Colin Smith (lepidopterist)

{{Short description|British lepidopterist (1936–2023)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2023}}

{{Infobox scientist

|name = Colin Philip Smith

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|birth_date = {{birth date|1936|11|24|df=y}}

|birth_place = London, England

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|death_date = {{death date and given age|2023|11|04|86|df=y}}

|death_place = Pokhara, Nepal

|residence =

|citizenship = Nepal

|nationality = British

|field = Lepidopterist
Natural history

|work_institutions = Annapurna Natural History Museum

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Colin Philip Smith (24 November 1936 – 4 November 2023) was a British lepidopterist who lived and worked in Nepal. He was widely known as "Putali Bajey" (Nepali: पुतली बाजे ) or "Butterfly Grandad" in Nepal.{{cite web|url=https://english.onlinekhabar.com/the-delicate-beauty-of-nepals-butterflies.html|website=OnlineKhabar|title=The delicate beauty of Nepal's butterflies

|accessdate= 8 August 2021}}{{cite web|url=https://deshsanchar.com/2019/12/02/280111/|website=DeshSanchar|title='पुतली बाजे' अब सम्मानार्थ नेपाली

|accessdate= 8 August 2021}} He spent more than 50 years in Nepal studying and writing about its butterfly fauna.{{cite web|url=https://www.namastenepaltrekking.com/birds-and-butterfly-research|website=Namaste Nepal|title=Birds and Butterfly Research

|accessdate= 10 September 2021}} He is the author of several books on butterflies of Nepal.{{cite web|url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/putali-baje-obliged-with-nepali-citizenship|website=The Himalayan Times|title=Putali Baje obliged with Nepali citizenship|access-date=6 August 2021}}{{cite web|url=https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/%E0%A4%AA%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%B2%E0%A5%80-%E0%A4%AC%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%9C%E0%A5%87-and-the-metaphor-of-metamorphosis/|website=NepaliTimes|title=पुतली बाजे and the metaphor of metamorphosis|accessdate= 8 August 2021}}{{cite web|url=https://www.insidehimalayas.com/butterflies-in-nepal|website=Inside Himalayas|title=Butterflies in Nepal|access-date=10 September 2021}} He visited Nepal in 1966 as a teacher under a United Mission to Nepal program. Smith taught some of the most popular Nepali personalities such as Baburam Bhattarai and Upendra Devkota at the start of his career.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/nepali/news-47987367|website=BBCNews|title=पुतली बाजे: 'पुतली खोज्दै आएँ, नेपाली नागरिक भएर मर्न मन छ'|accessdate= 8 August 2021}}{{cite web|url=https://www.southasiatime.com/2019/11/24/british-national-putalibaje-receives-citizenship-of-nepal|website=South Asia Time|title=British national 'Putalibaje' receives citizenship of Nepal|accessdate= 10 September 2021}}

In 2019, the Nepal government granted him honorary citizenship of Nepal for his achievements as well as international reputation.{{cite web|url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/nepal/british-national-putalibaje-to-receive-honorary-citizenship|website=The Himalayan Times|title=British national Putalibaje to receive honorary citizenship|accessdate= 10 September 2021}} He is the third person to receive the honour after Sir Edmund Hillary and Toni Hagen, and before Um Hong-gil.{{cite web|url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/kathmandu/korean-philanthropist-um-hong-gil-gets-honorary-citizenship|website=South Asia Time|title=Korean philanthropist Um Hong Gil gets honorary citizenship.|accessdate= 10 September 2021}}

Smith died due to a gastrointestinal stromal tumor at Hariyokharka Hospital in Pokhara, on 4 November 2023. He was 87.[https://www.gandaknews.com/2023/11/04/120380/ रहेनन् ‘पुतली बाजे’, ८७ वर्षमा अस्ताए] {{in lang|ne}}