Josef Kroll
Josef Kroll (born November 8, 1889 in Arnsberg ; † March 8, 1980 in Duisburg-Rheinhausen ) was a German classical philologist .
After attending school in Hagen and studying at the universities of Munich, Freiburg (Breisgau), Berlin, Münster and Göttingen, he received his doctorate in 1913 under Wilhelm Kroll in Münster with a thesis on Hermes Trismegistos . He then went on a study trip to Italy. Then he volunteered as a soldier in the First World War. After being wounded several times, Kroll became an assistant at the University of Breslau in 1916 , and in 1918 professor of classics at the Lyceum Hosianum in Braunsberg in East Prussia . In 1922 he was offered a chair at the University of Cologne , which he held until his retirement in 1956.
Kroll mainly researched the ancient history of religion, especially early Christianity and its environment. His main work God and Hell examined the ideas of the journey into the underworld in Christianity and non-Christian ancient religions.
He was twice (1930/31 and 1945-1950) rector of the University of Cologne, in whose reconstruction after the Second World War he played a key role. During the Nazi era , he had refused to work on committees at the university that had been aligned . For a short time in 1945/46 Kroll was also the department head for education, school, art and science of the city of Cologne and in 1946 a member of the first North Rhine-Westphalian state parliament appointed by the occupying power. Since it was founded in 1952, Kroll was a member of the North Rhine-Westphalian Academy of Sciences and the Arts or its predecessor institution. From 1948 to 1958 he was chairman of the Association of Libraries in North Rhine-Westphalia . The University of Cologne elected him honorary citizen on the occasion of his retirement in 1956.
Fonts
- The teachings of Hermes Trismegistus . Aschendorff, Münster 1914 (= contributions to the history of the philosophy of the Middle Ages , XII, 2–4).
- The Christian hymnody up to Clement of Alexandreia. In: List of lectures at the Braunsberg Academy 1921/1922. 2nd, verified edition. Scientific Book Society, Darmstadt 1968.
- The ascension of the soul in antiquity. Speech given at the solemn takeover of the rectorate of the university on November 8, 1930. Müller, Cologne 1930.
- God and hell. The myth of the descensus fight . Teubner, Leipzig, Berlin 1932.
- Theognis interpretations. Dieterich, Leipzig 1936.
- Elysium. West German publishing house, Cologne, Opladen 1953.
literature
- Rudolf Kassel : Obituary for Joseph Kroll , in: Rheinisch-Westfälische Akademie der Wissenschaften. Yearbook 1980 , Westdeutscher Verlag, Opladen 1980, pp. 42–46.
- Reinhold Merkelbach : Josef Kroll , in: Gnomon 53, 1981, pp. 95-98.
- Reinhold Merkelbach: Kroll, Josef. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 13, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1982, ISBN 3-428-00194-X , p. 72 f. ( Digitized version ).
Web links
- Josef Kroll at the state parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia
- Literature by and about Josef Kroll in the catalog of the German National Library
- U. Cologne: portrait with picture
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Focus on Greek Studies : Josef Kroll (1922–1956) | Albrecht Dihle (1958–1974) | Rudolf Kassel (1975–1991) | Bernd Manuwald (1992–2008) | René Nünlist (since 2010)
Focus on Latin Studies : Günther Jachmann (1925–1952) | Hellfried Dahlmann (1953–1971) | Clemens Zintzen (1972–1994) | Wolfram Ax (1996-2010) | Jan Felix Gaertner (since 2013)
Classical Philology and Papyrology : Reinhold Merkelbach (1961–1983) | Wolfgang Dieter Lebek (1984-2003) | Jürgen Hammerstaedt (since 2004)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Kroll, Josef |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German classical philologist and politician, MdL |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 8, 1889 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Arnsberg |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 8, 1980 |
| Place of death | Duisburg-Rheinhausen |