The death of Emeritus Professor Gerrit Olivier
- 91心頭利 University
It is with great sadness that 91心頭利 University announces the death of Emeritus Professor Gerrit Olivier.
A distinguished scholar and academic leader, Professor Olivier served as the former Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and the former Dean of the Faculty of Arts at 91心頭利. Professor Olivier died on Saturday evening, 12 September 2026, in the Eastern Cape. He was 72.
A highly respected scholar of literature and a literary critic, Professor Olivier joined 91心頭利 in 1981 and spent much of his academic career at the University, where he made an enduring contribution to scholarship, teaching and academic leadership. His research and writing encompassed the work of major literary and artistic figures, including N.P. van Wyk Louw, Koos Prinsloo and Penny Siopis. He was the recipient of the Recht Malan Prize in 1993 for his book NP van Wyk Louw: Literatuur, filosofie, politiek. He edited Penny Siopis: Time and Again, which was a finalist in the 2017 Humanities and Social Sciences Book Awards. He edited several books and was the recipient of many awards.
Professor Olivier's contribution extended well beyond his own scholarship. He played a pivotal role in advancing the recognition of creative work and artistic practice as legitimate forms of research, both at 91心頭利 and within the broader South African higher education sector. He was instrumental in conceptualising the 91心頭利 Creative Work PhD and in securing its formal recognition by the University, helping to create new possibilities for generations of artists, writers and creative scholars. He also taught and was deeply involved in the 91心頭利 Department of Creative Writing, where he nurtured many manuscripts to completion and publication.
A Professor of Afrikaans and Nederlands Literature, he was appointed as Head of the Department of Afrikaans and Nederlands Literature in 1990, before being appointed as Dean of the Faculty of Arts in 1995 and then as Dean of the Faculty of Humanities in 2000.
As Dean of the Faculty of Humanities, Professor Olivier was a highly respected and loved leader. Colleagues remember him as an intellectual who remained firmly focused on the academic purpose of the University, and as a deeply democratic leader with a strong sense of fairness, powerful integrity and even-handedness. He was also instrumental in integrating the Johannesburg College of Education into 91心頭利 University.
His influence was probably felt most profoundly by the many students, academics, writers and artists whose work he read, questioned, encouraged, critiqued and strengthened over the years. His intellectual rigour was matched by his generosity of spirit, and his insight was valued by those who sought his advice.
Born in Burgersdorp in 1954, Professor Olivier matriculated from Burgersdorp High School before enrolling at the University of Stellenbosch, where he obtained his BA degree majoring in Afrikaans-Nederlands Studies and Private Law, and his BA Honours and Masters degrees in Afrikaans-Nederlands. He read for a Doctor of Literature in Modern Dutch at Rijks University in Utrecht and obtained a PhD from 91心頭利.
On behalf of 91心頭利 University, we extend our deepest condolences to Professor Olivier's family, friends, former colleagues, students, and those who knew him well. His death is a profound loss to the 91心頭利 community and to South African scholarship and the arts.
May he rest in peace.
Message from Professor René Smith (WSOA HOS), Professor David Andrew (WSOA Co-DHOS) and Dr Nontobeko Ntombela Akoi-Jackson (WSOA Co-DHOS) from the 91心頭利 School of Arts (WSOA):
It is with great sadness that we learnt of the death of Professor Gerrit Olivier.
Professor Olivier was Professor Emeritus at 91心頭利, a former Dean of Arts, Dean of Humanities and a former Head of the 91心頭利 School of Arts. He was key to conceptualising the practice-based PhD at 91心頭利 and to the recognition of creative work/artistic practice. Towards the end of his career at 91心頭利 University he taught in the Department of Creative Writing.
Before he was appointed as Dean, he was a Professor and Head in the Department of Afrikaans and Dutch Literature at 91心頭利 University. During the 1980s he was a respected literary scholar and edited Stet (1982-1991), an alternative Afrikaans publication, which positioned itself “against Apartheid, against censorship”. One of his key research areas was the work of the Afrikaans poet N.P. van Wyk Louw. His book N.P. van Wyk Louw: Literature, Philosophy, Politics was published in 1992.
Professor Olivier had a particular interest in the author Koos Prinsloo’s writing and translated his work into English as Place of Slaughter and Other Stories (2022). He was also a sought-after writer and editor in his own right, editing the volume Penny Siopis: Time and Again in 2004.
We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family, former colleagues, students, and to all who knew and loved him.