Content Description
The Salim Ali Papers is divided into two series. The first series is titled S R Nayak. It contains visiting cards/ contact cards that were kept by Salim Ali. All visiting cards have been arranged alphabetically. It include visiting cards of artists, forest conservators, researchers, publishing houses, professors, government officials, etc. These cards were handed to Nayak who was working on a project with Salim Ali in 1987 at BNHS.
The second series contains letters, research material and ephemera. Most of this material was found tucked between a pages in a set of books on birds that belonged to Ali.
Dates
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1941 - 1989
Creator
- V., Parvathy (Person)
- Ramachandran, Anjali (Person)
Biographical / Historical
Sálim Moizuddin Abdul Ali was born on 12 November 1896. Ali is one of the most well known ornithologist and naturalists in India, popularising birding by conducting extensive surveys across the sub-continent and publishing several popular bird books. Ali was born and raised in Bombay and is part of the Tyabji family. He became involved with Bombay Natural History Society and was introduced to birding by BNHS members like Kinnear and Millard. Ali trained under Erwin Stresemann in Germany. After returning to India, Ali started conducting bird surveys in princely states across the country. Thus Ali began his long career in ornithology and conservation. Several organisations, sanctuaries and several species of birds are named after Sálim Ali. He died at the age of 90 in Bombay in 1987.
Extent
0.5 Linear Feet (1 Hollinger Archives Box)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
The intellectual arrangement strives to preserve provenance and original order of the papers. Where an original order could not be found, the Archives has applied an order, and folders within sub-series are arranged usually in chronological or alphabetical order. See Scope and Content section for details.
Custodial History
S R Nayak is an artist and photographer from Mumbai,Maharashtra. He is also a photographer of plants and trees. He worked with Salim Ali on a project as a project assosciate in the 1980s. It is during this time that S R Nayak collected a bunch of visiting cards of Salim Ali that he was throwing away.
Shahid Ali is Salim Ali's grand nephew. Ali also has a interest in ornithology and is a member of Bombay Natural History Society. Ali donated a set of books which belonged to Salim Ali to the Archives. The books were kept in the Ali residence in Kihim, Bombay.
Occupation
Topical
- Title
- Salim Ali Papers
- Author
- Parvathy V, Anjali JR
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Archives at NCBS Repository
National Centre for Biological Sciences - Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
Bangalore Karnataka 560065 India
+9180 6717 6010
+9180 6717 6011
archives@ncbs.res.in