Abstract. − The article commemorates the 120th anniversary of birth of Fr. Albert Drexel, today almost forgotten Austrian linguist, anthropologist, and an autodidact specialist in African languages. Drexel founded the “Africanist Institute” in Innsbruck in 1924, which later developed into “Missionary Academy,” and finally, in 1935, into “Institute of Racial Studies.” After the annexation of Austria by Hitler in 1938, Drexel was forced into exile in Liechtenstein. This study, based on little known archival sources, presents Drexel as an important contributor to the development of African studies and anthropology in Austria. [History of anthropology in Austria, African studies in Austria, biography, Albert Drexel]