Jamia Millia: The German woman who dedicated her life to an Indian university

Gerda Philipsborn left her home in Germany to help her three Indian friends set up Jamia Millia Islamia.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatchHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS ElectionKamala HarrisDonald TrumpJD VanceTim WalzUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessWomen at the HelmFuture of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsArtsArts in MotionTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthVideoLiveAudioWeatherNewslettersThe German woman who helped build an Indian universityFamily of Muhammad MujeebGerda Philipsborn left her home in Germany to dedicate her life to serving the people of JamiaIn a Muslim graveyard in Delhi, a tombstone stands out.

It has an inscription written in the Urdu language, but beneath it lies the name of a German-born Jewish woman - Gerda Philipsborn - followed by the epithet 'Aapajaan' or 'elder sister'.

This is an unusual sight as the graves of the founders of Jamia Millia Islamia - a top Muslim university rooted in India's independence movement – rest here. Its students have upheld this legacy of political activism, including protests against a controversial citizenship law introduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government in 2019.

So, how did a German Jew come to be invested in a place so distant and disconnected from her homeland?

The answer lies somewhere between friendship and a woman's search for meaning, says Margrit Pernau, author of Jamia's Aapa Jaan: The Many Lifeworlds of Gerda Philipsborn.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn020ywgx2yo

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