Joris Borghouts
Joris Frans Borghouts titled his 1971 doctoral dissertation The magical texts of Papyrus Leiden I 348, earning his degree at Leiden University. Born in Ginneken on the 17th of June 1939, he spent his working life across two Dutch universities. Eventually he rose to lead a department at Leiden. What did that leadership look like, and why did the department's future come under threat? What recognition did the Netherlands' academy of sciences give him, and how did his career eventually close?
Borghouts worked at the University of Amsterdam's Egyptological Seminar as a scientific employee between 1969 and 1976. He returned to Leiden University in 1976. In 1985, Borghouts succeeded as professor and head of the Egyptology department. Under his leadership, the department reached its maximum size, a peak that would not last.
Around the year 2000, budget cuts put the future of the Egyptology department in question. Borghouts pushed back, insisting the department would become academically irrelevant if the cuts went ahead. He retired from the professorship in 2004. Leiden University and The Netherlands Institute for the Near East kept him on afterward, naming him a research fellow that same year.
In 1999, the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences elected Borghouts as a member. He died on the 7th of September 2018 in Leiden.
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Common questions
Who was Joris Borghouts?
Joris Frans Borghouts, born on the 17th of June 1939 and died on the 7th of September 2018, was a Dutch Egyptologist who served as Professor of Egyptology at Leiden University from 1985 to 2004.
When and where was Joris Borghouts born?
Joris Borghouts was born in Ginneken on the 17th of June 1939.
What was Joris Borghouts' 1971 doctoral dissertation about?
Borghouts earned his doctorate at Leiden University in 1971 with a dissertation titled The magical texts of Papyrus Leiden I 348.
Where did Joris Borghouts work before returning to Leiden University?
From 1969 to 1976, Borghouts worked as a scientific employee at the Egyptological Seminar of the University of Amsterdam before returning to Leiden University in 1976.
Why was Leiden University's Egyptology department threatened around 2000?
Around the year 2000, the department faced budget cuts, and Borghouts defended its needs, stating it would become academically irrelevant without them.
What academic honor did Joris Borghouts receive in 1999?
In 1999, Joris Borghouts was elected a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences.
What happened to Joris Borghouts after he retired in 2004?
After retiring in 2004, Borghouts remained attached to Leiden University and The Netherlands Institute for the Near East, where he became a research fellow that year. He died on the 7th of September 2018 in Leiden.
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15 references cited across the entry
- 2Joris Frans BorghoutsLeiden University
- 3Waar de geschiedenis begon: Nederlandse onderzoekers in de ban van spijkerschrift, hiërogliefen en aardewerkO.E. Kaper & O.G. Dercksen — Netherlands Institute for the Near East — 2014
- 4Kleine Letteren voelen zich bedreigdChristiaan Weijts — Mare Online — 2001
- 5Bijna de mond gesnoerdSander van Walsum — de Volkskrant — 12 May 2001
- 6Prof. dr. J.F. (Joris) Borghouts (Emeritus)Leiden University
- 7In Memoriam Prof. Dr. J.F. BorghoutsLeiden University — 18 September 2018
- 8J.F. BorghoutsRoyal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences