Anna Tumarkin
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Anna Tumarkin (, , 16 February 1875 – 7 August 1951) was a Russian-born, naturalized Swiss academic, who was the first woman to become a professor of philosophy at the
University of Bern The University of Bern (, , ) is a public university, public research university in the Switzerland, Swiss capital of Bern. It was founded in 1834. It is regulated and financed by the canton of Bern. It is a comprehensive university offering a br ...
. She was the first woman in Europe to be allowed to examine doctoral and professorial candidates and the first woman to sit as a member of a University Senate anywhere in Europe.


Early life

Anna-Ester Pavlovna Tumarkin was born on 16 February 1875 in Dubrowna, in the
Mogilev Governorate Mogilev Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit ('' guberniya'') of the Northwestern Krai of the Russian Empire. The governorate bordered the Vitebsk Governorate to the north, the Smolensk Governorate to the east, the Chernigov Gover ...
of the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...
to Sofia (née Gertsenshtein or Herzenstein) and Poltiel Moiseevich Tumarkin (also shown as Pavel). Her father was a
Bessarabia Bessarabia () is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Bessarabia lies within modern-day Moldova, with the Budjak region covering the southern coa ...
n merchant who had been granted personal nobility. As an
Orthodox Jew Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as literally revealed by God on Mount Sinai and faithfully tran ...
, Pavel initially refused to allow his children to study
Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...
, but the children gained proficiency in both Russian and German. When she was a young child, the family relocated to Kishinev (''Chișinău''), capital of the
Bessarabia Governorate The Bessarabia Governorate was a province (''guberniya'') of the Russian Empire, with its administrative centre in Kishinev (Chișinău). It consisted of an area of and a population of 1,935,412 inhabitants. The Bessarabia Governorate bordered t ...
. She attended the women's gymnasium and then attended normal school. Wanting to attend university, but finding higher education forbidden in Russia, in 1892, Tumarkin moved to Switzerland to study at the
University of Bern The University of Bern (, , ) is a public university, public research university in the Switzerland, Swiss capital of Bern. It was founded in 1834. It is regulated and financed by the canton of Bern. It is a comprehensive university offering a br ...
under Ludwig Stein. Three years later, she submitted her thesis on
Johann Gottfried Herder Johann Gottfried von Herder ( ; ; 25 August 174418 December 1803) was a Prussian philosopher, theologian, pastor, poet, and literary critic. Herder is associated with the Age of Enlightenment, ''Sturm und Drang'', and Weimar Classicism. He wa ...
and
Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant (born Emanuel Kant; 22 April 1724 – 12 February 1804) was a German Philosophy, philosopher and one of the central Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment thinkers. Born in Königsberg, Kant's comprehensive and systematic works ...
, which she successfully defended, and passed her examinations earning her doctorate. Around this same time, she met Anna Hoff, an older woman and friend of Dr. Stein's, who often attended the lectures he held at his home. The two became friends, making a habit of sitting together at lectures, and Hoff introduced Tumarkin to her daughter, Ida, who was five years younger than Tumarkin. Tumarkin and the younger Hoff, would later become life-long companions, though there is no evidence one way or the other to determine if their relationship was a
lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...
partnership. She then moved to
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
where she continued her studies for three years with
Wilhelm Dilthey Wilhelm Dilthey (; ; 19 November 1833 – 1 October 1911) was a German historian, psychologist, sociologist, and hermeneutic philosopher, who held Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel's Chair in Philosophy at the University of Berlin. As a polymathi ...
and Erich Schmidt, before returning to Bern to complete her thesis and examination for her
Habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in Germany, France, Italy, Poland and some other European and non-English-speaking countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excelle ...
in 1898, becoming not only the first woman in Switzerland to complete her post-doctoral work, but the first woman in Europe.


