Julio Reuter
Humanist of the day

Julio Reuter

Julio Reuter was the first Finnish Sanskritist to appear on the international stage, which had a great influence on Finnish linguistics in the 1900s. He had a central role in the Kagal, a secret society that opposed the oppressive Russian government in Finland, and was involved in bringing independence to his country.

Julio Reuter

Julio Nathanael Reuter
Born January 7, 1863, Turku. Died January 9, 1937, Helsinki

MA 1886, PhD 1897, Imperial Alexander University
Docent of Sanskrit and Comparative Indo-European Linguistics, 1891–1906

Extraordinary Professor of Sanskrit and Indo-European Linguistics, 1906–1931, Imperial Alexander University (University of Helsinki from 1919-)

Member of the Royal Society of London 1897
Member of the Finnish Society of Science and Letters 1910
Honorary PhD from the University of Glasgow 1901
Commander of the White Rose of Finland 1919

Photo: Museovirasto
Written by Lauri Lönnström
Translated by Joe McVeigh

Sanskrit research and misfortune

Julio Reuter began studying Classical languages, Swedish and English at the Imperial Alexander University. The then Professor of Sanskrit and comparative linguistics, Otto Donner, nevertheless sparked his interest in Sanskrit. After completing his Master’s degree, Reuter travelled to the University of Jena in Germany, after which his journey continued to Paris, London and Oxford. He returned from his first study trip in 1887.

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The Kagal and the resistance

Julio Reuter’s mentor, Otto Donner, also began Reuter’s political career, when he arranged for Reuter to travel to England in February 1899 to manage anti-Russian communications. In 1901, Reuter became secretary of the clandestine organisation the Kagal, and he disseminated political propaganda, particularly among the Anglo-Saxon press.

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