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'{{lead rewrite|reason = that in keeping with WP:INTRO, information in the lead should appear in the main body, and in keeping with WP:VERIFY, all non-sky is blue autobiographical material should be tied to its source, both requirements which are not currently the case (see "foremost", "leading", Bauer, etc. statements)|date = January 2024}} {{short description|British archaeologist and New Testament scholar (1851-1939)}} {{other people||William Ramsay (disambiguation)}} {{EngvarB|date=July 2023}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}} [[File:Sir William M. Ramsay.jpg|thumb|{{center|Sir William M. Ramsay}}]] '''Sir William Mitchell Ramsay''' [[Fellow of the British Academy|FBA]] (15 March 1851{{snd}}20 April 1939) was a British [[archaeologist]] and [[New Testament]] scholar. By his death in 1939 he had become the foremost authority of his day on the history of Asia Minor, and a leading scholar in the study of the New Testament.{{citation needed lead|date = January 2024}} Ramsay was educated in the Tübingen school of thought (founded by [[Ferdinand Christian Baur|F. C. Baur]]){{citation needed lead|date = January 2024}} which doubted the reliability of the New Testament, but his extensive archaeological and historical studies convinced him of its historical accuracy.<ref>See {{cite book | author = Ramsay, W.M. | date = 1904 | title = St. Paul the Traveller and the Roman Citizen | location = | publisher = Putnam and Sons | ISBN = | page = 8}} where he states, "I may fairly claim to have entered on this investigation without any prejudice in favour of the conclusion which I shall now attempt to justify to the reader [i.e., the reliability of the book of [[Acts of the Apostles|Acts]]]. On the contrary, I began with a mind unfavourable to it, for the ingenuity and apparent completeness of the Tübingen theory had at one time quite convinced me. It did not lie then in my line of life to investigate the subject minutely; but more recently I found myself often brought in contact with the book of Acts as an authority for the topography, antiquities, and society of Asia Minor. It was gradually borne in upon me that in various details the narrative showed marvellous truth. In fact, beginning with the fixed idea that the work was essentially a second-century composition, and never relying on its evidence as trustworthy for first-century conditions, I gradually came to find it a useful ally in some obscure and difficult investigations."</ref> From the post of [[Lincoln Professor of Classical Archaeology and Art|Professor of Classical Art and Architecture]] at Oxford, he was appointed [[Regius Professor of Humanity]] at Aberdeen.<ref name=ccel>[https://www.ccel.org/ccel/ramsay W.M. Ramsay: British archaeologist and New Testament scholar], Christian Classics Ethereal Library</ref> Knighted in 1906 to mark his distinguished service to the world of scholarship, Ramsay also gained three honorary fellowships from Oxford colleges, nine honorary doctorates from British, Continental and North American universities, and became an honorary member of almost every association devoted to archaeology and historical research. He was one of the original members of the [[British Academy]],{{citation needed lead|date = January 2024}} and was awarded the Gold Medal of [[Pope Leo XIII]] in 1893 and the Victoria Medal of the [[Royal Geographical Society]] in 1906.<ref name=ccel/> ==Early life and education== Ramsay was born in [[Glasgow, Scotland]], the youngest son of a third-generation lawyer, Thomas Ramsay and his wife Jane Mitchell, daughter of [[William Mitchell (Scottish entrepreneur)|William Mitchell]]. His father died when he was six years old, and the family moved from the city to the family home in the country district near [[Alloa]]. The help of his older brother and his maternal uncle, Andrew Mitchell of Alloa, made it possible for him to receive an education at the Gymnasium in [[Old Aberdeen]].<ref>{{cite ODNB|id=35664|first=Peter W.|last=Lock|title=Ramsay, Sir William Mitchell}}</ref> (Other relatives include Mary Ramsay and Agnes Margaret Ramsay, who contributed photographs and illustrations in Ramsay's later work, ''The Letters to the Seven Churches''.<ref name="EB1911"/>) Ramsay studied at the [[University of Aberdeen]], where he achieved high distinction.{{cn|date = January 2024}} He then won a scholarship to [[St. John's College, Oxford]], where he obtained a first class in classical moderations (1874) and in ''[[literae humaniores]]'' (1876),{{cn|date = January 2024}} He also studied [[Sanskrit]] under scholar [[Theodor Benfey]] at [[Göttingen]].{{when|date = January 2024}}{{cn|date = January 2024}} In 1880 Ramsay received an Oxford studentship for travel and research in Greece.{{cn|date = January 2024}} At Smyrna, he met Sir C. W. Wilson, then British consul-general in Anatolia, who advised him on inland areas suitable for exploration, and made two long journeys with him in 1881 and 1882.{{cn|date = January 2024}} ==Career== Ramsay travelled widely in Asia Minor and rapidly became the recognised authority on all matters relating to the districts associated with St Paul's missionary journeys and on [[Christianity]] in the early [[Roman Empire]].<ref name="EB1911">{{EB1911|inline=y|wstitle=Ramsay, Sir William Mitchell|volume=22|page=880}}</ref> Greece and Turkey remained the focus of Ramsay's research for the remainder of his academic career. In November 1881,<ref>Ramsay, W.M., "A Study of Phrygian Art", Part I, ''The Journal of Hellenic Studies'', Vol. 9, 1888, p. 353.</ref> he discovered two of the most important Phrygian monuments – the rock tombs "Aslantaş" (Lion Stone) and "Yılantaş" (Snake Stone), located close to the city centre of Afyon.<ref>{{cite web|title=Phrygian Valley: Home to natural wonders, ancient civilizations, aliens|publisher=Daily Sabah, Istanbul|url= https://www.dailysabah.com/feature/2017/10/28/phrygian-valley-home-to-natural-wonders-ancient-civilizations-aliens |date= 27 October 2017}}</ref> In 1883, he discovered the world's oldest complete piece of music, the [[Seikilos epitaph]]. In 1890 he discovered inscriptions in an unknown Anatolian language, [[Pisidian language|Pisidian]], a description of which he published in 1895.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ramsay, W.M. |title=Inscriptions en langue Pisidienne |journal=Revue des universités du Midi |series=Nouvelle Série |date=1895 |volume=1 |issue=2 |pages=353–362 |url=https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k5659837d/f362.item |access-date=2021-04-15}} Archived at [[Bibliothèque nationale de France|BnF Gallica]].</ref> He was known for his expertise in the historic [[geography]] and [[topography]] of [[Asia Minor]] and of its political, social, cultural, and religious history. After becoming a Fellow of [[Exeter College, Oxford]] in 1882, from 1885 to 1886 Ramsay held the newly created [[Lincoln Professor of Classical Archaeology and Art]] at Oxford and became a fellow of [[Lincoln College, Oxford|Lincoln College]] (honorary fellow 1898). In 1886 Ramsay was appointed [[Regius Professor of Humanity]] at the University of Aberdeen.<ref name="EB1911"/> He remained affiliated with Aberdeen until his retirement in 1911.<ref name="EB1922">{{Cite EB1922|title=Ramsay, Sir William Mitchell|volume=32|pages=241–242|url=https://archive.org/details/dli.bengal.10689.10161/page/n398/mode/1up}}</ref> ===Perspective on biblical historicity=== When Ramsay first travelled to Asia Minor, the locations of many of the cities mentioned in the [[Book of Acts]] were not known. Later in life Ramsay stated, "Further study ... showed that the book could bear the most minute scrutiny as an authority for the facts of the Aegean world, and that it was written with such judgment, skill, art and perception of truth as to be a model of historical statement",<ref name = Bearing1915>{{cite book | author = Ramsay, Sir W.M.| date = 1920 | orig-date = 1915 | title = The Bearing of Recent Discovery | edition = 4th | location = | publisher = | ISBN = | url = https://archive.org/details/bearingofrecentd012048mbp | access-date = 27 January 2024}}</ref>{{rp|p.85}} also stating that one "may press the words of Luke in a degree beyond any other historian's".<ref name = Bearing1915/>{{rp|p.89}} Specifically, Ramsay's studies in Asia Minor led him to accept the trustworthiness of Luke's account in the Book of Acts. He wrote:{{blockquote| "I may fairly claim to have entered on this investigation without any prejudice in favour of the conclusion which I shall now attempt to justify to the reader. On the contrary, I began with a mind unfavourable to it for the ingenuity and apparent completeness of the Tubingen theory had at one time quite convinced me. It did not lie then in my line of life to investigate the subject minutely but more recently I found myself often brought in contact with the book of Acts as an authority for the topography, antiquities, and society of Asia Minor. It was gradually borne in upon me that in various details the narrative showed marvellous truth."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ramsay |first=Sir William Mitchell |title=St. Paul the Traveller and the Roman Citizen, Chapter 1: The Acts of the Apostles, Section 1: Trustworthiness |publisher=Hodder and Stoughton |year=1895 |location=London, England |pages=7–8 |language=English}}</ref>}} Regarding the [[authorship of the Pauline epistles]] Ramsay also concluded that all thirteen New Testament letters ostensibly written by Paul were in fact authentic.{{citation needed|date=August 2019}} ===Awards, recognition, leadership positions=== Beginning in 1880, Ramsay began receiving honorary degrees, which eventually included a D.C.L. from Oxford, LL.D. recognition from St Andrews and Glasgow, and a D.D. from Edinburgh. In 1906, Ramsay was knighted for his scholarly achievements on the 400th anniversary of the founding of the University of Aberdeen. He was elected a member of learned societies in Europe and America and was awarded a medal by the [[University of Pennsylvania]].<ref name="EB1911"/> Ramsay was awarded the Gold Medal of [[Pope Leo XIII]] in 1893, and the Victoria Medal of the [[Royal Geographical Society]] in 1906.<ref name=ccel/><ref name="EB1911"/> In 1919, Ramsay was named president of the [[Royal Geographical Society]].{{verification needed|date = January 2024}}<ref>{{cite web|author=Alan Parkinson|url=https://archive.today/20210709193437/https://gapresidents.blogspot.com/2020/|title=All the (GA) Presidents: Men (and Women)|date=December 31, 2020}}</ref>{{citation needed|date=April 2019|reason=an additional source is needed, according to [[WP:reliable sources]]}} ===Legacy of scholarship=== {{expand section | with = contemporary statements that establish whether this scholar's work is of current interest, or only of historical value | small = no | date = January 2024}} ==Personal life== Ramsay's wife, Agnes, accompanied him in many of his journeys; Lady Ramsay, granddaughter of Andrew Marshall of [[Kirkintilloch]], was an author in her own right (''Everyday Life in Turkey'' in 1897, and ''The Romance of Elisavet'' in 1899).<ref name="EB1911"/> == Published works == * {{cite book| author = Ramsey, W.M. | date = 1890 | title = The Historical Geography of Asia Minor | series = Royal Geographical Society, Supplementary Papers | volume = IV | location = London | publisher = John Murray | url = https://archive.org/details/TheHistoricalGeographyOfAsiaMinor/page/n5/mode/2up | access-date = 27 January 2024}} * ''The Church in the Roman Empire Before AD 170'' (1892). * ''St Paul the Traveller and the Roman Citizen''[https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.261358/page/n3 ] (1895; German translation, 1898).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''The Cities and Bishoprics of Phrygia'' (2 vols., 1895, 1897).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''Recent Research in Bible Lands: Its Progress and Results'' (1896). * ''Impressions of Turkey during Twelve Years' Wanderings'' (1897).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''Was Christ born at Bethlehem? A Study on the Credibility of St. Luke'' (1898),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ccel.org/ccel/ramsay/bethlehem.i.html|title=Was Christ Born in Bethlehem?|work=ccel.org}}</ref>{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''A Historical Commentary on St. Paul's Epistle to the Galatians'' (1899).{{full|date = January 2024}} * {{cite book | author = Ramsay, Sir W.M.| date = 1920 | orig-date = 1900 | title = The Bearing of Recent Discovery on the Trustworthiness of the New Testament | edition = 4th | location = | publisher = | ISBN = | url = https://archive.org/details/bearingofrecentd012048mbp | access-date = 27 January 2024}} * ''The Education of Christ: Hill-Side Reveries'' (1902).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''Pictures of the Apostolic Church: Studies in the Book of Acts''.{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''The Church in the Roman Empire'' (1893).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''A Historical Commentary on the Epistles to the Corinthians.'' London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1900–1901. * {{cite book|first1=W.M.|last1=Ramsay| author1-link=William Mitchell Ramsay | date = 1904 | title = The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia and their Place in the Plan of the Apocalypse. | edition = | location = | publisher = | isbn = | url=https://www.ccel.org/ccel/r/ramsay/letters/cache/letters.pdf | access-date = 27 January 2024}}{{full|date = January 2024}}<ref> * ''Pauline and other Studies in Early Christian History'' (1906).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''Studies in the History and Art of the Eastern Provinces of the Roman Empire'' (1906).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''The Cities of St Paul: Their Influence on His Life and Thought'' (1907).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''Luke the Physician, and Other Studies in the History of Religion'' (1908).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''The Revolution in Constantinople and Turkey; A Diary'' (1909).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''The Thousand and One Churches'' (with [[Gertrude L. Bell]], 1909).{{full|date = January 2024}}<ref name="EB1911"/> * ''Pictures of the Apostolic Church: Its Life and Teaching'' (1910).