DANZ, JOHANN ANDREAS, a well-known Orientalist and theologian, born February 1, t654, at Sandhausen, near Gotha. The great capacities he sheaved at an early age brought him under the notice of the then Duke of Gotha, who first sent him to the Gymnasium at Gotha, and, when he had completed his course there, to the University at Wittenberg. Here he applied himself chiefly to philosophy, philology, theology, and the Oriental languages. These latter, however, soon became his favourite study, and he proceeded to Hamburg, where he attended the lectures of Ezra Edzardi, besides having two Jewish instructors in Hebrew and Chaldee (Zohar). He afterwards re turned to Wittenberg, and there delivered his first lectures, but soon left it for Jena (16So), where he read the Talmud with Zarnossi, a learned convert. A subsequent three years' journey, undertaken at the Duke's expense, brought D. to Amsterdam, where he applied himself chiefly to Persian, under the guidance of La Brosse, who had been for seventeen years a missionary in Persia ; and to the study of the Talmud under Jos. Athia and Day. de Riva. In 1684 we find him in London, and somewhat later at Oxford. At this latter place he read Arabic with the elder Pococke, and Hebrew with E. Ber nard and Abendana, two learned Jews. In Cam bridge he became acquainted with Cudworth, H. More, Spencer, Newton, Castelli, and others equally famous. Hearing of the arrival of a native of Arabia in London, he repaired thither again. At Leyden he became the disciple of Trigland, and after a short time the Professorship of Oriental languages was offered to him at that place. He preferred, however, returning to Jena, where the degrees of Dr. and Professor of Theology were con ferred upon him (1710). He died at that place in 1727.
Although looked upon in his own day as one of the most eminent Orientalists, we could not well, in the present state of linguistic and antiquarian studies, pass anything like the same eulogium upon him.
Creditable as some of his very copious productions —on almost every subject connected with the Bible, especially the 0. T.—may he to his zeal and in dustry, still there is very little of lasting value in them. One of his chief merits lies in his having been the first in recent times who, in Germany at least, endeavoured to introduce something like method and accuracy into Hebrew grammar. Un fortunately, however, so far from facilitating its study, he, by introducing a prodigious number of subtle rules, and a terminology far-fetched and almost unintelligible, made it rather more inacces sible than it had been before.
Of the prodigious number of his writings (mostly dissertations, disputations, programmata,' etc.), we will mention Nucifrangihulum Scriptzera S. Ehrece, Jena?, 1686, Svo, called in a later edition Literator Rinse-Chaldaicus, etc., Jenne, 1696, Svo ; Interpres Ebroo-Chaldaicus, Ib. 1696, Svo, re edited 1755 and 1773; .4a'itus Syria reclusus, etc., Jens, 1689, 7th ed. 1735 ; Franc': 1765, Svc, ; De cura izz conguirendis pivselytis, De .Ebrevorunz re nzilitar ; Baptise us proselv/orum "zzdaicus ; Dissertatio pry Luthero; °ratio de Try phone . . . habita de 917 f11 ; de ,eszt Christi coe terna cum patri existentia ; de Krischnza Ebroorunz, de xpewq5a-ylce atztediluvianorum licita, de significa tione nonzinis divini ere. Most of his aca demical writings are to be found in G. H. Meuschen's Nov. Test. ex Talmude illustr., Lips. 1736, and in the Thar. dins. ad V Test.—E. D.