KURZ, ktliirts, IfErmucit (1803-73). A Ger man critic and historian of literature, born in Paris, and educated at Leipzig and Paris. Ile studied Chinese under Abel Itilmusat. and pub lished many articles on Chinese literature, such as Buchdruckerei and Buehhandel in China (182S), Ucbcr die acacre Poesie der Chincsen (1828), and N•moirc sae 1'0111. politique et religieux de hi Chine, 2300 ens avant noire ere (1830). De became a member of the Asiatic Society, editor of the Journal 11 siutique. and a collaborator on the Chinese dictionary which had been begun by Basile. The revolution of July, 1830, called him back to Germany. and in Munich he became docent of Chinese and editor of the periodical Bayerns Deputicrtenkanmer. At Augsburg his management of Die Zeit brought about his imprisonment for two years, during which tints he translated a Chinese epic under the title Das Blumenblatt (1836). Upon his release from prison (1834), he went to Switzerland and became professor of German at Saint Gall, and later at Aaran, where he was librarian also, and devoted himself to the study of German literature. Pis most important
work is the flcschichtc der deutsche?: Litteratur (7th ed. 1876), which treats the theme in the pragmatic manner, and is valuable because of the abundant. biographical material and the judicious selections from the various authors. Among his other works, mention should be made of: Handbuch dcr portischca National litteratur (1840.43) : flaw/burl: der dentschen Prose (I845-46); Die deutsche Bitleratur im Elsass (1874) ; of his Deutsche Bibliothek ( IS62-68), in which he edited the Esopus of Burkhard Waldis, the Simplicianisehe Sehriften by flrimmelshausen, Fisehart's Diehl linger:, and Wiekram's llothragrabfichicia, and of the critical editions of Schiller (1867.68) and Goethe (1808 70).