Arthur Erdélyi, 2 October 1908 - 12 December 1977

Abstract

Arthur Erdélyi was a gifted expositor and, like prophets, gifted expositors are not welcome in their homeland, particularly when it is controlled by Nazis. So, in 1939, he joined the growing band of refugees from the continent of Europe and arrived in Britain, destined for Edinburgh. At Waverley station, carrying a battered suitcase and very little money, he was met by Barry Spain who had been deputed by Professor E. T. (later Sir Edmund) Whittaker to give him two pounds and fix him up with lodgings. At the same time Walter Ledermann was called in to act as interpreter since Erdélyi spoke practically no English though his German was fluent. From these welcoming signs Arthur realized that he was to be made at home and thus was started an association with Edinburgh which was to flower into a major love of his life, sufficient to bring him back from the U.S.A. many years later at considerable personal sacrifice. His earlier life had not been without vicissitude. He was born in Budapest on 2 October 1908, the eldest of five children of Ignác Jόzsef Ármin Diamant and Frieda (néeRoth) but his name was changed later when he was adopted by his mother’s second husband after his father’s death. He went to school in Budapest (primary 1914-18, secondary 1918-26) and, while a schoolboy, witnessed the rising of the Communists under Béla Kun. It was during this time that he gained his fluency in German, reading extensively from advanced texts in mathematics.