Career

Because there was no precedent for a woman to be appointed to the faculty of history or philosophy, a letter was sent to Albert Gobat, the Director of Education for Bern to ask if there was an objection to appointing a woman as an assistant professor. As he had no reservations, Tumarkin received the title ''Venia Docendi'' becoming a
docent The term "docent" is derived from the Latin word , which is the third-person plural present active indicative of ('to teach, to lecture'). Becoming a docent is often referred to as habilitation or doctor of science and is an academic qualifi ...
. By 1905, she became the first woman
lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...
at the University of Bern and in 1906 became an honorary professor, another first for the University of Bern. Her lectures spanned from classic philosophers like
Plato Plato ( ; Greek language, Greek: , ; born  BC, died 348/347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher of the Classical Greece, Classical period who is considered a foundational thinker in Western philosophy and an innovator of the writte ...
and
Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...
to more modern philosophers such as
Martin Heidegger Martin Heidegger (; 26 September 1889 – 26 May 1976) was a German philosopher known for contributions to Phenomenology (philosophy), phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. His work covers a range of topics including metaphysics, art ...
and she had a special affinity for
Johann Gottfried Herder Johann Gottfried von Herder ( ; ; 25 August 174418 December 1803) was a Prussian philosopher, theologian, pastor, poet, and literary critic. Herder is associated with the Age of Enlightenment, ''Sturm und Drang'', and Weimar Classicism. He wa ...
, Kant, and
Baruch Spinoza Baruch (de) Spinoza (24 November 163221 February 1677), also known under his Latinized pen name Benedictus de Spinoza, was a philosopher of Portuguese-Jewish origin, who was born in the Dutch Republic. A forerunner of the Age of Enlightenmen ...
. When Stein left in 1909, she took over his post, and was promoted to
extraordinary professor Academic ranks in Germany are the titles, relative importance and power of professors, researchers, and administrative personnel held in academia. Overview Appointment grades * (Pay grade: ''W3'' or ''W2'') * (''W3'') * (''W2'') * (''W2'', ...
. She was the only woman to apply for the post, among 30 candidates. Though she had adequate qualifications, the administration was unwilling to grant her the chair of the department, which instead went to . Though she performed the same duties Stein had, including lecturing, preparing professorial examinations and supervising doctoral students, Tumarkin was never granted an ordinary professorship with a department chair; however, the appointment was the first such position granted to a woman in Europe. On 13 May 1910, she took her seat in the University Senate, as the first female in Switzerland or Europe to be part of the highest academic body at the university. In 1912, Tumarkin became the roommate of Ida Hoff, who by that time had graduated from her studies and become one of the first female physicians in Bern. Hoff had opened her own practice in 1911 and recently moved to a larger house on Amthausgasse (Office-building street) to facilitate her growing practice. With room to spare, she asked Tumarkin to join her to share the accommodations. The two women were opposites in personality with Hoff being firmly grounded, practical, and a free-spirit, while Tumarkin was an abstract thinker, preferred routine, and was often engaged in seeking rational explanations for minutia. In 1918, Tumarkin's Russian passport was nullified when Chișinău became part of the
Kingdom of Romania The Kingdom of Romania () was a constitutional monarchy that existed from with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King of Romania, King Carol I of Romania, Carol I (thus beginning the Romanian royal family), until 1947 wit ...
and she sought Swiss citizenship, which was granted to her in 1921. That same year, in the spring, they moved together into a new home on Hallwylstrasse, a few doors down from the
Swiss National Library The Swiss National Library (, , , ) is the national library of Switzerland. Part of the Federal Office of Culture, it is charged with collecting, cataloging and conserving information in all fields, disciplines, and media connected with Switzerla ...
, filling the house with beautiful furniture and setting aside a room as their own library. Hoff was one of the first women in Bern to own a car and the two women enjoyed taking Sunday drives to visit the various
cantons of Switzerland The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the Federated state, member states of the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. The nucleus of the Swiss Confederacy in the form of the first three confederate allies used to be referred to as the . Two important ...
. They also ventured further abroad, like a trip in 1925, when for the first time, Tumarkin took Hoff to visit her family in Chișinău. They also took a trip to Greece together in 1927. In the 1920s, Hoff, who was a feminist convinced Tumarkin of the advantages of
women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the women's rights, right of women to Suffrage, vote in elections. Several instances occurred in recent centuries where women were selectively given, then stripped of, the right to vote. In Sweden, conditional women's suffra ...
and thereafter, Tumarkin became committed to women gaining the vote. In 1928 she participated in the first Swiss Exhibition for Women's Work (), representing the scientific participants. That same year, she published two papers, ''Ein Blick in das Geistesleben der Schweizer Frauen'' (''A Historical Look at the Spiritual Life of Swiss Women'') and ''Das Stimmrecht der Frauen'' (''The Voting Rights of Women''), evaluating women's place in Swiss society. Events in her homeland during the
Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...
,
Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...
, and the rise of the
Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor ...
in Germany, were deeply troubling to Tumarkin, whose family had been targeted with surveillance, and threatened with deportation. In 1937, she and Hoff made another trip to visit her family and were struck by the harsh contrast between the two visits. That same year, she was awarded the Theodor Kocher Prize from the university. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Tumarkin published many works which evaluated Russian culture in its historical context as well as how that had shaped Swiss society. Some of her most noted works in this context are ''Der Aesthetiker Johann Georg Sulzer'' (''The Aesthetist Johann Georg Sulzer'', 1933), ''Das Problem der Freiheit in der schweizerischen Philosophie'' (''The Problem of Freedom in Swiss Philosophy'', 1940), and ''Der Anteil der Schweiz an der Entwicklung der Philosophie'' (''The Contributions of Switzerland in the Development of Philosophy'', 1942). Her 1948 publication, ''Wesen und Werden der schweizerischen Philosophie'' (''Being and Becoming Swiss Philosophy'') evaluated the intellectual history of
Huldrych Zwingli Huldrych or Ulrich Zwingli (1 January 1484 – 11 October 1531) was a Swiss Christian theologian, musician, and leader of the Reformation in Switzerland. Born during a time of emerging Swiss patriotism and increasing criticism of the Swis ...
to
Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi (; ; ; 12 January 1746 – 17 February 1827) was a Swiss pedagogue and educational reformer who exemplified Romanticism in his approach. He founded several educational institutions both in German- and French-speaking ...
and concluded that the Swiss had developed an autonomous philosophy. The events of
The Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...
, in which she lost many family members and friends, began to affect her health. By 1943, she was forced to retire for medical problems, when she developed
elephantiasis Elephantiasis, often incorrectly called elephantitis, is the enlargement and hardening of limbs or body parts due to tissue swelling (edema). It is characterised by edema, hypertrophy, and fibrosis of skin and subcutaneous tissues, due to obstru ...
. Hoff tried to care for her companion at home, but Tumarkin's decline continued and she became increasingly confused.


