Ghent University ( nl, Universiteit Gent, abbreviated as UGent) is a

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...

research university A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are the most important sites at which knowledge production occurs, along with "intergenerational kno ...

located in

Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

. Established before the state of Belgium itself, the university was founded by the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

King William I in 1817, when the region was incorporated into the

United Kingdom of the Netherlands The United Kingdom of the Netherlands ( nl, Verenigd Koninkrijk der Nederlanden; french: Royaume uni des Pays-Bas) is the unofficial name given to the Kingdom of the Netherlands as it existed between 1815 and 1839. The United Netherlands was cr ...

after the fall of

First French Empire The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Eu ...

. In that same year, he founded two other universities for the southern provinces as well, alongside Ghent University:

University of Liège The University of Liège (french: Université de Liège), or ULiège, is a major public university of the French Community of Belgium based in Liège, Wallonia, Belgium. Its official language is French. As of 2020, ULiège is ranked in the 301 ...

and

State University of Leuven The State University of Leuven was a university founded in 1817 in Leuven in Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. It was distinct from the Old University of Leuven (1425-1797) and from the Catholic University of Leuven, wh ...

. After the

Belgian revolution The Belgian Revolution (, ) was the conflict which led to the secession of the southern provinces (mainly the former Southern Netherlands) from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands and the establishment of an independent Kingdom of Belgium. T ...

of 1830, the newly formed Belgian state began to administer Ghent University. In 1930, UGent became the first

-speaking university in Belgium. Previously,

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

(and, even earlier, Latin) had been the standard academic language in what was ''Université de Gand''. In 1991, it was granted major autonomy and changed its name accordingly from ''State University of Ghent'' ( nl, Rijksuniversiteit Gent, abbreviated as ''RUG'') to its current designation. Located in

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

, Ghent is one of the largest Belgian universities, consisting of 44,000 students and 9,000 staff members. The university also supports the

Ghent University Library Ghent University Library ( nl, Universiteitsbibliotheek Gent) is located in the city of Ghent, Belgium. It serves the university community of students and scholarly researchers. History After Ghent University was founded in 1817, books confiscated ...

(including the famous

Boekentoren The Boekentoren (Dutch for ''Book Tower'') is a famous building located in Ghent, Belgium, designed by the Belgian architect Henry van de Velde. It is part of the Ghent University Library and currently houses 3 million books. The Boekentoren is di ...

) and the

Ghent University Hospital Ghent University Hospital ( nl, Universitair Ziekenhuis Gent; UZ Gent) is one of the largest hospitals in Belgium. It is closely linked to Ghent University, the university's rector also being the hospital's president. Both the university and the ho ...

, which is one of the biggest hospitals in Belgium. In addition to satellite campuses elsewhere in Flanders and a Global Campus in Songdo, South Korea, Ghent University maintains many inter-university partnerships and programs both inside and outside of Europe. An avowedly research-driven and socially minded university, UGent consistently rates among the top 100 universities in the world. It is one of the greatest beneficiaries of funding from the Flemish research council. It was also among the Top 30 recipients of major research grants awarded by the

European Research Council The European Research Council (ERC) is a public body for funding of scientific and technological research conducted within the European Union (EU). Established by the European Commission in 2007, the ERC is composed of an independent Scientific ...

under the funding framework

Horizon 2020 The Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development, also called Framework Programmes or abbreviated FP1 to FP9, are funding programmes created by the European Union/European Commission to support and foster research in the Europea ...

(2014–2020).

History

Foundation in the 19th century

Ghent was one of the largest and most important cities of Europe in the medieval period. The university in Ghent was opened on 9 October 1817, with JC van Rotterdam as the first

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

. The foundation of universities in Ghent, Liege, and Leuven that year – by the Dutch King William I – was part of a larger policy to stimulate academic lag across the southern provinces of the

(which would later become Belgium). The original four faculties comprised Humanities (Letters), Law, Medicine, and Science, with the language of instruction being

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

. In the first year, it had 190 students and 16 professors. Onderzoek_farmacie_Ugent

In the wake of the

Belgian Revolution The Belgian Revolution (, ) was the conflict which led to the secession of the southern provinces (mainly the former Southern Netherlands) from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands and the establishment of an independent Kingdom of Belgium. T ...

, of 1830, the number of students declined, having peaked at 414. Although the faculties of humanities and science were dissolved from the university, they were restored five years later, in 1835. At this time, French also became the language of instruction, taking the place of Latin. Ghent University played a role in the foundation of modern organic chemistry. Friedrich

August Kekulé Friedrich August Kekulé, later Friedrich August Kekule von Stradonitz ( , ; 7 September 1829 – 13 July 1896), was a German organic chemist. From the 1850s until his death, Kekulé was one of the most prominent chemists in Europe, especially ...

unraveled the structure of benzene at Ghent and

Adolf von Baeyer Johann Friedrich Wilhelm Adolf von Baeyer (; 31 October 1835 – 20 August 1917) was a German chemist who synthesised indigo and developed a nomenclature for cyclic compounds (that was subsequently extended and adopted as part of the IUPAC org ...

(Johann Friedrich Wilhelm Adolf von Baeyer), a student of

, made contributions to organic chemistry. In 1882, Sidonie Verhelst became the first female student at Ghent University, in science and pharmacology. 2021_Boekentoren_-_University_Library_of_Ghent

2021_Boekentoren_-_University_Library_of_Ghent

Developments in the 20th century

In 1903, the Flemish politician

Lodewijk De Raet Lodewijk De Raet (; Brussels, 17 February 1870 – Forest, 24 November 1914) was a Flemish economist and politician. He played an important role in the Flemish movement. He was co-founder of the ''Vlaamsche volkspartij'' (1892), and was a proponen ...

led a successful campaign to begin instruction in

, and the first courses were begun in 1906. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the occupying German administration conducted ''

Flamenpolitik ''Flamenpolitik'' (German; "Flemish policy") is the name for certain policies pursued by German authorities occupying Belgium during World War I and World War II. The ultimate goal of these policies was the dissolution of Belgium into separate W ...

