Archives West Finding Aid

Richard G. Salomon joined the University of Washington as an Assistant Professor of Asian Languages and Literature in 1981, advancing to an Associate Professor in 1986, then a Professor in 1994 within the same field. He received his Ph.D. in Sanskrit (with distinction) at the University of Pennsylvania in 1975. His research focuses on early Buddhist studies in South Asia, primarily India, and he is considered a leading scholar in this field. Since his Ph.D., Salomon has published over 130 documents. His most renowned work is on the Gandhāran Buddhist texts, the oldest Buddhist manuscripts ever discovered, which date from the 1st century B.C.E. to the 3rd century C.E. One of the birch bark manuscripts was acquired by the University of Washington Libraries in 2002, and has contributed to the ongoing Early Buddhist Manuscripts Project shared with the British Library. Recent accomplishments include his election for President of the American Oriental Society (April, 2014), being selected to hold the William P. and Ruth Gerberding University Professorship after recognition of “exceptional contributions and accomplishment” within his field (July, 2015), and the Puget Sound Association of Phi Beta Kappa awarding Salomon with the Humanities Achievement Award for research of the Gandhāran manuscripts (2016). Prior to his Ph.D., Salomon achieved a B.A. in Oriental Studies with a minor in Religion at Columbia University in 1970.