Gilson, Étienne, 1884-1978, French philosopher and historian, b. Paris. He taught the history of medieval philosophy at the Sorbonne (1921-32) and then took the chair of medieval philosophy at the Collège de France. In 1929 he helped found the Pontifical Institute of Medieval Studies at Toronto, Canada. Although primarily a historian of philosophy, he was also one of the leaders of the Roman Catholic neo-Thomist movement. He was elected to the French Academy in 1946. Among his works are The Philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas (1919, tr. 1924); The Christian Philosophy of Saint Augustine (1929, tr. 1960); The Spirit of Mediaeval Philosophy (2 vol., 1932, tr. 1936); God and Philosophy (1941); Being and Some Philosophers (1949); and The Philosopher and Theology (1960, tr. 1962).