'' and turned Ghent University into the first Dutch-speaking university in Belgium. A Flemish Institute (''Vlaemsche Hoogeschool''), commonly known as Von Bissing University, was founded in 1916 but was disestablished after the war and French language was fully reinstated. In 1923, Cabinet Minister

Pierre Nolf Pierre Nolf (Ypres, 26 July 1873 – Brussels, 14 September 1953) was a Belgian scientist and politician. In 1940, he was nominated for the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine, but the prize was not granted that year. In 1940 he received the ...

put forward a motion to definitively establish the university as a Dutch-speaking university, and this was realized in 1930.

August Vermeylen August Vermeylen (12 May 1872, in Brussels – 10 January 1945, in Uccle) was a Belgian writer and literature critic. In 1893 he founded the literary journal ''Van Nu en Straks'' (''Of Today and Tomorrow''). He studied history at the Free Univers ...

served as the first rector of a Dutch-language university in Belgium. Ghent University 1910 - Studentenvereniging Société Académique d'Histoire

Ghent University 1910 - Studentenvereniging Société Académique d'Histoire

In the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the German administration of the university attempted to create a German orientation, removing faculty members and installing loyal activists. In the postwar period, Ghent University became a much larger institution, following government policy of democratizing higher education in Flanders during the 1950s and 1960s. By 1953, there were more than 3,000 students, and by 1969 more than 11,500. The number of faculties increased to eleven, starting with Applied Sciences in 1957. It was followed by Economics and Veterinary Medicine in 1968, Psychology and Pedagogy, as well as Bioengineering, in 1969, and Pharmaceutical Sciences. In the 1960s, there were several student demonstrations at Ghent University, notably around the

Blandijn The Blandijn, short for Blandijnberg, is a building complex of Ghent University in the Belgian city Ghent and directly adjacent to Boekentoren, the tower of the Ghent University Library. The Blandijn, named after the Blandijnberg hill it stands on ...

site, which houses the Faculty of Arts & Philosophy. The most severe of demonstrations took place in 1969 in the wake of

May 1968 The following events occurred in May 1968: May 1, 1968 (Wednesday) *CARIFTA, the Caribbean Free Trade Association, was formally created as an agreement between Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Guyana, and Trinidad and Tobago. *RAF Strike Co ...

Since the end of the Cold War

In 1991, the university officially changed its name from ''Rijksuniversiteit Gent'' (RUG) to ''Universiteit Gent'' (UGent), following an increased grant of autonomy by the government of the

Flemish Community The Flemish Community ( nl, Vlaamse Gemeenschap ; french: Communauté flamande ; german: Flämische Gemeinschaft ) is one of the three institutional communities of Belgium, established by the Belgian constitution and having legal responsibilitie ...

. The faculty of

Politics Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...

and

Social Sciences Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soci ...

is the most recent addition, in 1992. Ugent 675

Academic profile

Organisation and structure

Ghent University consists of eleven faculties with over 130 individual departments. In addition, the university maintains the

Zwijnaarde science park The Zwijnaarde science park is a science park of Ghent University, located in Zwijnaarde near Ghent (Belgium). The science park has an area of 52 hectare (ha) and comprises the Ardoyen campus (30 ha) of the University of Ghent and the Ardoyen scien ...

and

Greenbridge science park The Ostend Science Park is a business incubator and science park of located on the Plassendale site in Ostend (Belgium). The site is aimed towards research and development in the Blue Economy. History Due to the expansion of the incubator at the Z ...

List of faculties

* Faculty of Arts and Philosophy * Faculty of Bio-science Engineering * Faculty of Law * Faculty of Sciences * Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences * Faculty of Engineering and Architecture * Faculty of Economics and Business Administration * Faculty of Veterinary Medicine * Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences * Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences * Faculty of Political and Social Sciences

Library

Standing on the

Blandijnberg The Blandijnberg is a 29m high hill in the city center of Ghent in East Flanders, Belgium. History The Blandijnberg was already inhabited in prehistoric times. In the 3rd century AD. there was a Gallo-Roman villa on the hill, owned by a person n ...

, the

houses the

, which contains nearly 3 million volumes. The university library has joined the

Google Books Library Project Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...

. Among other notable collections, it preserves

Papyrus 30 Papyrus 30 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering), designated by 𝔓30, is an early copy of the New Testament in Greek. It is a papyrus manuscript of the Pauline epistles, it contains only 1 Thess 4:12-5:18. 25-28; 2 Thess 1:1-2; 2:1.9-11. The manus ...

, an early manuscript of the Greek New Testament. The university is also a partner in the development of

De Krook De Krook is a library and media center in Ghent (Dutch: Gent), East Flanders, Belgium. It is an initiative of the city of Ghent, Ghent University and IMEC, and describes itself as "a place of inspiration for knowledge, culture and innovation" in ...

, the new public library and media center in the center of Ghent, opened in 2017. Ugent boekentoren 675

Reputation & rankings

Ghent University consistently ranks among the top 100 universities in the world and, alongside the

Catholic University of Leuven University of Leuven or University of Louvain (french: Université de Louvain, link=no; nl, Universiteit Leuven, link=no) may refer to: * Old University of Leuven (1425–1797) * State University of Leuven (1817–1835) * Catholic University of ...

, the best in Belgium. In 2017, it was ranked, globally, 69th by the

Academic Ranking of World Universities The ''Academic Ranking of World Universities'' (''ARWU''), also known as the Shanghai Ranking, is one of the annual publications of world university rankings. The league table was originally compiled and issued by Shanghai Jiao Tong University ...

(or Shanghai ranking) and 125th by ''

QS World University Rankings ''QS World University Rankings'' is an annual publication of university rankings by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS). The QS system comprises three parts: the global overall ranking, the subject rankings (which name the world's top universities for the ...

''. For 2021, Ghent University has been ranked, worldwide, 85th by U.S. News & World Report and 96th by ''

Times Higher Education ''Times Higher Education'' (''THE''), formerly ''The Times Higher Education Supplement'' (''The Thes''), is a British magazine reporting specifically on news and issues related to higher education. Ownership TPG Capital acquired TSL Education ...

''.

