Gunnar Valfrid Jarring (12 October 1907 – 29 May 2002) was a Swedish

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

and Turkologist.

Early life

Jarring was born on 12 October 1907 in Brunnby, Malmöhus County, Sweden, the son of Gottfrid Jönsson, a farmer, and his wife Betty (née Svensson). He had four siblings. Jarring earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from

Lund University Lund University () is a Public university, public research university in Sweden and one of Northern Europe's oldest universities. The university is located in the city of Lund in the Swedish province of Scania. The university was officially foun ...

in 1928, a Licentiate Degree in 1931, and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in 1933 with his dissertation ''Studien zu einer osttürkischen Lautlehre'' ("Studies in Eastern Turkic Phonology"). The same year he was appointed docent in Turkish linguistics at Lund University. Jarring also served as curator of Helsingborgs-Landskrona Student Nation at Lund University in 1933. He taught

Turkic languages The Turkic languages are a language family of more than 35 documented languages, spoken by the Turkic peoples of Eurasia from Eastern Europe and Southern Europe to Central Asia, East Asia, North Asia (Siberia), and West Asia. The Turkic langua ...

at the university for the rest of the 1930s. Jarring was also a board member of the ''Svenska orientsällskapet'' ("Swedish Oriental Society") from 1936 to 1940 and of the ''Centralbyrån i Lund för populära vetenskapliga föreläsningar'' ("The Central Office in Lund for Popular Scientific Lectures") at Lund University from 1939 to 1941. He conducted study trips to, among others, Chinese Turkestan 1929–1930, to

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

and

Leningrad Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

in 1934, to the Northwest

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

1935–1936, and to the

Near East The Near East () is a transcontinental region around the Eastern Mediterranean encompassing the historical Fertile Crescent, the Levant, Anatolia, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and coastal areas of the Arabian Peninsula. The term was invented in the 20th ...

in 1940.

Diplomatic career

Jarring entered the Swedish diplomatic service and worked for the Swedish foreign service as attaché at their embassy in

Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...

in 1940. He was head of Department B at the Swedish legation in

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

in 1941 and '' chargé d'affaires ad interim'' in Tehran and

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

in 1945. Jarring served as acting first legation secretary in 1945 and acting legation counselor and ''chargé d'affaires ad interim'' in Addis Abeba in 1946. Jarring was then Swedish envoy to

in 1948 and to

Ceylon Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

in 1950 as well as to

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

in 1951. He served as director (''utrikesråd'') and head of the Political Department at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

from 1952 to 1956 and as an expert in the

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in 1955. After several other diplomatic missions, he was Sweden's Permanent Representative to the United Nations from 1956 to 1958, and sat in the Security Council for the last two of those years. He was ambassador to the United States from 1958 to 1964, and to the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

from 1964 to 1973, as well as

Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...

from 1965 to 1973. In that capacity he signed on behalf of his country on the Outer Space Treaty in January 1967. After the 1967

Six-Day War The Six-Day War, also known as the June War, 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states, primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan from 5 to 10June ...

and the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 242, Jarring was appointed by the UN Secretary-General U Thant as a

Special Representative of the Secretary-General A special representative of the Secretary-General is a highly respected expert who has been appointed by the United Nations Secretary-General, Secretary-General of the United Nations to represent them in meetings with heads of state on critical huma ...

for the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

peace process, the so-called Jarring Mission, during which he worked with the Four Powers who included United States UN Permanent Representative Ambassador Charles W. Yost. Jarring's methods of negotiation were used unsuccessfully until the 1973

Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was fought from 6 to 25 October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states led by Egypt and S ...

. The mission officially lasted until 1991. The role of mediator in the Middle East conflict made Jarring decide not to give any interviews or comments, giving him the famous nickname "The Clam", sometimes even "The Super Clam". Gunnar Jarring continued to publish studies on Eastern Turkic languages throughout his diplomatic career and after retirement. He is one of the few people to ever be mentioned by name in a United Nations Security Council Resolution, appearing in Resolution 331. His mention has also been made in the UN Security Councils's Resolution 123 dated 21 February 1957 on the issue of Jammu & Kashmir.

Personal life

In 1932, he married Agnes Charlier (1909–1999), the daughter of professor Carl Charlier and Siri Dorotea (née Leissner). He was the father of Eva (born 1949).

List of Publications

Selected books

* * * * *

Selected articles

* Gunnar Jarring. Obituary: Nikolaj Aleksandrovic Baskakov.

Turkic Languages The Turkic languages are a language family of more than 35 documented languages, spoken by the Turkic peoples of Eurasia from Eastern Europe and Southern Europe to Central Asia, East Asia, North Asia (Siberia), and West Asia. The Turkic langua ...

1, 1997. * Gunnar Jarring. The toponym Takla-makan.

1, 1997.

Awards and decorations

* Commander Grand Cross of the Order of the Polar Star (6 June 1972) * ETH_Order_of_Menelik_II_-_Grand_Cross_BAR

Grand Cross of the Order of Menelik II * GER_Bundesverdienstkreuz_6_GrVK_Stern_Band_218px

Grand Cross 2nd Class of the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (, or , BVO) is the highest state decoration, federal decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It may be awarded for any field of endeavor. It was created by the first List of president ...

Commander 1st Class of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V of Denmark, Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single cla ...

ISL_Icelandic_Order_of_the_Falcon_-_Grand_Knight_with_Star_BAR

Grand Knight's Cross with Star of the Order of the Falcon (22 April 1954) * Commander with Star of the Order of St. Olav (1 July 1953) * Bg1ocm

Commander of the Order of Civil Merit * Commander of the Order of Homayoun * DEU_Deutsche_Adlerorden_1_BAR

2nd Class of the Order of the German Eagle * Officer of the

Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary The Hungarian Order of Merit () is the fourth highest Order (honour), State Order of Hungary. Founded in 1991, the order is a revival of an original order founded in 1946 and abolished in 1949. Its origins, however, can be traced to the Order of ...

Finland Cross of Liberty 4th Class Military Wartime

4th Class of the Order of the Cross of Liberty with swords

Honours

*Member of the

Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences () is one of the Swedish Royal Academies, royal academies of Sweden. Founded on 2 June 1739, it is an independent, non-governmental scientific organization that takes special responsibility for promoting nat ...

(1937) *Member of the Royal Society of the Humanities at Lund (''Kungliga Humanistiska Vetenskapssamfundet i Lund'') (1965) *Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities (1968) *Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences (1970) *Member of the Royal Physiographic Society in Lund (1972) *Member of the Royal Society for Publication of Manuscripts on Scandinavian History (''Kungliga Samfundet för utgivande av handskrifter rörande Skandinaviens historia'') (1974) *Member of the Turkish Language Association (1957, honorary member 1978) *Honorary member of the

Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society, was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encourag ...

(1970) *Member of the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters (1981) *Corresponding member of the Finno-Ugrian Society (1976) *Corresponding member of the

Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities The Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities () is an independent public institution, located in Munich. It appoints scholars whose research has contributed considerably to the increase of knowledge within their subject. The general goal of th ...

(1981) *Honorary member of the

American Oriental Society The American Oriental Society is a learned society that encourages basic research in the languages and literatures of the Near East and Asia. It was chartered under the laws of Massachusetts on September 7, 1842. It is one of the oldest learned ...

(1983) *Honorary member of the Societas Uralo-Altaica (1985) *Title of Professor (''Professors namn'') (1986)

References

External links