Oliver Shaw Rankin
Reverend Professor Oliver Shaw Rankin | |
|---|---|
| Born | 28 January 1885 Lamington, Lanarkshire |
| Died | 7 February 1954 |
| Education | University of Edinburgh |
| Occupation(s) | Minister and Theologian |
| Known for | Chair of Old Testament Language, Literature and Theology at the University of Edinburgh |
| Children | Robert Alexander Rankin |
| Relatives | Sir George Claus Rankin (1877-1946) |
The Rev. Professor Oliver Shaw Rankin was a Scottish scholar and theologian. His research focussed on the Old Testament and religious history.
Family
[edit]Rankin was born on 28 January 1885 in Lamington, Lanarkshire. His parents were Rev. Robert Rankin and Therese Margaretha Claus. He was the younger brother of Sir George Claus Rankin (1877-1946) who became Chief Justice of Bengal.[1]
Rankin married his material first cousin, Olivia Theresa Shaw, and added her surname to his own. They had three children; Robert Alexander Rankin, Kenneth Walker Rankin, and Olivia Rankin. Rankin died on 7 February 1954.[2]
Education
[edit]Rankin was educated at the then John Watson's Institution, Edinburgh, and at George Watson's College, Edinburgh. He studied at the University of Edinburgh where he received his MA (Master of Arts) in 1906, and at Humboldt University of Berlin. He held the Vans Dunlop Scholarship in Hebrew, Arabic and Syriac in 1908. Rankin completed a BD (Bachelor of Divinity) in 1909, and a D.Litt (Doctor of Letters) in 1928.
Professional life
[edit]In 1912, Rankin became Parish Minister in Sorbie, Wigtownshire, where he was ordained.[3] He was a chaplain to German prisoners of war in 1918.[4]
In 1937 Rankin was appointed to the Chair of Old Testament Language, Literature and Theology at the University of Edinburgh.[5] He gave his inaugural lecture in 1948. He corresponded with Martin Luther King Jr. on behalf of the Faculty of Divinity, when King applied to undertake a PhD at the New College in 1950.[6]
Archival collections relating to Rankin and his research reside at the New College Library (University of Edinburgh), and at the National Archives in Kew.[7]
Publications
[edit]Rankin's known publications include:
- The origins of the festival of Hannukah (1930) which grew out of his D.Litt. thesis in 1928[8]
- Israel's wisdom literature: its bearing on theology and the history of religion (1936)[9]
- Jewish religious polemic: a study of documents here rendered in English (published posthumously 1956).[10]
References
[edit]- ^ "Collection: Papers of Rev. Professor Oliver Shaw Rankin (1885-1954) | University of Edinburgh Archive and Manuscript Collections". archives.collections.ed.ac.uk. Retrieved 2025-03-26.
- ^ Berndt, Bruce C.; Kohnen, Winfried; Ono, Ken (2003), Berndt, Bruce; Ono, Ken (eds.), "The Life and Work of R.A. Rankin (1915–2001)", Number Theory and Modular Forms: Papers in Memory of Robert A. Rankin, Boston, MA: Springer US, pp. 9–38, doi:10.1007/978-1-4757-6044-6_1, ISBN 978-1-4757-6044-6, retrieved 2025-03-26
- ^ "Professor Robert Rankin - Independent obituary". Maths History. Retrieved 2025-03-26.
- ^ University of Edinburgh (1921). Roll of honour, 1914-1919. Robarts - University of Toronto. Edinburgh, The University.
- ^ "Professor Robert Rankin - Independent obituary". Maths History. Retrieved 2025-03-26.
- ^ "From Oliver Shaw Rankin | The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute". kinginstitute.stanford.edu. Retrieved 2025-03-26.
- ^ Catalogue description Chaplain Oliver Shaw RANKIN. Army Chaplains' Department. 1918-1921; 1934.
{{cite book}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Rankin, Oliver Shaw (1928). "The origins of the festival of Hanukkah: the Jewish new-age festival (the so-called Feast of the Dedication)".
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ Rankin, Oliver Shaw (1954). Israel's wisdom literature, its bearing on theology and the history of religion ; the Kerr lectures delivered in Trinity College, Glasgow, 1933-36. Internet Archive. Edinburgh.
- ^ Rankin, Oliver Shaw (1970). Jewish religious polemic of early and later centuries; a study of documents here rendered in English. Internet Archive. [New York] Ktav Pub. House. ISBN 978-0-87068-007-6.