International relations

The university maintains many partnerships within Belgium, across Europe, and throughout the world. Inside Belgium, Ghent University supports the

Belgian Co-ordinated Collections of Micro-organisms The Belgian Co-ordinated Collections of Micro-organisms (BCCM) is a Belgian government funded consortium of seven scientific institutions, who manage and exploit a collection of microbial and genetic resources. The consortium comprises more than 269 ...

and the

Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie VIB is a research institute located in Flanders, Belgium. It was founded by the Flemish government in 1995, and became a full-fledged institute on 1 January 1996. The main objective of VIB is to strengthen the excellence of Flemish life sciences r ...

. Within Europe, it is a member of the

Santander Network The SGroup - Universities in Europe network (SGroup), previously called Santander, is a non-profit association of universities incorporated in Spain. It was founded in 1992. Members ;Armenia * Yerevan State Medical University - Associate Membe ...

, the Enlight (previously the U4) Network, and the 3i University Network. It also participates in the

Conference of European Schools for Advanced Engineering Education and Research CESAER is a non-profit association of universities of science and technology in Europe. CESAER was founded on 10 May 1990, seated in the Castle of Arenberg in Leuven, Belgium. The association has 58 universities of science and technology in 26 c ...

. In addition, the university cooperates with numerous universities for the

Erasmus Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (; ; English: Erasmus of Rotterdam or Erasmus;''Erasmus'' was his baptismal name, given after St. Erasmus of Formiae. ''Desiderius'' was an adopted additional name, which he used from 1496. The ''Roterodamus'' wa ...

and

Erasmus Mundus The European Union's Erasmus Mundus programme (named after Erasmus, the Renaissance scholar) aims to enhance quality in higher education through scholarships and academic co-operation between the EU and the rest of the world. The three main objecti ...

programs; within the framework of the latter, it heads the

International Master of Science in Rural Development The International Master of Science in Rural Development (IMRD) is one of the prestigious Erasmus Mundus programs under the framework of European Education system. This program is headed by the Ghent University of Belgium and other partner univers ...

and the International Master of Science in Soils and Global Change (IMSOGLO). Beyond Europe, Ghent University conducts exchange programs on all six continents. Frameworks include its campus in South Korea and its 3C Partnership.

Associated contributions and innovations

Ghent University has been instrumental in the development of

COinS A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to ...

and

Unipept Unipept is an open source research tool for biodiversity analysis of metaproteomics samples. It also contains a tool to select peptides to use as biomarker and a tool to compare the genome of organisms based on their protein content. The softwar ...

Gallery

File:Rommelaere Instituut 2010PM 0261 21H7267.JPG, Rommelaere Instituut File:Faculteit Rechtsgeleerdheid 2010PM 1120 21H8919.JPG, Law School File:Rectoraat 2010PM 0217 21H7220.JPG, Rectorate File:Plantentuin 2010PM 1080 21H8867.JPG, Botanical garden File:Boekentoren ugent rozier 675.jpg, The

, designed by

Henry van de Velde Henry Clemens van de Velde (; 3 April 1863 – 15 October 1957) was a Belgian painter, architect, interior designer, and art theorist. Together with Victor Horta and Paul Hankar, he is considered one of the founders of Art Nouveau in Belgium.'' ...

, is one of the most famous university buildings File:Technicum 2010PM 0223 21H7226.JPG, The Technicum, or Faculty of Engineering File:Volderstraat aula UGent.jpg, Aula Academica File:Faculteit Bio-ingenieurswetenschapppen 2010PM 0299 21H7326.JPG, Faculty of Bioengineering File:Blandijn 2010PM 1039 21H8809.JPG, The

houses the Faculty of Letters and Philosophy File:UGent Campus Kortrijk.png, UGent Campus in Kortrijk File:Faculteit Psychologie UGent.JPG, Faculty of Psychology File:Resto Overpoort 2010PM 0098 21H7081.JPG File:Leeszaal 3.jpg, Library of the department of Architecture and Urbanism File:Boekentoren ugent0103.jpg, Boekentoren File:Boekentoren ugent0102.jpg, UGent Boekentoren File:Faculteitsbibliotheek Letteren en Wijsbegeerte UGent.jpg, Library of the Humanities Faculty File:Museum voor Dierkunde 2010PM 0413 21H7553.JPG, Museum of Zoology File:Anatomisch Instituut - Bijlokesite 2010PM 0778 21H8528.JPG, Institute for Anatomy File:Rectoraatsgebouw UGent.jpg, Rectorate File:Voormalig restaurant Overpoort UGent.jpg File:Gent Universiteitscampus Voldersstraat-PM 07207.jpg

People

File:Johan Heinrich Neuman - Johan Rudolf Thorbecke.jpg, Johan Rudolf Thorbecke, statesman File:Henry.Pirenne.Portrait.gif, Henri Pirenne, historian File:George de Hevesy.jpg, George de Hevesy, Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry File:Maurice Maeterlinck 2.jpg, Maurice Maeterlinck, Nobel Prize winner in Literature File:Corneille Heymans nobel.jpg, Corneel Heymans, Nobel Prize winner in Medicine File:Belgisch-Nederlandse studieconferentie te Helvoirt (NB). Minister M. de Riemaeck, Bestanddeelnr 920-8362.jpg, Marguerite Legot, first female government minister in Belgium File:Yaakov Dori2.jpg, Yaakov Dori, president of the Technion, Haifa File:Suzanne Lilar.1980s.jpg, Suzanne Lilar, feminist writer File:Marc van Montagu and Jozef Schell.jpg, Jozef Schell (right), molecular biologist File:Marmont675.jpg, Marc van Montagu, molecular biologist File:Robert Cailliau On Desk.jpg, Robert Cailliau, co-inventor of the World Wide Web File:Guy Verhofstadt EP press conference 3.jpg, Guy Verhofstadt, politician File:Rolin-Jacquemyn.jpg, Gustave Rolin-Jaequemyns, jurist and diplomat File:Hélène Mallebrancke (1902-1940).jpg, Hélène Mallebrancke (1902-1940) Civil engineer and Belgian Resistance member in Second World War

Notable alumni

Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau (14 October 1801 – 15 September 1883) was a Belgian physicist and mathematician. He was one of the first people to demonstrate the illusion of a moving image. To do this, he used counterrotating disks with repea ...

