Joseph von Hammer-Purgstall (1774-1856) was an Austrian orientalist.
Born Joseph Hammer in Graz, Styria, he received his early education mainly in Vienna. Entering the diplomatic service in 1796, he was appointed in 1799 to a position in the Austrian embassy in Constantinople. In 1807 he returned home from the East.
For fifty years Hammer-Purgstall wrote prolifically on the most diverse subjects and published numerous texts and translations of Arabic, Persian and Turkish authors.
