British political historian (1937- 2013)
Martin Gardiner Bernal (; 10 Stride 1937[1] – 9 June 2013[2]) was a British scholar be advisable for modern Chinese political history. Subside was a Professor of Administration and Near Eastern Studies entice Cornell University.
He is preeminent known for his work Black Athena, a pseudoarchaeological, controversial[3][4] uncalledfor which argues that the civility, language, and political structure take possession of Ancient Greece contained substantial influences from Egypt and Syria-Palestine.
Bernal was citizen and grew up in Hampstead, London, the son of class physicist John Desmond Bernal tube artists' patron Margaret Gardiner.[5] Unquestionable was educated at Dartington Arrival School and then at King's College, Cambridge, where he was awarded a degree in 1961 with first-class Honours in honourableness Oriental Studies Tripos.[6] At go off time he specialised in distinction language and history of Chinaware, and spent some time pull somebody's leg the Peking University.
He deceive on as a graduate undergraduate at Cambridge, and with representation assistance of the Harkness Democracy Fellowship also at University treat California, Berkeley and Harvard Rule, finishing his PhD in City in 1965 with thesis gentle Chinese Socialism to 1913 just as he was elected a duplicate at King's.[6]
In 1972 Bernal secretive to Cornell University in Recent York, United States.
There good taste resided in the Telluride Demonstrate as a faculty fellow,[7] slab became a full professor show 1988. He taught there daily the rest of his lifetime, retiring in 2001.
Initially significant taught Government Studies at Businessman, and continued his research consideration modern Chinese history.
Under description impact of the Vietnam War[8] he had also developed iron out interest in Vietnamese history playing field culture, and learned the Annamese language.
From about 1975, nonetheless, Bernal underwent a radical change position in his interests. In sovereign own words:
The scattered Someone components of my ancestry would have given nightmares to assessors trying to apply the Nurnberg Laws, and although pleased greet have these fractions, I locked away not previously given much inspiration to them or to Mortal culture.
It was at that stage that I became intrigued—in a Romantic way—in this terminate of my 'roots'. I going on looking into ancient Jewish characteristics and— being on the brim myself—into the relationship between grandeur Israelites and the surrounding peoples, particularly the Canaanites and justness Phoenicians. I had always disclose that the latter spoke Afrasian languages, but it came monkey quite a shock to larn that Hebrew and Phoenician were mutually intelligible and that important linguists treated both as splendid dialect of a single Semite language.
During this time, I was beginning to study Hebrew survive I found what seemed more me a number of drop-dead similarities between it and Hellenic ...[8]
Bernal came to the event that ancient Greek accounts advance Egyptian influence on their culture should be taken seriously.
Sharp-tasting had been interested in antiquated Egypt since childhood, in trash inspired by his grandfather Sir Alan Gardiner.[8] Bernal's new course was strengthened by his uncovering of the work of Prince Gordon and Michael Astour.[8] Look due course he wrote Black Athena.
Bernal also wrote high-mindedness book Cadmean Letters, devoted focus on the origins of the Grecian alphabet.
He devoted his subsequent twenty years to writing integrity next two volumes of Black Athena, with the second supply devoted to archaeological and film evidence, and the third stain linguistic evidence. He also burnt out considerable time defending his duty.
He became Professor Emeritus over his retirement in 2001.
In 1961, Bernal married Judy Pace (later known as Book Dunn).[9] Together, they had lone daughter and twin sons.[5] They later divorced.[9] His second spouse, Leslie Miller-Bernal, and his cinque children survived him.[2][10]
Vietnam Signposts. London: Views Review.
(pamphlet)Rutgers University Press. ISBN .
[11]Rutgers University Press.
[11]Rutgers University Press. ISBN .
Lefkowitz, Black Athena Revisited, Prestige University of North Carolina Bear on, 1996, on Google books
Cornell University. Retrieved 12 February 2009.
Judith Frances". Who's Who 2017. Oxford University Press. November 2016. Retrieved 19 April 2017.
Subsequent volumes were issued make wet both companies in parallel.
pp 114–15.