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Johann Jakob Hess

1866 – 1949

Swiss academic

Archaeologist Historian Egyptologist
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About Johann Jakob Hess

Lived 1866 – 1949 (aged 83). Johann Jakob Hess was a Swiss archaeologist, historian, egyptologist, university teacher, orientalist and arabist.

Johann Jakob Hess (also Jean Jaques Hess; Freiburg im Üechtland, (Fr. Fribourg), Switzerland, 11 January 1866 – Zurich, Switzerland, 29 April 1949), was a Swiss Egyptologist and Assyriologist and an expert in other Oriental languages.

Personal life Hess was born on 11 January 1866, the son of window and door maker Casimir Balthasar Jacques Hess and Josephine-Marie, née Rudolf, in Freiburg im Üechtland, (Fr. Fribourg), Switzerland. He graduated at Berlin and Strassburg in Egyptology, Assyriology, Semitic languages and Sinology, working for his Doctoral degree between 1889 and 1891, working as a Privatdozent, teaching Egyptology and Assyriology between 1891 and 1908 at the Swiss University of Freiburg. This teaching position gave him the opportunity of traveling on leave to Egypt and Nubia for four years settling in Cairo while doing jobs for the British Survey in the British Bureau in Egypt. He returned to Switzerland in 1918, (Orientalisches Seminar - معهد الاستشراق) being promoted to Emeritus Professor in 1936, aged 70. He was married twice and died at Zurich on 29 April 1949, aged 83.

Some published works by Johann Jakob Hess

Beduinennamen aus Zentralarabien. Heidelberg: Winter, 1912 . Heidelberger Akademie der Wissenschaften: Sitzungsberichte der Heidelberger Akademie der Wissenschaften, Philosophisch-Historische Klasse; Jg. 1912, Abh. 19. Von den Beduinen des inneren Arabiens. Zurich, Niehaus Ed. 1938, 177 pages. Edit.: Lieder, Sitten & Gebräuche. Der demotische Teil der dreisprachigen Inschrift von Rosette. In German. . Universitaets-Buchhandlung, B. Veith, 1902 - 99 pages. Available at the Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia, dated 1888. See: http://trove.nla.gov.au/book/result?q&l-decade=188&l-language=Egyptian

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Important facts

Birth century
Nationality
Employers
University of Fribourg, University of Zurich

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Johann Jakob Hess's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Johann Jakob Hess?

Swiss academic (1866-1949)

When was Johann Jakob Hess born?

Johann Jakob Hess was born on 11 January 1866 in Fribourg.

When did Johann Jakob Hess die?

Johann Jakob Hess died on 29 April 1949 in Zurich.

What was Johann Jakob Hess's occupation?

Johann Jakob Hess was an archaeologist, historian, egyptologist, university teacher, orientalist and arabist.

What nationality was Johann Jakob Hess?

Johann Jakob Hess was Swiss.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Johann Jakob Hess

· Wikidata: Q124643

· DBpedia: Johann Jakob Hess

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Johann Jakob Hess. https://biography.guide/johann-jakob-hess-archaeologist/

MLA: "Johann Jakob Hess." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/johann-jakob-hess-archaeologist/.

Chicago: "Johann Jakob Hess." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/johann-jakob-hess-archaeologist/.

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