Kristofer Schipper | |
|---|---|
 Kristofer Schipper 2009 photo: Dr.Yuan Bingling | |
| Born | (1934-10-23)23 October 1934 Eda Municipality,Värmland County, Sweden |
| Died | 18 February 2021(2021-02-18) (aged 86)[1] Amsterdam,North Holland, Netherlands |
| Occupation | Sinologist |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 5 |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | University of Paris |
| Doctoral advisor | Maxime Kaltenmark |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Sinology Taoism |
| Institutions | Fuzhou University |
Kristofer Marinus Schipper (23 October 1934 – 18 February 2021), also known asRik Schipper and by his Chinese nameShi Zhouren (Chinese:施舟人), was a Dutchsinologist. He was a professor ofOriental studies atLeiden University, appointed there in 1993. Schipper worked as researcher forÉcole française d'Extrême-Orient[2] and later taught as directeur de recherche in History of Daoism studies at theÉcole pratique des hautes études in Paris. He was head of the Institut des Hautes Études Chinoises from the Collège de France. He also taught atFuzhou University andZhangzhou College. After his retirement, he and his wife Yuan Bingling moved toFuzhou (Fujian) in China.
Schipper was born in Järnskog,Eda Municipality, on 23 October 1934. Schipper grew up nearEdam, Netherlands.
His father, Klaas Abe Schipper, was aMennonite Christian pastor, and his mother Johanna Schipper was a devout believer. The couple was declared “Righteous Among the Nations” by Israel's Yad Vashem Holocaust remembrance center, for their efforts in hiding Jewish people during the German occupation of Holland in World War II.[3]
Schipper studied inTaiwan. He was very interested in the ceremonies and rituals that are part ofTaoism. Knowledge of the rituals may only be passed on within a family. He was adopted by a befriended family, so he could be trained in Taoism. In 1968, he wasinitiated as a priest in theZhengyi School of Taoism. He organized and edited the first complete scientific study of the 1500 works contained in theTaoist Canon of theMing Dynasty.
Schipper became a member of theRoyal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1995.[4]
In 2001, Kristofer Schipper and his wife Dr. Yuan Bingling founded the first library in China specialised in western art, literature, and culture, in Fuzhou. It is called the "Library of the Western Belvedere" or "Xiguan cangshulou 西观藏书楼" (Fuzhou University Global Civilization Research Center and Library of the Western Belvedere.)[citation needed]
With his library, they intend to make western literature more accessible to Chinese scientists. The collection consisted, in 2007, of about 25000 titles on literature, art history, and philosophy in many languages, such as English, French, German, Dutch, and other western languages.[citation needed]