(1801-1883), physicist, mathematician *

Abdoel Rivai Abdoel Rivai (Palembayan, Agam Regency, Agam, West Sumatra, August 13, 1871 - Bandung, West Java, October 16, 1937) (EYD: Abdul Rivai) was an Indonesian physician, journalist, and supporter of Indonesian independence. Personal life Rivai was of ...

(1871-1937), physician, journalist, the first native of the

dutch east indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...

to obtain

doctoral degree A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...

Leo Apostel Leo Apostel (Antwerp, 4 September 1925 – Ghent, 10 August 1995) was a Belgian philosopher and professor at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and Ghent University. Apostel was an advocate of interdisciplinary research and the bridging of the gap b ...

(1925–1995), philosopher *

Leo Baekeland Leo Hendrik Baekeland (November 14, 1863 – February 23, 1944) was a Belgian chemist. He is best known for the inventions of Velox photographic paper in 1893, and Bakelite in 1907. He has been called "The Father of the Plastics Industry" ...

(1863–1944), chemist, inventor of

Bakelite Polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride, better known as Bakelite ( ), is a thermosetting phenol formaldehyde resin, formed from a condensation reaction of phenol with formaldehyde. The first plastic made from synthetic components, it was developed ...

Wim Blockmans Willem Pieter Blockmans (born 26 May 1945, Antwerp, Belgium) was Professor of Medieval History at Leiden University between 1987 and 2010. He earned a PhD from the University of Ghent. He has been Rector of the Netherlands Institute for Advance ...

(born 1945), historian *

Thierry Bogaert Thierry Bogaert is a Belgian scientist and businessman. He founded the Belgian biotech company Devgen in 1997 and was its managing director and CEO from 1997 onwards, until he sold the Devgen to Syngenta in 2012 for 400m EUR. During this time he l ...

, founder of

DevGen Devgen is a Belgium-based multinational agricultural biotechnology company. It uses biotechnology and molecular breeding technologies to develop varieties of food crops. Its technology is marketed by outlicensing or selling seeds in India and Sou ...

Luc Bossyns Luc Bossyns is a retired Belgian businessman. He was managing director of Aquafin, a Flemish wastewater processing company. Anno 2019 he still is a member of the board of directors. Education He graduated as a civil engineer in naval engineering f ...

, civil engineer *

Marc Bossuyt Marc, Baron Bossuyt (born 9 January 1944 in Ghent) is a member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague and a former judge at the Belgian Constitutional Court. Bossuyt obtained a Dr.iur (LLM) at the University of Ghent in 1968, a ''Cert ...

(born 1944), judge, professor *

Dries Buytaert Dries Buytaert (born 19 November 1978)Curriculum Vitae
is ...

(born 1978), computer scientist, founder of the

Drupal Drupal () is a free and open-source web content management system (CMS) written in PHP and distributed under the GNU General Public License. Drupal provides an open-source back-end framework for at least 14% of the top 10,000 websites worldwide ...

CMS CMS may refer to: Computing * Call management system * CMS-2 (programming language), used by the United States Navy * Code Morphing Software, a technology used by Transmeta * Collection management system for a museum collection * Color managem ...

Robert Cailliau Robert Cailliau (, born 26 January 1947) is a Belgian informatics engineer, computer scientist and author who proposed the first (pre-www) hypertext system for CERN in 1987 and collaborated with Tim Berners-Lee on the World Wide Web (jointly wi ...

(born 1947), co-inventor of the World Wide Web *

Luc Coene Luc Coene (11 March 1947 – 5 January 2017) was a Belgian economist. He was Governor of the National Bank of Belgium (NBB) from April 2011 until March 2015 . Education Luc Coene was born in Ghent and graduated in economics at Ghent University in ...

(1947–2017), economy, governor of the

National Bank of Belgium The National Bank of Belgium (NBB; nl, Nationale Bank van België, french: Banque nationale de Belgique, german: Belgische Nationalbank) has been the central bank of Belgium since 1850. The National Bank of Belgium was established with 100% pr ...

(NBB) *

Marc Coucke Marc Coucke (born 27 January 1965) is a Belgian businessman, multimillionaire and media figure. Founder of former BEL20 pharmaceutical company Omega Pharma, he has spread his business interests across several sectors including art, through his c ...

(born 1965), co-founder of

Omega Pharma Omega Pharma was a Belgian-based pharmaceutical company which was acquired in 2014 by Perrigo Company plc, an Irish/U.S.-based global pharmaceutical public company. The company was founded in 1987 and was based in the Industrial area 'de Prijkels' ...

Martin De Prycker Martin De Prycker (b. Sint-Niklaas, 16 January 1955) is a Belgium, Belgian engineer and businessman. He was until December 2008 the CEO of Barco NV, Barco, a Belgian display hardware manufacturer. He currently serves as CEO of Caliopa, a spin-off ...

(born 1955), engineer *

Bertha De Vriese Bertha De Vriese (26 September 187717 March 1958) was a Belgian physician. When she earned her degree as a doctor of medicine at Ghent University, where she was the first woman to conduct research and the first woman physician to graduate from t ...

(1877–1958), first woman to enroll and graduate as a physician *

Franz Cumont __NOTOC__ Franz-Valéry-Marie Cumont (3 January 1868 in Aalst, Belgium – 20 August 1947 in Woluwe-Saint-Pierre near Brussels) was a Belgian archaeologist and historian, a philologist and student of epigraphy, who brought these often isolated ...

(1868–1947), historian * (1922–1992), gynecologist, best known as chocolate maker of the brands Leonidas and Daskalidès. *

Bert De Graeve Bert, baron De Graeve (born 1955, Avelgem) is a Belgian businessman and since 20 May 2006 chief executive officer (CEO) and chairman of Bekaert, where he succeeded baron Julien De Wilde. In 2014 he became chairman of the board. Education Bert D ...

(born 1955), law, businessman *

Michel de Kemmeter Michel may refer to: * Michel (name), a given name or surname of French origin (and list of people with the name) * Míchel (nickname), a nickname (a list of people with the nickname, mainly Spanish footballers) * Míchel (footballer, born 1963), S ...

, author and researcher in human sustainable development *

Rudy Dekeyser Rudy Dekeyser was until May 2012 the Managing Director of VIB (the Flanders Institute for Biotechnology). He was until May 2012 head of the technology transfer team of the institute. He obtained a PhD in molecular biology at the University of Ghe ...

