DR. WOLFGANG PETER AHRENS

1940 - 2022

AHRENS, DR. WOLFGANG PETER On Friday, February 18, 2022 at home in Woodbridge, with his wife and daughter by his side, after a rapid decline following several years of health challenges. Husband of Dr. Sheila Embleton and father of Anne Ahrens-Embleton (Cai Durbin), only child of the late Siegfried and Else (Riger) Ahrens, also survived by many relatives in Germany. Born in Stralsund, Germany, January 4, 1940, he moved with his family to Schwetzingen, a few years after World War Two, and then to Toronto in 1953, attending Bloor Collegiate, then the University of Toronto, earning a BA (German and Italian, 1963). He was an active member of the air cadets (travelling with them across Canada and to Germany). He then went to Ohio State University, earning an MA (1965) and PhD (1969) in German. He returned to Toronto to become a professor of German at York University, teaching a wide range of language, literature, and culture courses, from 1969 until his retirement in 2005. He was an engaged member of the York community, serving on committees at all levels of the University, founding chair of the Department of Languages, Literatures and Linguistics, and enjoyed mentoring younger colleagues. He remained an active researcher, particularly in the field of name studies, with his last publication currently in press. Other than his family, his greatest loves were reading and travel. Visitation Friday, February 25th, 6-8 p.m., Kane-Jerrett Funeral Home, 8088 Yonge Street, Thornhill. There will be a private family funeral, to be followed in post-Covid times with a celebration of life (contact embleton@yorku.ca). In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Ahrens Scholarship at York University (https://giving.yorku.ca/WolfgangAhrens) or to the Embleton Award for Women in Science and Engineering at York University (https://giving.yorku.ca/EmbletonAward), or any charity of your choice.