Kweku Arku Garbrah, Emeritus Professor of Classical Studies, died Oct. 2.

He was born Dec. 22, 1937, in Cape Coast, Ghana. He was the son of Charles Brookman Garbrah and Efuwa Gyimah Garbrah. He had five siblings who have all died before him: Charles Brookman Garbrah Jr., Margert Garbrah, Anna Garbrah, Kofi Ayensu Garbrah (died at age 1) and Victoria Garbrah.

He attended Mfantsipim school and then won a scholarship to read classics at the University of Ghana, Legon, earning an external Bachelor of Arts at the University of London. He went on to earn his B. Litt. at Oxford and the D. Phil at the University of Cologne. His mentors in all three institutions were luminaries in their fields: in Legon he studied Latin with the writer, Ama Ata Aidoo, in Oxford he studied Homeric Greek with M.L. West, and in Cologne he studied Greek inscriptions with R. Merkelbach.

While completing his doctoral work, Garbrah taught at several American universities, including UT Austin and UCLA. He taught at the University of Alberta, Edmonton from 1972, rising through the ranks and leaving in 1990 as professor to take a visiting professorship and then a professorship at the University of Michigan, where he taught for 25 years.

Ever the consummate philologist, Garbrah’s research focused on defining grammatical, syntactical and dialectal variants within a wide array of archaic and classical epigraphical and literary Ancient Greek texts. He also developed the study of the grammar of Greek dialects. Garbrah authored “A Grammar of Ionic Inscriptions from Erythrae” (Anton Hain Verlag, 1978) as well as numerous articles ranging in scope.

In the Department of Classical Studies at U-M, Garbrah was an exacting teacher, noted for his insistence that his students undertake demanding philological training. His prolific learning served as a model of accuracy and fluency for ancient Greek and Latin. He guided virtually all of the graduate students in the department to the highest standards of linguistic proficiency. He also inspired the undergraduate students to a love of philology.

Outside the department, Garbrah was a treasured friend to the African diaspora community at U-M.

A respected colleague, devoted friend and beloved father and grandfather Garbrah is survived by his two daughters, Aba and Efuwa , his son, Kofi,  his son’s wife and two grandchildren.

— Submitted by Anna Moyer, Department of Classical Studies