, molecular biologist, assistant director of the VIB *

Arnoud De Meyer Arnoud De Meyer is a Belgian business academic at the Lee Kong Chian School of Business of Singapore Management University (SMU). He was previously President of SMU, Director of the Judge Business School of the University of Cambridge, and found ...

(presently) director of Judge Business School of the University of Cambridge * Wim De Waele, economy and computer science, director of the

IBBT iMinds (formerly IBBT) was a Flemish non-profit organization, founded by the Flemish Government. It was founded as a research institute, with a focus on information & communication technology (ICT) in general, and applications of broadband technol ...

Catherine de Zegher Catherine de Zegher (born Marie-Catherine Alma Gladys de Zegher Groningen, April 14, 1955) is a Belgian curator and a modern and contemporary art historian. She has a degree in art history and archaeology from the University of Ghent. From 1988 t ...

(born 1955), international curator, art critic, and art historian *

Martin Dobelle Martin Dobelle (December 25, 1906 - August 11, 1986) was an American surgeon. Early life and education Born in New York City December 25, 1906, the son of Harry and Ida Kaplan Dobelle, he grew up in Brooklyn, New York. An alumnus of Boys High ...

(1906–1986), veteran orthopedic surgeon *

Yaakov Dori Yaakov Dori (; October 8, 1899 – January 22, 1973), born Yaakov Dostrovsky, was the first Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). He was also the President of the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. Biography Yaakov Dostr ...

(1899–1973), first

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

of the

Israeli Defense Forces Israeli may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel * Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel * Modern Hebrew, a language * ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008 * Guni Israeli ...

, president of the

Technion – Israel Institute of Technology The Technion – Israel Institute of Technology ( he, הטכניון – מכון טכנולוגי לישראל) is a public research university located in Haifa, Israel. Established in 1912 under the dominion of the Ottoman Empire, the Technion ...

Paul Fredericq Paul Fredericq (12 August 1850 – 23 March 1920) was a Belgian historian at Ghent University active in the promotion of the use of the Dutch language in Belgium. Early life Paul Fredericq was born in the Sleepstraat in Ghent, Belgium. A studen ...

(1850–1920), historian *

Walter Fiers Walter Fiers (31 January 1931 in Ypres, West Flanders – 28 July 2019 in Destelbergen) was a Belgian molecular biologist. He obtained a degree of Engineer for Chemistry and Agricultural Industries at the University of Ghent in 1954, and started ...

(1931–2019), molecular biologist *

Leopold Flam Leopold Flam (16 March 1912 – 29 September 1995) was a Belgian philosopher. Together with Alphonse De Waelhens, Chaïm Perelman and Rudolf Boehm, he was one of leading philosophers of Belgium from the 1960s until the 1980s. Born in Antwer ...

(1912–1995), historian, philosopher *

Dirk Frimout Dirk Dries David Damiaan, Viscount Frimout (born 21 March 1941 in Poperinge, Belgium) is an astrophysicist for the European Space Agency. He flew aboard NASA Space Shuttle mission STS-45 as a payload specialist, making him the first Belgian in sp ...

(born 1941), physicist, astronaut *

Derrick Gosselin Derrick-Philippe B. J., Baron Gosselin (1956) is a Belgian engineer and economist. He is chairman of the Belgian Nuclear Sciences Research Center SCK CEN, vice-chairman of Belgonucleaire and vice-chairman of the Royal Higher Institute for Def ...

(born 1956), engineer, economist, business manager *

Joseph Guislain Joseph Guislain (Ghent, 2 February 1797 – Ghent, 1 April 1860) was a Belgian physician and a pioneer in psychiatry. Education Guislain started his medical studies at Ecole de Médicine and he was one of the first students to the University of Gh ...

(1797–1860), physiologist and psychiatrist *

Jacques-Joseph Haus Jacques-Joseph Haus (5 January 1796 – 23 February 1881) was a Belgian lawyer. He was born in Würzburg to Ernest-Augustus Haus and Marie-Barbe Stang. He died in Ghent, Belgium. Haus attended school through to university in Würzburg. He achiev ...

(1796–1881), jurist *

Lucienne Herman-Michielsens Lucienne Adeline Jeanne Ida Herman-Michielsens (13 March 1926 – 22 January 1995) was a Belgium, Belgian liberal politician and a member of the Party for Freedom and Progress (PVV). She was married to Jacques Herman, a physician. Biography Herm ...

(1926–1995), law, politician *

Philippe Herreweghe Philippe Maria François Herreweghe, Knight Herreweghe (born 2 May 1947) is a Belgian conductor and choirmaster. Herreweghe founded La Chapelle Royale and Collegium Vocale Gent and is renowned as a conductor, with a repertoire ranging from Rena ...

(born 1947), doctor, psychiatrist, orchestra conductor *

Corneille Heymans Corneille Jean François Heymans (28 March 1892 – 18 July 1968) was a Belgian physiologist. He studied at the Jesuit College of Saint Barbara and then at Ghent University, where he obtained a doctor's degree in 1920. Heymans won the Nobel Pr ...

(1892–1968), physiologist (

Nobel prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...

winner) *

Jan Hoet Knight Jan Hoet (; 23 June 1936 – 27 February 2014) was the Belgian founder of SMAK (''Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst'' or Municipal Museum for Contemporary Art) in Ghent, Belgium. Biography Jan Hoet was born in Leuven, Belgium. Throug ...

, (1936–2014), art historian, museum director, founding director of the

SMAK Smak ( sr-Cyrl, Смак; trans. ''The end time'') was a Serbian and Yugoslav band from Kragujevac. The group reached the peak of popularity in the 1970s when it was one of the most notable acts of the former Yugoslav rock scene. The band's le ...

Mark Janse Mark Janse (born 31 August 1959 in Sas van Gent, The Netherlands) is BOF-ZAP research professor in Asia Minor and Ancient Greek at Ghent University, where he studied Classics, Hebrew and Linguistics. Before coming to Ghent, Janse has been editor o ...

