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Revision as of 13:59, 25 December 2005 by 59.92.144.155 (talk)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Michael Witzel (born 1943) is Wales Professor of Sanskrit at Harvard University. He has been teaching Sanskrit since 1972. He is noted for his studies of the dialects of Vedic Sanskrit, old Indian history and the development of Vedic religion. He is editor-in-chief of the Electronic Journal of Vedic Studies (EJVS).
Once an ardent proponent of the now-discredited Aryan Invasion Theory, Witzel has changed his thesis in recent years to claim that there was a "migration" of Aryans out of Europe into India. Together with India's government-funded Marxist ideologues, he claims to represent the "mainstream" opinion on the subject. His critics though contend that there is however no scientific evidence pointing to the said migration, and that Witzel's opinions are based on his Creationist beliefs. They point to recent mtDNA-based discoveries that suggest that all humans are descended from a single migration out of Africa into India and then further east and beyond into Australasia. Witzel's refusal to take note of the scientific advances has landed him in a media and academic controversy.