Edgar Thurston
Encyclopedia
Edgar Thurston CIE
(1855-1935) was a British museologist and ethnographer working in colonial
Southern India. In 1885 he was appointed to the Madras Government Museum, where he held the role of Superintendent. Among other published works, he co-wrote the seven volumes of Castes and Tribes of Southern India
, which was a part of the People of India project to which he was appointed in 1901.
He was assisted in the writing of Castes and Tribes by a colleague from the museum, K. Rangachari
, who had also assisted him in a 1906 ethnographic study, Ethnographic Notes in Southern India, for which Rangachari supplied most of the forty photographs. The September 1910 edition of Nature described the work as
Thurston was awarded the Kaisar-i-Hind
, first class, on 26 June 1902.
Some marine organisms were named after him: Manaria thurstoni (E.A. Smith, 1906), Sepia thurstoni
(W. Adam & W. J. Rees, 1966), Mobula thurstoni (Lloyd, 1908), Ecteinascidia thurstoni (Herdman, 1890).
Order of the Indian Empire
The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1878. The Order includes members of three classes:#Knight Grand Commander #Knight Commander #Companion...
(1855-1935) was a British museologist and ethnographer working in colonial
Colonial India
Colonial India refers to areas of the Indian Subcontinent under the control of European colonial powers, through trade and conquest. The first European power to arrive in India was the army of Alexander the Great in 327–326 BC. The satraps he established in the north west of the subcontinent...
Southern India. In 1885 he was appointed to the Madras Government Museum, where he held the role of Superintendent. Among other published works, he co-wrote the seven volumes of Castes and Tribes of Southern India
Castes and Tribes of Southern India
Castes and Tribes of Southern India is a seven-volume encyclopedia of social groups of Madras Presidency and the princely states of Travancore, Mysore, Coorg and Pudukkottai published by British museologist Edgar Thurston and K...
, which was a part of the People of India project to which he was appointed in 1901.
He was assisted in the writing of Castes and Tribes by a colleague from the museum, K. Rangachari
K. Rangachari
Diwan Bahadur Kadambi Rangachari was an Indian ethnologist who served as Assistant Superintendent of the Madras museum. He co-authored the 7-volume ethnographic encyclopedia Castes and Tribes of Southern India along with the British museologist Edgar Thurston. He was awarded the title Diwan...
, who had also assisted him in a 1906 ethnographic study, Ethnographic Notes in Southern India, for which Rangachari supplied most of the forty photographs. The September 1910 edition of Nature described the work as
Thurston was awarded the Kaisar-i-Hind
Kaisar-i-Hind
The Kaisar-i-Hind was a medal awarded by the British monarch between 1900 and 1947, to civilians of any nationality who rendered distinguished service in the advancement of the interests of the British Raj....
, first class, on 26 June 1902.
Some marine organisms were named after him: Manaria thurstoni (E.A. Smith, 1906), Sepia thurstoni
Sepia thurstoni
Sepia thurstoni is a species of cuttlefish native to the Indian Ocean, specifically the waters off Chennai in India and off Negombo and Hambantota in Sri Lanka. It lives at depths of 20 to 40 m.S. thurstoni grows to a mantle length of 110 mm....
(W. Adam & W. J. Rees, 1966), Mobula thurstoni (Lloyd, 1908), Ecteinascidia thurstoni (Herdman, 1890).