Frits Herman "Kees" van Naerssen (1904 – 7 June 1974)Naerssen, Frits Herman van
dutchstudies-satsea.nl. Retrieved 14 November 2022. was a scholar of Javanese

epigraphy Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...

and an early figure in

Asian studies Asian studies is the term used usually in North America and Australia for what in Europe is known as Oriental studies. The field is concerned with the Asian people, their cultures, languages, history and politics. Within the Asian sphere, Asian ...

post-war A post-war or postwar period is the interval immediately following the end of a war. The term usually refers to a varying period of time after World War II, which ended in 1945. A post-war period can become an interwar period or interbellum, ...

Australia."Professor Van Naerssen Memorial Fund" opgericht
Dutch Australian Weekly, 25 July 1975, p. 2. Retrieved 14 November 2022.

Education and career

F. H. van Naerssen was born in

Semarang Semarang (Javanese script, Javanese: , ''Kutha Semarang'') is the capital and largest city of Central Java province in Indonesia. It was a major port during the Netherlands, Dutch Dutch East Indies, colonial era, and is still an important regio ...

Netherlands East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...

(now

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

) in 1904 and studied

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

and Indonesian languages at

Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince of Orange as a Protestantism, Protestant institution, it holds the d ...

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, earning a doctorate ("Dr. Ph. et Litt.")
Calendar of the University of Sydney for the Year 1963
', Sydney: V. C. N. Blight, 1962, p. 45. Retrieved 14 November 2022. in old Javanese epigraphy in 1941 under Nicolaas Johannes Krom, a Dutch epigrapher, archaeologist, historiographer and researcher into early Indonesian history and traditional culture. He worked as adjunct secretary for the Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde (KITLV) (English, "Royal Institute for the Linguistics, Geography and Ethnology"), which was at that time located in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

, and as curator of the Javanese collections at the Koloniaal Instituut (English, "Colonial Institute") in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

in the years 1939-46 before teaching as a

lector Lector is Latin for one who reads, whether aloud or not. In modern languages it takes various forms, as either a development or a loan, such as , , and . It has various specialized uses. Academic The title ''lector'' may be applied to lecturers ...

sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

at the Agricultural University of Wageningen from 1946 to 1956. He taught at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

from 1957 to 1970, an appointment that was the result of an Australian government grant for Indonesian studies. He was the first appointment (as reader), the first acting head and then in 1966 the foundation professor of Sydney University's Department of Indonesian and Malayan Studies, and at the time, "he alone in Australia has the equipment necessary to begin, among other things, old Javanese studies." His student Stuart Robson would recall "he came from an old Indies family and had grown up in Klaten (

Central Java Central Java (, ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia, located in the middle of the island of Java. Its administrative capital is Semarang. It is bordered by West Java in the west, the Indian Ocean and the Special Region of Yogya ...

), so he had a strong affinity with Java and had the almost 'mystical' air of a silver-haired sage." He contributed to the journal ''

Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde ''Bijdragen tot de Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde'' (English title: ''Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences of Southeast Asia and Oceania'') also known by the abbreviated name BKI (Bijdragen Koninklijk Instituut), is a peer reviewed academic j ...

'' (English title: Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences of Southeast Asia and Oceania); to the '' Cultureel Indië'', a monthly magazine about cultural life in the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...

that was published between 1939 and 1946; and the '' Journal of the Oriental Society of Australia''. An annual memorial prize, the F. H. van Naerssen Memorial Prize for Indonesian Studies, is given for Indonesian Studies at the University of Sydney.Prizes Awarded 2020: Arts and Social Sciences
sydney.edu.au. Retrieved 14 November 2022. Van Naerrsen belonged to a small pioneering group of scholars working towards the spread of Asian studies in Australia, and the Australian public's growing interest in Asia, in the decades following

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In addition to his university endeavours, he was first chairman of a committee responsible for assembling book lists for the study of

Indonesian Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to: * Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia ** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago ** Indonesian ...

secondary schools A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

Personal life

After guiding the new department for many years, F. H. van Naerssen retired from the university in 1970 but still came into the faculty office a few times a week. He lived in

Gordon, New South Wales Gordon is a suburb on the Upper North Shore (Sydney), Upper North Shore of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia north-west of the Sydney Central Business District and is the administrative centre for the Local government in Austral ...

, a suburb on

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

's upper north shore. He died in 1974 in the Netherlands during a visit to see his daughter there. He was survived by his wife, his daughter and two grandchildren."Grondlegger van de Indonesische studie overleden"
''Dutch Australian Weekly'', 14 June 1974, p. 2. Retrieved 14 November 2022.

Select bibliography

"Twee Koperen Oorkonden van Balitung in het Koloniaal Instituut te Amsterdam"
in: ''

'' (English, "Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences of Southeast Asia"), 95:1, 1 January 1937, pp. 441–461.
"Ancient Javanese recording of the past"
in: ''Arts: The Journal of the Sydney University Arts Association'', (1968), 5: 30-46. *
The Economic and Administrative History of Early Indonesia
', Leiden and Cologne: E. J. Brill, 1977 (Handbook of Oriental Studies, Section 3: Southeast Asia, Volume 7). Joint author: R. C. De Jongh. A lengthier bibliography can be see
here

Education and career

Personal life

Select bibliography

References

Further reading