Emma Leclercq (15 August 1851 – 24 April 1933) was a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct language ...

cell biologist and feminist lecturer. She was known for being the first female student and graduate from Université libre de Bruxelles, and the first female doctorate earner from

Ghent University Ghent University ( nl, Universiteit Gent, abbreviated as UGent) is a public research university located in Ghent, Belgium. Established before the state of Belgium itself, the university was founded by the Dutch King William I in 1817, when the ...

Biography

Leclercq began teaching in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

at the

Isabelle Gatti de Gamond Isabelle Laure Gatti de Gamond (28 July 1839 – 11 October 1905) was a Belgium, Belgian educationalist, feminist, and politician. Life Isabelle Gatti was the second of four daughters born to Giovanni Gatti, an Italian artist, and feminist writ ...

girls' high school. She petitioned to enroll in the Faculty of Sciences at Université libre de Bruxelles for the 1878–1879 academic year. However, her request was denied until 1880. She earned her bachelor's at U.L.B. in 1883 and her doctorate in natural sciences from Ghent in 1885. In November 1885, she became the only female member of la Société Belge de Microscopie. She studied spermatogenesis at the

Collège de France The Collège de France (), formerly known as the ''Collège Royal'' or as the ''Collège impérial'' founded in 1530 by François I, is a higher education and research establishment (''grand établissement'') in France. It is located in Paris ne ...

under Édouard-Gérard Balbiani and at Ghent under Charles van Bambeke in 1890. Her papers on spermatogenesis and microorganisms were published in the journal of the

French Academy of Sciences The French Academy of Sciences (French: ''Académie des sciences'') is a learned society, founded in 1666 by Louis XIV of France, Louis XIV at the suggestion of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, to encourage and protect the spirit of French Scientific me ...

the same year. Later, in 1893, she gave lectures on behalf of the

Ligue belge du droit des femmes The Belgian League for the Rights of Women (french: italic=no, Ligue belge du droit des femmes) was a political association founded in Belgium in 1892. Established by Marie Popelin and her lawyer Louis Frank, it was created in response to the re ...

.Gubin, Eliane; Jacques, Catherine et al., ''Dictionnaire des femmes belges: XIXe and XXe siècles'', Brussels, 2006. p.359.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leclercq, Emma 1851 births 1933 deaths Scientists from Brussels Belgian feminists Free University of Brussels (1834–1969) alumni 19th-century Belgian educators 19th-century Belgian women educators 20th-century Belgian educators 20th-century Belgian women educators 19th-century Belgian women scientists 19th-century Belgian scientists