Origins & Early Life

Bernhard Schlink (German: [ˈbɛʁn.haʁt ʃlɪŋk] ; born 6 July 1944) is a German lawyer, academic, and novelist. He is best known for his novel The Reader, which was first published in 1995 and became an international bestseller. He won the 2014 Park Kyong-ni Prize. He was born in Großdornberg, near Bielefeld, to a German father (Edmund Schlink) and a Swiss mother, the youngest of four children.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

His mother, Irmgard, had been a theology student of his father, whom she married in 1938. (Edmund Schlink's first wife had died in 1936.) Bernhard's father had been a seminary professor and pastor in the anti-Nazi Confessing Church. In 1946, he became a professor of dogmatic and ecumenical theology at Heidelberg University, where he would serve until his retirement in 1971. Over the course of four decades, Edmund Schlink became one of the most famous and influential Lutheran theologians in the world and a key participant in the modern Ecumenical Movement. Bernhard Schlink was brought up in Heidelberg from the age of two.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

He studied law at West Berlin's Free University, graduating in 1968. Schlink became a judge at the Constitutional Court of the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia...

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• Aimee Semple McPherson — Contemporary (Died in 1944) (1944): Pioneering Pentecostal evangelist, famous for founding the Foursquare Church.
• Alan Parker — Contemporary (Born in 1944) (1944): Acclaimed English filmmaker known for genre versatility and numerous BAFTA and Golden Globe wins.
• Ali Sayad Shirazi — Contemporary (Born in 1944) (1944): Key Iranian military commander during the Iran-Iraq War, assassinated in 1999.
• 14th Dalai Lama — Shared historical date (07-06 · Born) (1935): Spiritual leader of Tibet and head of Tibetan Buddhism since 1940.
• 50 Cent — Shared historical date (07-06 · Born) (1975): Iconic rapper, actor, and entrepreneur known for raw storytelling and business acumen.
• Arthur Eddington — Historical peer (Died in 1944) (1944): Pioneering astrophysicist known for general relativity confirmations and stellar energy theories.
• Ban Ki-moon — Historical peer (Born in 1944) (1944): South Korean diplomat who served as the UN Secretary-General from 2007 to 2016.
• Adolfo Pedernera — Historical peer (Died in 1995) (1995): Argentine football legend, nicknamed 'El Maestro,' pivotal in the 1940s.
• Alexander Knox — Historical peer (Died in 1995) (1995): Esteemed Canadian actor and writer, known for dramatic roles and literary contributions.
• 2014 League of Legends World Championship — Historical peer (Born in 2014) (2014): The 4th League of Legends World Championship, held in Asia in 2014.
• 1944 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 1944
• July 6 (07-06) On This Day — Historical birthdays and events on July 6