The Encyclopedia Americana (1920)/Fleischer, Heinrich Leberecht

FLEISCHER, Heinrich Leberecht, German Orientalist: b. Schandau, Saxony, 21 Feb. 1801; d. Leipzig, 10 Feb. 1888. He studied at the University of Leipzig from 1819-24. In the latter year he went to Paris where he continued his studies of the Arabic, Turkish and Persian languages under de Sacy. From 1831-36 he taught at one of the Dresden high schools. In 1836 he accepted the chair of Oriental languages at the University of Leipzig, which he occupied until his death in spite of invitations to accept similar positions in Saint Petersburg and Berlin. He was one of the few foreign members of the French Academy of Inscriptions, a member of many German and foreign scientific societies, possessor of honorary degrees from the universities of Königsberg, Prague, Saint Petersburg, Dorpat and Edinburgh, and one of the founders of the Deutsche Morgenländische Gesellschaft. He edited Abulfeda's ‘Historia Ante-Islamica’ (Leipzig 1831); Samachshari's ‘Golden Necklaces’ (Leipzig 1835); ‘Ali's Hundred Sayings’ (Leipzig 1837); Beidhawis, ‘Commentary on the Koran’ (2 vols., Leipzig 1846-48); catalogues of oriental manuscripts in the Royal Library at Dresden and in the Town Library at Leipzig. After Habicht's death he continued his edition of ‘The Thousand and One Nights,’ bringing out Vols. IX-XII (Leipzig 1842-1843). He also published a German edition of Mirza Mohammed Ibrahim's ‘Grammar of the Modern Persian Language’ (Leipzig 1847); ‘Hermes Trismegistus an die Menschliche Seele’ (Leipzig 1870); ‘Kleinere Schriften’ (3 vols., Leipzig 1885-88).