Carl Linnaeus facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Carl Linnaeus
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Carl von Linné, Alexander Roslin, 1775
(oil on canvas, Gripsholm Castle) |
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| Born | 23 May 1707 Råshult, Stenbrohult parish (now within Älmhult Municipality), Sweden
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| Died | 10 January 1778 (aged 70) Hammarby (estate), Danmark parish (outside Uppsala), Sweden
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| Resting place | Uppsala Cathedral |
| Nationality | Swedish |
| Alma mater |
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| Known for | |
| Spouse(s) |
Sara Elisabeth Moraea
(m. 1739) |
| Children | 7 |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields |
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| Institutions | Uppsala University |
| Thesis | Dissertatio medica inauguralis in qua exhibetur hypothesis nova de febrium intermittentium causa (1735) |
| Notable students | Peter Ascanius |
| Author abbrev. (botany) | L. |
| Author abbrev. (zoology) | Linnaeus |
| Signature | |
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Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778) was a Swedish botanist, physician and zoologist who created the binomial nomenclature. In this system, every kind of animal and plant is given a name consisting of two Latin words, for its genus and species. This became used by biologists all over the world, so he is known as the "father of modern taxonomy". He was a good linguist, and famous in his time. He was made a noble by the Swedish king.
Contents
Biography
Early life
Carl was born in Sweden. He was going to be a priest, but did not do well enough in school for that. Instead, Carl studied at a college for botany because he liked it. He studied in Lund and tried to improve the garden there. He later went to another college.
Travels and research
In 1733 Linnaeus met Sara Lisa Moraeus and dressed up in the traditional Sami kolt to impress on her, but her father didn't want to give her away in marriage before Linnaeus earned his degree in medicine and could prove that he could earn enough money for a family.
In 1735 Linnaeus moved to the Netherlands, for three years. Here he earned his degree in medicine. He also published his book on plant classification.
Later he moved to Stockholm and practiced as a doctor. On the 23rd of July 1739 Linnaeus married Sara Morea in Stockholm.
Throughout the 1740s he conducted many field trips to places in Sweden to name plants and animals. When not on travels, Linnaeus worked on his classification, so it would work for plants, animals, and minerals.
The Swedish king Adolf Fredrik made Linnaeus a noble in 1757, and Linnaeus took the last name von Linné, later often signing just Carl Linné.
Last years
After he was made a noble, he continued teaching and writing. His reputation had spread over the world, and he talked with many different people. Linnaeus was upset by weak health, and he had gout and tooth aches. A stroke in 1774 weakened him, and two years later he had another, losing the use of his right side. He died on January 1778 and was buried in Uppsala cathedral.
Mankind
Linnaeus classified man as among the primates, which was already well understood by anthropologists. It attracted the criticism of the Swedish church. The Lutheran Archbishop of Uppsala accused him of "impiety".
Linnaeus recognised four races in the human species. These were European whites, American reds (Native Americans), Asian browns, and African blacks. Blumenbach's classification was similar, with the addition of a Mongolian (= Chinese) or yellow race. Thus recognition of man's position as a primate and the existence of races was quite widespread before the theory of evolution was formulated.
Commemoration
Anniversaries of Linnaeus's birth have been marked by major celebrations. Linnaeus has appeared on numerous Swedish postage stamps and banknotes. There are numerous statues of Linnaeus in countries around the world. The Linnean Society of London has awarded the Linnean Medal for excellence in botany or zoology since 1888.
Following approval by the Riksdag of Sweden, Växjö University and Kalmar College merged on 1 January 2010 to become Linnaeus University.
Other things named after Linnaeus include the twinflower genus Linnaea, Linnaeosicyos (a monotypic genus in the family Cucurbitaceae), the crater Linné on the Earth's moon, a street in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the cobalt sulfide mineral Linnaeite.
Related pages
Images for kids
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Detail from the 6th edition of Systema Naturae (1748) describing Anthropomorpha ( = Primates) with a division between Homo and Simia
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1907 celebration in Råshult
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Statue as a university student in Lund
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Pollination depicted in Praeludia Sponsaliorum Plantarum (1729)
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Carl Linnaeus in Laponian costume (1737)
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Wearing the traditional dress of the Sami people of Lapland, holding the twinflower, later known as Linnaea borealis, that became his personal emblem. Martin Hoffman, 1737.
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The Hamburg Hydra, from the Thesaurus (1734) of Albertus Seba. Linnaeus identified the hydra specimen as a fake in 1735.
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View of Hartekamp, where Carl von Linné lived and studied for three years, from 1735 until 1738
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Title page of Musa Cliffortiana (1736), Linnaeus's first botanical monograph.
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Title page of Hortus Cliffortianus (1737). The work was a collaboration between Linnaeus and Georg Dionysius Ehret, financed by George Clifford III, one of the directors of the VOC.
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Cities where he worked; those outside Sweden were only visited during 1735–1738.
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Wedding portrait
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House in Uppsala
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Summer home at his Hammarby estate
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The Linnaean Garden in Uppsala
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Cover of Nutrix Noverca (1752)
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His coat of arms
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Headstone of him and his son Carl Linnaeus the Younger
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Carl Peter Thunberg was a VOC physician and an apostle of Linnaeus.
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Peter Forsskål was among the apostles who met a tragic fate abroad.
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Apostle Daniel Solander (far left) with Joseph Banks (left, sitting) accompanied James Cook (centre) on his journey to Australia.
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Title page of the 10th edition of Systema Naturæ (1758)
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Linnaeus marble by Léon-Joseph Chavalliaud (1899), outside the Palm House at Sefton Park, Liverpool
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Table of the Animal Kingdom (Regnum Animale) from the 1st edition of Systema Naturæ (1735)
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Statue on University of Chicago campus
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1907 celebration in Råshult
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See also
In Spanish: Carlos Linneo para niños
