Biography.guide
Home › People › Astronomer › Paris Pişmiş
Portrait of Paris Pişmiş

Paris Pişmiş

1911 – 1999

Turkish-Mexican astronomer

Don't just read it — keep itBiographies to ownE-book · Audio · Video From $7 →

About Paris Pişmiş

Lived 1911 – 1999 (aged 88). Paris Pişmiş was a Turkish and Mexican astronomer and university teacher.

Marie Paris Pişmiş de Recillas (, 30 January 1911 – 1 August 1999) was a Turkish-Mexican astronomer.

Pişmiş was born Mari Sukiasian in 1911, in Ortaköy, Istanbul. She completed her high school studies at Üsküdar American Academy. In 1937, she became the first woman to get a Ph.D. from the Science Faculty of Istanbul University. Her advisor was Erwin Finlay Freundlich. Later, she went to Harvard University where she met her future husband Félix Recillas, a Mexican mathematician. They settled in Mexico, and she became the first professional astronomer in Mexico. According to Dorrit Hoffleit, "she is the one person most influential in establishing Mexico’s importance in astronomical education and research".

For more than 50 years she worked at UNAM which awarded her a number of prizes including the "Science Teaching Prize". She was a member of the Mexican Academy of Sciences.

Pişmiş studied among others the kinematics of galaxies, H II nebulae, the structure of open star clusters and planetary nebulae. She compiled the catalogue Pismis of 24 open clusters and 2 globular clusters in the southern hemisphere.

In 1998, she published an autobiography entitled "Reminiscences in the Life of Paris Pişmiş: a Woman Astronomer". She died in 1999. According to her wish, she was cremated. Her daughter Elsa Recillas Pishmish, son-in-law Carlos Cruz-González, and grand-daughter Irene Cruz-González also became astronomers.

Hubble image of Pismis 24, one of the HII regions identified in her catalogue.

Biography shop

Don’t just read it —
keep it.

Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.

  • E-book
  • Audio
  • Video
Browse the shop — from $7

Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free

Important facts

Birth century
Education
Üsküdar American Academy, Istanbul University, Harvard University
Employers
Getronagan Armenian High School, Harvard University, Tonantzintla Observatory, National Autonomous University of Mexico
Awards
Guggenheim Fellowship
Also known as
Paris Pishmish de Recillas, Pishmish de Recillas, Paris, Pishmish, Pişmiş

People in Paris Pişmiş's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Paris Pişmiş's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Paris Pişmiş?

Turkish-Mexican astronomer (1911–1999)

When was Paris Pişmiş born?

Paris Pişmiş was born on 30 January 1911 in Constantinople.

When did Paris Pişmiş die?

Paris Pişmiş died on 1 August 1999 in Mexico City.

What was Paris Pişmiş's occupation?

Paris Pişmiş was an astronomer and university teacher.

What nationality was Paris Pişmiş?

Paris Pişmiş was Turkish and Mexican.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Paris Pişmiş

· Wikidata: Q437021

· DBpedia: Paris Pişmiş

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Paris Pişmiş. https://biography.guide/paris-pismis/

MLA: "Paris Pişmiş." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/paris-pismis/.

Chicago: "Paris Pişmiş." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/paris-pismis/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

Page generated 2026-09-27 05:27 UTC