Arthur Farndell

After graduating in Modern Languages from Cambridge University, Arthur embarked upon a teaching career in both the public and the private sectors. What he enjoyed most was the ten-year period he spent teaching English to overseas students in Central London.

His interest in languages led him to join others who were engaged on a project to translate from Latin the twelve volumes of letters written by the fifteenth-century philosopher-priest Marsilio Ficino. After more than forty years, ten of these volumes have been published and work continues on the remaining two. Arthur now looks after this project and has edited volumes 9 and 10. This work has resulted in visits to Malta, Greece, Italy, and Australia, as well as various parts of the UK, to speak about Ficino and run courses of study. From Arthur's commitment to Plato came a set of five volumes that offer the English reader the chance to study many of Ficino's commentaries to Plato's dialogues.

Arthur has long been attracted by the Sanskrit language, in which he tutored for many years and led courses in Sydney and Auckland. He has produced A Mahābhārata Companion, which is a guide to the world's longest poem, and he is particularly fascinated by the etymological connections that link English, Latin, and Greek to the Sanskrit language.

His other publications include children's guides to spelling, mathematics, and English grammar.