Carl Linnaeus (Latinized as
Carolus Linnaeus, also known after his
ennoblement as
Carl von Linné (
help·
info), May 23 [
O.S. May 13] 1707 – January 10, 1778) was a
Swedish botanist,
physician and
zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of
binomial nomenclature. He is known as the father of modern
taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern
ecology.
Linnaeus was born in the countryside of
Småland, in southern Sweden. His father was the first in his ancestry to adopt a permanent last name; prior to that, ancestors had used the
patronymic naming system of Scandinavian countries. His father adopted the Latin-form name Linnaeus after a giant linden tree on the family homestead. Linnaeus got most of his higher education at
Uppsala University and began giving lectures of
botany there in 1730. He lived abroad between 1735–1738 where he studied and also published a first edition of his
Systema Naturae in the Netherlands. He then returned to Sweden where he became professor of botany at
Uppsala. In the 1740s he was sent on several journeys through Sweden to find and classify plants and animals. In the 1750s and 60s he continued to collect and classify animals, plants, and minerals, and published several volumes. At the time of his death, he was widely renowned throughout Europe as one of the most acclaimed scientists of the time.
The Swiss philosopher
Jean-Jacques Rousseau sent him the message: "Tell him I know no greater man on earth."
[2] The German writer
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote: "With the exception of
Shakespeare and
Spinoza, I know no one among the no longer living who has influenced me more strongly."
[2] Swedish author
August Strindberg wrote: "Linnaeus was in reality a poet who happened to become a naturalist".
[3]
The author abbreviation used to indicate Linnaeus as the authority for species names is simply
L.
