Axel Gudbrand Blytt (19 May 1843 – 18 July 1898) was a

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

professor,

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

and

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...

. He was the author of a number of books regarding the flora of Norway. Today he is most associated with his role in developing the Blytt-Sernander theory of climatic change.

Biography

Blytt was born in Kristiania (now

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

), Norway. He was the son of

Matthias Numsen Blytt Matthias Numsen Blytt (26 April 1789 – 26 June 1862) was a Norwegian botanist. He was born at Overhalla in Nord-Trøndelag, Norway. He attended the University of Christiania (now University of Oslo) and the University of Copenhagen. Blytt was ...

(1789–1862) and Ambrosia Henriksen (1822–1900). His father was a noted professor of

botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...

The Royal Frederick University The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public university, public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and List of oldest universities in continuous operation#Europe, ...

(now University of Oslo). He graduated

Examen artium Examen artium was the name of the academic certification conferred in Denmark and Norway, qualifying the student for admission to university studies. Examen artium was originally introduced as the entrance exam of the University of Copenhagen in 1 ...

from Royal Frederick University in 1860. After the death of his father in 1862, he continued his father's work with Norwegian

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. E ...

. Axel Blytt served with the Christiania Herbarium at the

University of Oslo The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

from 1865, first as a conservator, then from 1880 as a professor. In 1869, he was awarded the Crown Prince's gold medal (''Kronprinsens gullmedalje''). Based partly on his father's work, he published ''Norges Flora'' in two volumes during 1874 and 1876. His work
''Essay on the Immigration of Norwegian Flora''
(1876) was read by and influenced

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended fr ...

. He died in Oslo during 1898. His wor
''Haandbog i Norges flora''
was completed and published posthumously by botanist

Ove Dahl Ove Christian Dahl (29 January 186217 September 1940) was a Norwegian botanist. He was born in Orkdal. He graduated in philology from the University of Kristiania in 1886, and then worked as a teacher. His interests eventually turned towards bot ...

during 1906.

Legacy

Blyttberget, a high crag southeast of

Nordlaguna Nordlaguna is a lagoon on the island of Jan Mayen. It is the second largest lake of Jan Mayen, after Sørlaguna, and is located in the central part of the island, near the bay of Stasjonsbukta. It was possibly formed by an eruption of Beerenberg ...

on the Norwegian island of

Jan Mayen Jan Mayen () is a Norwegian volcanic island in the Arctic Ocean with no permanent population. It is long (southwest-northeast) and in area, partly covered by glaciers (an area of around the Beerenberg volcano). It has two parts: larger nort ...

, is named for him. The German botanist

Wilhelm Schimper Georg Heinrich Wilhelm Schimper in Amharic sources known as Sambar (2 August 1804 – October 1878) was a renowned German botanist and naturalist, who spent more than forty years in Ethiopia collecting specimens of plants, mainly in Semien, ...

named several mosses after him as well. The remaining existent specimens Blytt collected on his studies are held at the Botanical Museum of the

. The Buffalo Museum of Science in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

also holds a collection of specimens attributed to a collector identified as "Blytt", who is likely Axel Blytt. This is evidenced by Charles Peck, the New York State Botanist from 1883 to 1913, in his 1872 ''Report of the Botanist'' to the New York Senate. Peck wrote that he had received 22 specimens of lichens from the University of Norway, Christiana (Oslo), Norway, for the New York State Cabinet. There is also a mention of Blytt in correspondence between the Swiss botanist

Leo Lesquereux Charles Léo Lesquereux (November 18, 1806 – October 25, 1889) was a Swiss-born bryologist and a pioneer of American paleobotany who studied the formation of peat bogs. Career Lesquereux was born in the town of Fleurier, located in the can ...

and

George William Clinton Hon. George William Clinton (April 21, 1807 – September 7, 1885) was a New York lawyer, politician, judge, author, and amateur naturalist. He served as Mayor of Buffalo, New York from 1842 to 1843. Early life and family Clinton was born on Ap ...

, then President of the Buffalo Museum of Natural Sciences, regarding specimens and a visit to the Buffalo Museum by Lesquereux. Though the existing correspondence only provides Lesquereux's letters, he refers to Blytt as "a good Norwegian Botanist I do not know his address in any other way than as you write it. Christiania Norway."Eckel, P.M. (Oct. 2005) Correspondence of Leo Lesquereux and G. W. Clinton. Vol. 3. No. 51 178''Res Botanica.'' Missouri Botanical Garden. Axel_Blytt

Selected works

''Botanisk Reise i Valders og de tilgrændsende Egne''
1864
Om Vegetationsforholdene ved Sognefjorden''
1869
''Vore beste spiselige Soparter''
1869
''Christiania Omegns Phanerogamer og Bregner''
1870
''Spiselige Lavarter''
1870
''Norges Flora. Andel og tredie Del''
2 volumes, 1874–76
''Haandbog i Norges flora''
(completed and published by

), 1906

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blytt, Axel Gudbrand 1843 births 1898 deaths Scientists from Oslo University of Oslo alumni University of Oslo faculty Norwegian educators Norwegian geologists 19th-century Norwegian botanists Botanists with author abbreviations Members of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters

Biography

Legacy

Selected works

Related reading

References