(born 1959), classicist and linguist *

Friedrich August Kekulé von Stradonitz Friedrich may refer to: Names * Friedrich (surname), people with the surname ''Friedrich'' * Friedrich (given name), people with the given name ''Friedrich'' Other * Friedrich (board game), a board game about Frederick the Great and the Seven Year ...

(1829–1896), chemist *

Jaap Kruithof Jaap Kruithof (Berchem, 13 December 1929 - Boechout, 25 February 2009) was a Belgian philosopher and writer. His parents were Dutch Protestants. He took degrees in history, law and philosophy in Ghent, and in Paris. Then he earned a Ph.D. on He ...

(1929–2009), philosopher *

Tom Lanoye Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

(born 1958), philologist, writer *

François Laurent François Laurent (8 July 1810 – 11 February 1887) was a Belgian people, Belgian historian and jurisconsult. Life and works He was born in Luxembourg City. He held a high appointment in the ministry of justice for some time before he became p ...

(1810–1887), jurist * Marguerite Legot (1913–1977), jurist, first Belgian woman to serve as a government minister *

Yves Leterme Yves Camille Désiré Leterme (; born 6 October 1960 in Wervik) is a Belgian politician, a leader of the Christian Democratic and Flemish party (CD&V). He was the prime minister of Belgium, from November 2009 to December 2011. Leterme was the ...

(born 1960), prime minister of Belgium *

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

(1851–1933), cell biologist *

Herman Liebaers Herman Liebaers (February 1, 1919 in Tienen, Belgium – November 9, 2010 in Jette, Brussels) was a Belgian linguist. He was director general of the central Belgian Royal Library and ''Marshal of the Royal Household'' of the Royal Court of B ...

(1919–2010), writer, former Marschal of the Royal Household. *

Suzanne Lilar Baroness Suzanne Lilar (née ''Suzanne Verbist''; 21 May 1901 – 11 December 1992) was a Flemish Belgian essayist, novelist, and playwright writing in French. She was the wife of the Belgian Minister of Justice Albert Lilar and mother of the ...

(born Suzanne Verbist) (1901–1992), philosopher, jurist, essayist, novelist *

Julius Mac Leod Julius Mac Leod (19 February 1857 – 3 March 1919), was a Belgian biologist and professor at the University of Ghent. His father was of Scottish descent. Mac Leod was born in Ostend. He was also director of the botanical garden. Julius Mac L ...

(1857–1919), botanist *

Maurice Maeterlinck Maurice Polydore Marie Bernard Maeterlinck (29 August 1862 – 6 May 1949), also known as Count (or Comte) Maeterlinck from 1932, was a Belgian playwright, poet, and essayist who was Flemish but wrote in French. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in ...

(1862–1949), jurist, writer (

winner) *

Hélène Mallebrancke Hélène Mallebrancke (3 March 1902 – 30 August 1940) was the first female Belgians, Belgian civil engineer to graduate from the Ghent University, University of Ghent, and one of the earliest women engineers in Belgium. She was involved in the B ...

(1902–1940), first female Belgian civil engineer to graduate from the University of Ghent, Resistance member in Second World War *

Paul Mansion Paul Mansion (3 June 1844 – 16 April 1919) was a Belgian mathematician, editor of the journal '' Mathesis''. Life and work Mansion was the ninth of the ten brothers. His father died when he was only a baby and he was brought up by his mother ...

(1844–1919), mathematician *

Rudi Mariën Rudi Mariën is a Belgian scientist and businessman. He is chairman of the Belgian biotech company Innogenetics. Education Rudi Mariën obtained a degree in pharmaceutical sciences from the University of Ghent, specializing in clinical biology. ...

, pharmacy, chairman of

Innogenetics Innogenetics N.V. (now Fujirebio Europe N.V.) was an international in vitro diagnostics (IVD) company, with headquarters in Ghent, Belgium. Founded in 1985, the company developed and marketed IVD testing solutions as well as OEM raw materials. The ...

Gerard Mortier Gerard Alfons August, Baron Mortier (25 November 1943 – 8 March 2014) was a Belgian opera director and administrator of Flemish origin. Biography Born in Ghent, the son of a baker, Mortier attended in youth the Jesuit private school Sint-Barbar ...

(1943–2014), artistic director *

Roland Peelman Roland Sylvester Peelman, is a Belgian conductor and musical director. Peelman was born in a small village near Ghent, Belgium. He studied in Ghent at the conservatorium and Ghent University, and then in Cologne, Germany. Peelman first visited ...

, conductor and musical director *

Jean-Pierre Nuel Jean-Pierre Nuel (February 27, 1847 – August 21, 1920) was a Luxembourgian-Belgian ophthalmologist and physiologist who was a native of Tétange. In 1870 he earned his doctorate from the University of Ghent, and became licensed to practice ...

(1847–1920), physiologist *

Peter Piot Sir Peter Karel, Baron Piot, (born 17 February 1949) is a Belgian-British microbiologist known for his research into Ebola and AIDS. After helping discover the Ebola virus in 1976 and leading efforts to contain the first-ever recorded Ebola epi ...

(born 1949), doctor, assistant secretary-general of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

Henri Pirenne Henri Pirenne (; 23 December 1862 – 24 October 1935) was a Belgian historian. A medievalist of Walloon descent, he wrote a multivolume history of Belgium in French and became a prominent public intellectual. Pirenne made a lasting contributio ...

(1862–1935), historian *

Karel Poma Karel Emiel Hubert, Baron Poma (14 March 1920 – 27 December 2014) was a Belgian liberal and politician for the PVV. He was a son of Carolus Poma, who was a lieutenant of the Antwerp fire brigade, and subsequently council member (1946–195 ...

(1920–2014), chemist and politician *

Ockert Potgieter Ockert Potgieter (Ukrainian: Окерт Потгітер; 11 December 1965 – 11 October 2021) was a South African missionary in Ukraine and a film director. Education Potgieter completed his school years at Potchefstroom Gimnasium. He stu ...

(1965-2021), missionary and film director *

Adolphe Quetelet Lambert Adolphe Jacques Quetelet FRSF or FRSE (; 22 February 1796 – 17 February 1874) was a Belgian astronomer, mathematician, statistician and sociologist who founded and directed the Brussels Observatory and was influential in introduc ...