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''The First Christian Century: Notes on Dr. Moffatt's Introduction to the Literature of the New Testament'' (1911).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''An Historical Commentary on the Pastoral Epistles.'' London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1909–1911. * ''Sketches in the Religious Antiquities of Asia Minor'' (1913).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''The Imperial Peace: An Ideal in European History'' (1913).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''The Teaching of Paul in Terms of the Present Day'' (1913).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''Recent Research and the New Testament'' (1914).{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''The Making of a University: What We Have to Learn From Educational Ideals in America'' (1915).{{full|date = January 2024}} * {{cite book|first1=William Mitchell|last1=Ramsay| author1-link=William Mitchell Ramsay | date = 1917 | title = The Intermixture of Races in Asia Minor: Some of its Causes and Effects | edition = | series = Proceedings of the British Academy, Vol. VII | location = London | publisher = Oxford University Press | isbn = | url=https://archive.org/details/intermixtureofra00ramsuoft/page/n1/mode/2up | access-date = 27 January 2024}}{{full|date = January 2024}} * ''Asianic Elements in Greek Civilization. The Gifford Lectures in the University of Edinburgh, 1915-16'' (1927; 2nd enlarged ed., 1928). * [[Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible]], Supplement, Numbers, Hours, Years and Dates, Religion of Greece and Asia Minor, Roads and Travel.{{full|date = January 2024}} As well there are articles in learned periodicals, and in the 9th, 10th and 11th editions of the [[Encyclopædia Britannica]],<ref name="EB1911"/> and in the [[Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible]], including [[Achaia (Roman province)|Achaia]], [[Edremit, Balıkesir|Adramyttium]], [[Antioch in Pisidia]], [[Asia (Roman province)|Asia]], [[Asiarch]], [[Bithynia]], [[Cappadocia]], [[Caria]], [[Chios]], Churches ( Robbers of), [[Cilicia]], [[Cnidus]], [[Colossae]], [[Corinth]], Cos, [[Delos]], [[Derbe]], Diana, [[Ephesian]], [[Ephesus]], [[Galatia]], Galatia (Region of), [[Epistle to the Galatians|Galatians]], [[Halicarnassus]], [[Hierapolis]], [[Iconium]], [[Laodicea on the Lycus|Laodicea]], Lasea, Lycaona, [[Lycia]], [[Lydia]], [[Lystra]], [[Mallus (city)|Mallus]], [[Miletus]], [[Myndus]], [[Myra]], [[Mysia]], [[Nicopolis]], [[Pamphylia]], [[Patara (Lycia)|Patara]], [[Perga]], [[Pergamus]], or [[Pergamum]], [[Phasaelis]], Philadelphia, Phoenix, [[Phrygia]], [[Pisidia]], [[Pontus (region)|Pontus]], [[Rhegium]], [[Rhodes]], [[Samothrace]], [[Sardis]], [[Smyrna]], [[Syracuse, Sicily|Syracuse]], [[Tarsus (city)|Tarsus]], [[Thracia]], Town Clerk, [[Troad|Troas]], Tyrannus.{{cn|date = January 2024}} ==See also== *[[Christian apologetics]] *[[Parlais]] ==References== {{Reflist}} ==Sources== * Letters to the Seven Churches, Preface. (William Mitchell Ramsay) ==External links== {{wikisource author}} {{commons category-inline}} * {{Internet Archive author |sname=William Mitchell Ramsay |sopt=t}} * {{Librivox author |id=17178}} * [http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/gopher/other/courses/rels/735/anatolia/Ramsay3 The Cities and Bishoprics of Phrygia, chapter 3] {{FBA 1902}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Ramsay, William Mitchell}} [[Category:1851 births]] [[Category:1939 deaths]] [[Category:19th-century British archaeologists]] [[Category:19th-century Christian biblical scholars]] [[Category:19th-century evangelicals]] [[Category:19th-century Scottish historians]] [[Category:20th-century British archaeologists]] [[Category:20th-century Christian biblical scholars]] [[Category:20th-century evangelicals]] [[Category:20th-century Scottish historians]] [[Category:Academics of the University of Aberdeen]] [[Category:Alumni of St John's College, Oxford]] [[Category:Alumni of the University of Aberdeen]] [[Category:Archaeologists from Glasgow]] [[Category:British historians of religion]] [[Category:Converts to evangelical Christianity]] [[Category:Converts to Protestantism from atheism or agnosticism]] [[Category:Explorers of West Asia]] [[Category:Fellows of the British Academy]] [[Category:Fellows of Exeter College, Oxford]] [[Category:Fellows of Lincoln College, Oxford]] [[Category:Historians of Christianity]] [[Category:Knights Bachelor]] [[Category:Lincoln Professors of Classical Archaeology and Art]] [[Category:New Testament scholars]] [[Category:People from Clackmannanshire]] [[Category:Scottish biblical scholars]] [[Category:Scottish evangelicals]] [[Category:Victoria Medal recipients]] [[Category:Victorian writers]]'