Packard Humanities Institute
Encyclopedia
The Packard Humanities Institute (PHI) is a non-profit foundation, established in 1987, and located in Los Altos, California
, which funds projects in a wide range of conservation
concerns in the fields of archaeology, music, film preservation, and historic conservation, plus Greek epigraphy
, with an aim to create tools for basic research in the Humanities
.
, Bible
texts, texts in Arabic
and Coptic
, Ancient Greek papyri and inscriptions, Founding Fathers of the United States
: Benjamin Franklin
and others, and also Persian literature
in translation. It also funds external projects such as the Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources
.
PHI is also concerned with early education of children. The Institute is independent of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation
and is not associated in any way with any Hewlett-Packard Company foundations.
Its current president is former professor David Woodley Packard
, who has served as a director, but never an officer, of Hewlett Packard.
Los Altos, California
Los Altos is a city at the southern end of the San Francisco Peninsula, in the San Francisco Bay Area. The city is in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 28,976 according to the 2010 census....
, which funds projects in a wide range of conservation
Conservation biology
Conservation biology is the scientific study of the nature and status of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction...
concerns in the fields of archaeology, music, film preservation, and historic conservation, plus Greek epigraphy
Epigraphy
Epigraphy Epigraphy Epigraphy (from the , literally "on-writing", is the study of inscriptions or epigraphs as writing; that is, the science of identifying the graphemes and of classifying their use as to cultural context and date, elucidating their meaning and assessing what conclusions can be...
, with an aim to create tools for basic research in the Humanities
Humanities
The humanities are academic disciplines that study the human condition, using methods that are primarily analytical, critical, or speculative, as distinguished from the mainly empirical approaches of the natural sciences....
.
History
Over the years, it has created databases on Latin literatureLatin literature
Latin literature includes the essays, histories, poems, plays, and other writings of the ancient Romans. In many ways, it seems to be a continuation of Greek literature, using many of the same forms...
, Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
texts, texts in Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
and Coptic
Coptic language
Coptic or Coptic Egyptian is the current stage of the Egyptian language, a northern Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Egypt until at least the 17th century. Egyptian began to be written using the Greek alphabet in the 1st century...
, Ancient Greek papyri and inscriptions, Founding Fathers of the United States
Founding Fathers of the United States
The Founding Fathers of the United States of America were political leaders and statesmen who participated in the American Revolution by signing the United States Declaration of Independence, taking part in the American Revolutionary War, establishing the United States Constitution, or by some...
: Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
and others, and also Persian literature
Persian literature
Persian literature spans two-and-a-half millennia, though much of the pre-Islamic material has been lost. Its sources have been within historical Persia including present-day Iran as well as regions of Central Asia where the Persian language has historically been the national language...
in translation. It also funds external projects such as the Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources
Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources
The Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources is a lexicon of Medieval Latin, published by Oxford University Press for the British Academy, and sometimes referred to as simply the Dictionary of Medieval Latin or the Medieval Latin Dictionary. After decades of preparatory work, the...
.
PHI is also concerned with early education of children. The Institute is independent of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation
David and Lucile Packard Foundation
The David and Lucile Packard Foundation is a private foundation that provides grants to not-for-profit organizations. It was created in 1964 by David Packard and his wife Lucile Salter Packard. Following David Packard's death in 1996, the Foundation became the beneficiary of part of his estate...
and is not associated in any way with any Hewlett-Packard Company foundations.
Its current president is former professor David Woodley Packard
David Woodley Packard
David Woodley Packard, Ph.D. is a former professor and noted philanthropist; he is the son of Hewlett-Packard co-founder David Packard. A former HP board member , David is best known for his opposition to the HP-Compaq merger and his support for classical studies, especially in regards to the...
, who has served as a director, but never an officer, of Hewlett Packard.