(1796–1874), statistician *

Godfried-Willem Raes Godfried-Willem Raes is a Belgian composer, performer and instrument maker. He is the founder of the Logos Foundation of which he is still the president. He holds a PhD from Ghent University and is professor of experimental music composition at t ...

(born 1952), composer, performer and instrument maker *

Jacques Rogge Jacques Jean Marie Rogge, Count Rogge (, ; 2 May 1942 – 29 August 2021) was a Belgian sports administrator and physician who served as the eighth President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from 2001 to 2013. In 2013, Rogge beca ...

(1942–2021), doctor, president of the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

Gustave Rolin-Jaequemyns Gustave Henri Ange Hippolyte Rolin-Jaequemyns (31 January 1835 – 9 January 1902) was a Belgian lawyer, diplomat and Minister of the Interior (1878–1884) as a member of the Liberal Party (Belgium), Unitarian Liberal Party. Together with the Sw ...

(1835–1902), jurist, diplomat and cofounder of the

Institut de droit international The Institute of International Law ( French: Institut de Droit International) is an organization devoted to the study and development of international law, whose membership comprises the world's leading public international lawyers. The organizat ...

Jozef Schell Jozef Stefaan "Jeff", Baron Schell (20 July 1935 – 17 April 2003) was a Belgian molecular biologist. Schell studied zoology and microbiology at the University of Ghent, Belgium. From 1967 to 1995 he worked as a professor at the university. Fro ...

(1935–2003), molecular biologist *

Ferdinand Augustijn Snellaert Ferdinand Augustijn Snellaert (21 July 1809 in Kortrijk – 3 July 1872 in Ghent) was a Flemish writer. Life Snellaert studied medicine at the University of Utrecht (1827–1829) and became officer of health in the Dutch army (1830–1835). ...

(1809–1872), physician and writer *

Luc Van den Bossche Luc Van den Bossche (born 16 September 1947, in Aalst) is a Belgian socialist politician and father of Freya Van den Bossche. He graduated as a Doctor in law at the University of Ghent in 1970. Luc Van den Bossche was a Member of Parliament fo ...

(born 1947), law, politician *

Guido van Gheluwe Guido Richard van Gheluwe (3 April 1926, in Kortrijk – 1 October 2014, in Kortrijk) was a Belgian lawyer and founder of the Orde van den Prince. He founded the Orde van den Prince on 2 November 1955, and was its president from 1955 until 1964. ...

(1926–2014), jurist and founder of the Orde van den Prince *

Herman Vanderpoorten Herman Vanderpoorten (; 25 August 1922 – 3 September 1984) was a Belgian liberal politician. He was a son of the politician Arthur Vanderpoorten, the father of Marleen Vanderpoorten and an uncle of Patrick Dewael. Education He obtained a law ...

(1922–1984), politician *

Hugo Van Heuverswyn Hugo Van Heuverswyn (born 1948) is a Belgian molecular biologist, biotech Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular anal ...

(born 1948) chemist, biotech pioneer and businessman *

Ann Van Gysel Ann Van Gysel is a Belgian scientist and CEO of MEDVIA, a healthcare cluster that supports innovation in Flanders, Belgium. Education Ann obtained her bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University of Antwerp (Belgium), then went on to the Un ...

, zoology *

Dirk Van de Put Dirk van de Put (born 1959/60) is a Belgian businessman, and the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Mondelez International. CEO since November 2017, he also became chairman in April 2018. Early life Van de Put is a native of Mechelen, ...

, businessman, incoming CEO of

Mondelez International Mondelez International, Inc. ( ), often styled Mondelēz, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational confectionery, food industry, food, holding and drink industry, beverage and snack food company based in Chicago. Mondelez has an ...

Karel van de Woestijne Carolus Petrus Eduardus Maria "Karel" van de Woestijne (; Ghent, 10 March 1878 – Zwijnaarde, 24 August 1929) was a Flemish writer and brother of the painter Gustave van de Woestijne. He went to highschool at the ''Koninklijk Athenaeum'' (E:Royal ...

(1878–1929), writer *

(1863–1957), architect * Alexander Van Dijck, pioneer in rare diseases *

Prudens van Duyse Prudentius van Duyse or Prudens van Duyse (Dendermonde, 17 September 1804 – Ghent, 13 November 1859) was a Flemish writer. He started his career a clerk of a notary, but afterwards studied law at the University of Ghent, where he graduated in 1 ...

(1804–1859), writer *

Paul van Geert Paul van Geert is a Dutch linguist. He is currently a professor of developmental psychology at the University of Groningen, Netherlands. He is renowned for his work on developmental psychology and the application of dynamical systems theory in so ...

(born 1950), psychologist *

Marc Van Montagu Marc, Baron Van Montagu (born 10 November 1933 in Ghent) is a Belgian molecular biologist. He was full professor and director of the Laboratory of Genetics at the faculty of Sciences at Ghent University (Belgium) and scientific director of the ...

(born 1933), biotech pioneer *

Désiré van Monckhoven Désiré Charles Emanuel van Monckhoven (1834–1882) was a Belgian chemist, physicist, and photographic researcher. He was also an inventor and author.Day, Lance ''et al.'' (1996) ''Biographical Dictionary of the History of Technology,'' p. 49 ...

(1934–1882), physicist *

Jules Van Praet Jules Van Praet (2 July 1806 – 29 December 1887) was a Belgian diplomat and personal secretary of King Leopold I of Belgium. He was born in Bruges, and died in Brussels aged 81. Honours * 1853: Grand Cordon of the Imperial Order of Leopold ...

(1806–1887), statesman *

Willy van Ryckeghem Willy van Ryckeghem (Ghent, 1935) is a Belgian economist and statistician who devoted much of his career to Latin America. He studied economics in Ghent, Copenhagen and Paris and taught Business cycles at Vrije Universiteit Brussel and Econometric ...

(born 1935), economist *

Piet Vanthemsche Piet, Baron Vanthemsche (6 December 1955) is a Belgian veterinary surgeon and civil servant. In 2008, he succeeded Noël Devisch as President of the ''Boerenbond'' (E: Catholic Belgian Farmers Union) in Leuven. Education Born in Kortrijk, he grad ...

