Per Nykrog

Madison-Per Nykrog, Smith Professor Emeritus of the Department of Romance Languages at Harvard University died peacefully on September 11, 2014 at Wynwood in Madison, WI.
He was born in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1925 and was a Danish national. He was at the Copenhagen University from 1945-53, Aarhus University from 1952-79, and Harvard from 1979-1998.
He was promoted Knight of the Order of Danneborg in 1965 and Chevalier de l'Ordre du Merite National by the government of France in 1992.
He was a world class scholar known for his path-breaking and brilliant research and writing. His most significant books are:
-Les Fabliaux. Copenhagen 1957
-Le Pens�e de Balzac dans la Com�die humaine Paris 1965
-L'Amour et la Rose- Le Grand Dessein de Jean de Meung., Cambridge 1986
-La Recherche du Don Perdu-Points de Rep�re dans le Roman de Marcel Proust 1987
-Chr�tien de Troyes romancier Discutable. Geneva 1996
He was dynamic, with a sharp wit, compassionate and modest. As the Chairman of the Department of Romance Languages at Harvard from 1986-1991, he reshaped it by bringing new ideas and new talent.
An excellent teacher, he was respected and loved by his students. He touched everyone who came into contact with him. He is survived by his wife, Usha Nilsson, whom he adored and was married to for 33 years, a son Thomas Nykrog, three grandsons, Christian, Anders, Niels Nykrog, and a large extended family in India.
His private cremation will take place on Tuesday, September 16, 2014 at the Cress Center, and in the presence of close family, his ashes will be immersed in the ocean in Denmark.