‘Een weinig bijzonder leven’ - Aleksandr Nikolaevič Pypin (1833-1904)

Abstract

Aleksandr Nicolaevič Pypin (1833-1904), ethnographer, historian, and journalist, was born in Saratov and was a cousin of radical journalist and revolutionary Nikolaj Gavrilovič Černyševskij (1828-89). Pypin graduated from St. Petersburg University and in 1857 received his doctorate. He was the author of about 1200 publications, including three great compilations: A History of Russian Ethnography, A History of Russian Literature, and A History of Slavic Literature. Pypin became one of the leading authorities in Slavic literature and culture. He undertook a trip to several Slavic countries, where he collected material for his publications. He began his career at St. Petersburg University, where he became a professor in 1860. It turned out to be a brief career. In 1861, because of government reaction to student unrest, he resigned together with his liberal colleagues. Pypin began to write for the ‘thick’ journals, publishing in Sovremennik and later in Vestnik Evropy, where he became one of the most active contributors. His support for his revolutionary cousin and his association with other radicals further complicated his life and career. It attracted the wrath of the Russian government. Only a few years before he died his talents were officially recognized, and in 1891 he became a member of the Academy of Sciences.