Nikolaus Grass

Nikolaus Grass (born July 28, 1913 in Hall in Tirol ; † October 5, 1999 in Innsbruck ) was an Austrian folklorist , economic and legal historian, and lawyer and political scientist .

Life

Nikolaus Grass is the brother of the Innsbruck physician, canon lawyer and legal historian Franz Grass (1914–1993) and was one of Austria's most respected scientists during his lifetime. In 1959 he became a full professor at the law faculty of the University of Innsbruck . His main interests lay in the area of ​​cultural, legal and economic history. As the publication by Gerhard Oberkofler shows, he was in correspondence with important European scholars, such as Louis Carlen, Guido Kisch , Hans Lentze , Alfons Maria Stickler and Leo Santifaller . His studies on alpine pasture management deal with the complex problem solutions (e.g. the right to escape from snow ), which Elinor Ostrom's work, which was awarded the Nobel Prize, deals with .

In 1966, Grass founded the research series on legal and cultural history , and since 1978, together with Wolfgang Brückner , has been publishing the yearbook for folklore on behalf of the Görres Society .

Since 1981 he has been an honorary member of the Catholic student association KÖHV Leopoldina Innsbruck in the ÖCV .

honors and awards

• 1975 Austrian Cross of Honor for Science and Art, 1st class
• 1976 Honorary doctorate in law from the University of Friborg
• 1976 Actual member of the Austrian Academy of Sciences
• 1976 Member of the State Historical Commission for Styria
• 1978 Corresponding Fellow of the British Academy
• 1979 Honorary doctorate from the University of Graz
• 1984 Great Silver Medal of Honor for Services to the Republic of Austria

Publications (selection)

As early as the mid-1980s, Grass's scientific work comprised around 400 publications, including:

• Contributions of legal history to alpine farming. Primarily according to Tyrolean sources (= Schlern-Schriften. 56, ZDB -ID 503740-2 ). Wagner, Innsbruck et al. 1948.
• Imperial regalia. Studies from a legal historical point of view (= Austrian Academy of Sciences. Philosophical-Historical Class. Meeting reports. 248, 4, ISSN  0029-8832 ). Böhlau, Vienna et al. 1965.
• The right of the tongue and related taxes in medieval Burgundy, Savoy and the Eastern Alps. In: Gerd Kleinheyer, Paul Mikat (Hrsg.): Contributions to legal history. Commemorative writing for Hermann Conrad (= legal and political science publications of the Görres Society. New series 34). Schoeningh, Paderborn et al. 1979, ISBN 3-506-73334-6 , pp. 213-244.
• Austria’s canon law teacher of modern times. Especially at the universities of Graz and Innsbruck (= Freiburg publications from the area of ​​church and state. 27). Universitätstsverlag, Freiburg (Switzerland) 1988, ISBN 3-7278-0591-9 .

Bibliographies of Grass' writings are contained in his Festschriften:

• Louis Carlen, Fritz Steinegger (ed.): Festschrift Nikolaus Grass. For the 60th birthday presented by colleagues, friends and students. 2 volumes (Vol. 1: Occidental and German legal history, history and law of the church, history and law of Austria. Vol. 2: From the history and law of the alpine pastures, cultural and art history, nationality, history of science, from the clan and family history of the Jubilee. ). Wagner, Innsbruck et al. 1974–1975, ISBN 3-7030-0010-4 .
• Kurt Ebert (Hrsg.): Festschrift Nikolaus Grass for the 70th birthday presented by colleagues and friends. Wagner, Innsbruck 1986, ISBN 3-7030-0175-5 .
• Nikolaus Grass: Selected essays on the 80th birthday. Edited by Louis Carlen and Hans Constantin Faussner. Weidmann, Hildesheim 1993, ISBN 3-615-00095-1 .

literature

• Address and laudation for Mag. DDDr. Dr. hc Nikolaus Grass, full university professor at the University of Innsbruck. Held during the honorary doctorate on November 8, 1979 in the auditorium of the University of Graz (= Grazer Universitätsreden. 18). Kienreich, Graz 1982.
• Wolfgang Brückner : Nikolaus Grass in memory. In: Yearbook for Folklore . Neue Episode Vol. 23, 2000, pp. 7-10.
• Gerhard Oberkofler : Nikolaus Grass. Some historical miniatures from letters and his correspondence with the Prague Jew Guido Kisch. StudienVerlag, Innsbruck et al. 2008, ISBN 978-3-7065-4559-4 .

Web links

• Literature by and about Nikolaus Grass in the catalog of the German National Library
• Literature about Nikolaus Grass (selection) on the website of the Historical Commission for Styria