Ludwig Hirzel (23 February 1838 – 1 June 1897) was a Swiss

literary historian The history of literature is the historical development of writings in prose or poetry that attempt to provide entertainment, enlightenment, or instruction to the reader/listener/observer, as well as the development of the literary techniques ...

born in

Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...

. His father, also named Ludwig Hirzel (1801–1841) was a professor of

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

at the

University of Zürich The University of Zürich (UZH, german: Universität Zürich) is a public research university located in the city of Zürich, Switzerland. It is the largest university in Switzerland, with its 28,000 enrolled students. It was founded in 1833 f ...

. In 1862 he earned his doctorate from the University of Zürich. Afterwards he served as a

secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...

teacher in

Frauenfeld Frauenfeld (Alemannic: ''Frauefäld'') is the capital of the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland. The official language of Frauenfeld is (the Swiss variety of Standard) German, but the main spoken language is the local variant of the Alemannic Sw ...

(1862) and at the cantonal school in

Aarau Aarau (, ) is a List of towns in Switzerland, town, a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality, and the capital of the northern Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Aargau. The List of towns in Switzerland, town is also the capital of the dis ...

(1866). In 1874 he became a professor of

German language German ( ) is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and Official language, official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Ita ...

and

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

at the

University of Berne The University of Bern (german: Universität Bern, french: Université de Berne, la, Universitas Bernensis) is a university in the Swiss capital of Bern and was founded in 1834. It is regulated and financed by the Canton of Bern. It is a comp ...

, a position he maintained until his death in 1897. Among Hirzel's literary output were books on famous writers such as

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as treat ...

Schiller Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (, short: ; 10 November 17599 May 1805) was a German playwright, poet, and philosopher. During the last seventeen years of his life (1788–1805), Schiller developed a productive, if complicated, friendsh ...

and Wieland. He was the author of acclaimed editions of

Albrecht von Haller Albrecht von Haller (also known as Albertus de Haller; 16 October 170812 December 1777) was a Swiss anatomist, physiologist, naturalist, encyclopedist, bibliographer and poet. A pupil of Herman Boerhaave, he is often referred to as "the fa ...

's poetry (1882) and diaries (1883). He also penned an essay on Swiss mathematician

Conrad Dasypodius Conrad Dasypodius (1532 – 26 April 1600) was a professor of mathematics in Strasbourg, Alsace. He was born in Frauenfeld, Thurgau, Switzerland. His first name was also rendered as Konrad or Conradus or Cunradus, and his last name has been al ...

, and published editions of Wieland's ''Geschichte der Gelehrtheit'' (History of the Scholars) and ''Beziehungen zu den deutschen Romantikern'' (Connections to the German Romanticists).

Selected publications

* ''Goethes italienische Reise'' (

's Italian Journey), (Basel 1871) * ''Schillers Beziehungen zum Altertum'' (

's Association with Antiquity), (Aarau 1872) * ''Karl Ruckstuhl. Ein Beitrag zur Goethe-Litteratur'' (Karl Ruckstuhl, a Contribution to "Goethe-literature"), (Straßburg 1876) * ''Wieland und Martin und Regula Künzli'', 1891

References

translated biography @

Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' (ADB, german: Universal German Biography) is one of the most important and comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language. It was published by the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Aca ...

Swiss male writers Writers from Zürich Academic staff of the University of Bern 1897 deaths 1838 births 19th-century Swiss historians 19th-century male writers {{Switzerland-historian-stub