Death and legacy

Six weeks after Hoff brought Tumarkin to the Siloah Deaconess House in Gümligen, Tumarkin died on 7 August 1951. Hoff's will to live was shaken by the loss of her life-long partner and she died almost exactly one year later on 4 August 1952. Tumarkin's work on her former advisor, ''Wilhelm Dilthey'' (1912), influenced the way future scholars evaluated his work, defining three phases in his development, which show how he evaluated the same problems at different times from new angles, arriving at seemingly contradictory solutions. Tumarkin described his process as "an organic development with its concentric circles: ever in a more profound and original manner". In February 2000, next to the original building housing the University of Berne, a street, Tumarkinweg, was named in her honor. In 2014, a book honoring women pioneers ''Pionnières de la Suisse moderne: Des femmes qui ont vécu la liberté'' (''Pioneers of Modern Switzerland: Women Who Lived for Freedom'') was published by Editions Slatkine and included a profile on Tumarkin.


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* * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tumarkin, Anna 1875 births 1951 deaths 20th-century Swiss women writers Jewish suffragists People from Bern People from Dubrowna district Women's rights activists from the Russian Empire Academics from the Russian Empire Philosophers from the Russian Empire Emigrants from the Russian Empire to Switzerland Spinoza scholars Swiss suffragists Swiss women academics Swiss women philosophers Swiss women's rights activists University of Bern alumni Writers from Chișinău