C(harles) C(utler) Torrey

See also Charles Cutler Torrey


1863-1956. Linguist who specialized in OT Aramaic, Apocrypha, and Pseudepigrapha of the OT, the Aramaic background of the NT and (later) Islam. He taught at Andover Seminary (1892-1900) and Yale University as professor of Semitic languages (1900-1932; emeritus 1932-56). Torrey was the first director of the American School of Oriental Research in Jerusalem (1900-1901). His writings include The Translations Made from the Original Aramaic Gospels (1912); The Composition and Date of Acts (1916); The Four Gospels (1933; rev. ed., 1947); The Apocryphal Literature (1945); and Documents of the Primitive Church (1946). His critical reconstructions of various OT books and theories regarding alleged Aramaic originals of large portions of the NT have found little acceptance among scholars.