College (), informally known as DC, is a public educational institution of Bangladesh located in Dhanmondi, Dhaka. It is one of the oldest educational institutions in the subcontinent. It offers Honours degree, honours and Master's degree ...

in 1936. He studied History at

Dhaka University The University of Dhaka (), also known as Dhaka University (DU), is a public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Established in 1921, it is the oldest active university in the country. The University of Dhaka was founded in 1921 ...

, completing bachelor's degree in 1939 and master's degree in 1940. The following year, he joined the university as a lecturer, and he had further teaching stints at

Chittagong College Chittagong College is a public educational institution in Chittagong, Bangladesh. It is a higher secondary school and also a degree awarding college of National University, Bangladesh. It is the second higher secondary school in the region that ...

and

Rajshahi College Rajshahi College (Bengali language, Bengali: রাজশাহী কলেজ) is a public college, public educational institution in Rajshahi, Bangladesh. Established in 1873, it is the third oldest college in Bangladesh after Dhaka College a ...

. After World War II, he went to London, where he completed his PhD in History in 1953 from SOAS the

School of Oriental and African Studies The School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS University of London; ) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury area ...

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

. His advisor was Dr CH Philips.

Career

Upon returning from London, Mallick joined the history department at

Rajshahi University The University of Rajshahi (), also known as Rajshahi University (RU), is a Public university, public research university located in Rajshahi, Bangladesh. It is the second oldest and third largest university in Bangladesh. The university's 59 ...

. He eventually rose to become Dean of the Arts faculty. He also taught South Asian history at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

. He was the founding vice-chancellor of

Chittagong University The University of Chittagong () also known as Chittagong University (CU), is a public research university located in Chittagong, Bangladesh. It was established on 18 November 1966. It is the fifth oldest university of Bangladesh. Having an area ...

; the work of establishing the university was undertaken in 1964-65 and it was formally inaugurated in 1966. Mallick was actively involved in the

Bangladesh liberation movement Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world and among the most densely populated with a population of over 171 million within an area of . Bangl ...

and, after independence in 1971, held a series of important government posts. He was the first education secretary and the first ambassador to India, Nepal and Bhutan. In 1974-75, he replaced

Tajuddin Ahmad Tajuddin Ahmad (23 July 1925 – 3 November 1975) was a Bangladeshi politician. He led the Provisional Government of Bangladesh, 1st Government of Bangladesh as its Prime Minister of Bangladesh, prime minister during the Bangladesh Liberation W ...

as the finance minister. He joined Mostaq Ahmad cabinet immediately after assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. He took oath under the

Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad Khondaker Mostaq Ahmad (; 27 February 1919 – 5 March 1996) was a Bangladeshi politician. He was the Minister of Commerce in the third Mujib Rahman ministry under Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and assumed the presidency of Bangladesh after the A ...

leadership on August 20, 1975 and remained until the cabinet dissolved. Mallick served as president of the

Asiatic Society of Bangladesh The Asiatic Society of Bangladesh is a non political and non profit research organisation registered under both Society Act of 1864 and NGO Affairs Bureau, Government of Bangladesh. The Asiatic Society of Bangladesh was established as the Asiati ...

and

Bangladesh Itihas Samiti Bangladesh Itihas Samiti (also known as Bangladesh History Association) is a non-profit historical association in Bangladesh that publishes and supports research of the history of Bangladesh. History Bangladesh Itihas Samiti was founded in 1966. ...

, and chairman of the

Bangla Academy The Bangla Academy (, ) is the official regulatory body of the Bengali language in Bangladesh. It is an autonomous institution funded by the Government of Bangladesh that fosters the Bengali language, literature and culture, works to develop an ...

. His books include ''British Policy and the Muslims in Bengal'' and ''Amar Jibon Kotha O Bangladesher Mukti Sangram'' (''My Life Story and the Independence Movement of Bangladesh''). He died in Dhaka on 4 February 1997.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mallick, A. R. 1997 deaths Bangladeshi civil servants 1918 births Alumni of SOAS University of London Dhaka College alumni University of Dhaka alumni Academic staff of Jahangirnagar University Vice-chancellors of the University of Chittagong Honorary Fellows of Bangla Academy Bangladesh Krishak Sramik Awami League central committee members High commissioners of Bangladesh to India Ambassadors of Bangladesh to Nepal Ambassadors of Bangladesh to Bhutan People from Dhaka District Bangladeshi people of Afghan descent