(born 1955), veterinary surgeon *

Daniel Varoujan Daniel Varoujan ( hy, Դանիէլ Վարուժան, 20 April 188426 August 1915) was an Armenian poet of the early 20th century. At the age of 31, when he was reaching international stature, he was deported and murdered by the Young Turk gov ...

(1884–1915), Armenian poet *

Guy Verhofstadt Guy Maurice Marie Louise Verhofstadt (; ; born 11 April 1953) is a Belgian politician who was the leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe from 2009 to 2019, and has been a member of the European Parliament (MEP) from Belgium ...

(born 1953), former prime minister of Belgium, liberal European politician *

Dirk Verhofstadt Dirk Verhofstadt (born 25 August 1955 in Dendermonde) is a Belgian social liberal ( Rawlsian) theorist and younger brother of former Belgian Prime Minister and former ALDE European Parliament Leader Guy Verhofstadt. He has a keen interest in ...

(born 1955), publisher *

Etienne Vermeersch Etienne Vermeersch (2 May 1934, Sint-Michiels, Bruges – 18 January 2019, Ghent) was a Belgian moral philosopher, skeptic, opinion maker and debater. He is one of the founding fathers of the abortion, euthanasia law, and the Law on Patients' Rig ...

(1934–2019), philosopher *

Katrien Vermeire Katrien Vermeire (born Ostend, 1979) is a Belgian artist. Career Katrien Vermeire studied photography at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent and art history at Ghent University. She won the quadrennial Fine Arts Award of the Province of W ...

(born 1979), artist *

André Vlerick André, Baron Vlerick (1919–1990) was a Belgian politician, businessman, professor and founder of the Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School. He graduated in economy at the University of Ghent and was appointed at the University of Leuven as well ...

(1919–1990), economy *

Emile Waxweiler Emile Waxweiler (1867–1916) was a Belgian engineer and sociologist. He was a member of the Royal Academy of Belgium as well as the International Institute of Statistics (Sarton 1917: 168). Waxweiler was born in Mechelen, Belgium, 22 May 1867, an ...

(1867–1916), engineer and sociologist *

Marc Zabeau Marc Zabeau (born Lier, 1949) is a Belgian scientist and businessman. Biography Marc Zabeau graduated in 1971 as a licentiate in zoology at the University of Ghent and obtained a PhD in 1974, studying the genetics of ''Escherichia coli'' in t ...

(born 1949), zoology

Notable faculty

* S.N. Balagangadhara (born 1952), comparative science of cultures *

George de Hevesy George Charles de Hevesy (born György Bischitz; hu, Hevesy György Károly; german: Georg Karl von Hevesy; 1 August 1885 – 5 July 1966) was a Hungarian radiochemist and Nobel Prize in Chemistry laureate, recognized in 1943 for his key role ...

(1885–1966), Nobel Prize winner, Chemistry *

(1810–1887), historian and jurisconsult * Jan De Maeseneer (born 1952), medicine, family medicine *

Georges De Moor Professor Emeritus Georges J. E. De Moor (born 25 August 1953, Ostend, Belgium) is a Belgian Medical Doctor, Clinical Pathologist and has been head of the Department of Health Informatics and Medical Statistics of the University of Ghent (Ghent) ...

(born 1953), medicine, medical informatics *

(1931-2019), molecular biologist *

(1892–1968), physiologist (

winner) *

Joseph Plateau Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau (14 October 1801 – 15 September 1883) was a Belgian physicist and mathematician. He was one of the first people to demonstrate the illusion of a moving image. To do this, he used counterrotating disks with repea ...

(1801–1883), physicist *

Xavier Saelens Xavier Saelens (born 1965) is a Belgian scientist and currently his main research interest is finding a universal influenza vaccine. He is a lecturer in Virology and Group Leader of the Molecular Virology Unit at the University of Ghent (Ghent, Be ...

(born 1965), biotechnology *

Jeff Schell Jozef Stefaan "Jeff", Baron Schell (20 July 1935 – 17 April 2003) was a Belgian molecular biologist. Schell studied zoology and microbiology at the University of Ghent, Belgium. From 1967 to 1995 he worked as a professor at the university. Fro ...

(1935–2003), biotech pioneer *

Erwin Schrödinger Erwin Rudolf Josef Alexander Schrödinger (, ; ; 12 August 1887 – 4 January 1961), sometimes written as or , was a Nobel Prize-winning Austrian physicist with Irish citizenship who developed a number of fundamental results in quantum theory ...

(1887–1961), physicist (

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...

winner), visiting scholar *

Johan Rudolf Thorbecke Johan Rudolph Thorbecke (14 January 1798 – 4 June 1872) was a Dutch liberal statesman, one of the most important Dutch politicians of the 19th century. Thorbecke is best known for heading the commission that drafted the revision of the Consti ...

(1798–1872), statesman *

(born 1933), biotech pioneer *

(1872–1945), author, art historian, statesman *

(1835–1917), chemist (Nobel prize winner), visiting scholar *

(1829–1896), chemist

Rectors

* 1817–1818: Jean Charles Van Rotterdam * 1818–1819: * 1819–1820: Jean Baptiste Hellebaut * 1820–1821: * 1821–1822: François Egide Verbeeck * 1822–1823: Jean Guillaume Garnier * 1823–1824: Pierre De Ryckere * 1824–1825: Louis Vincent Raoul * 1825–1826: Jacques Louis Kesteloot * 1826–1827:

Jean Charles Hauff Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * J ...

* 1827–1828:

Jacques Joseph Haus Ancient and noble French family names, Jacques, Jacq, or James are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are over ...

* 1828–1829:

Pierre Lammens Pierre is a masculine given name. It is a French form of the name Peter. Pierre originally meant "rock" or "stone" in French (derived from the Greek word πέτρος (''petros'') meaning "stone, rock", via Latin "petra"). It is a translation ...

* 1829–1830: * 1830–1831: Jacques Van Breda * 1831–1832: Leopold Auguste Warnkoenig * 1832–1833: François Verbeeck * 1833–1834:

* 1834–1835: Jacques Louis Kesteloot * 1835–1838:

* 1838–1839: Philippe Auguste De Rote * 1839–1840: * 1840–1841: Jean Timmermans * 1841–1842:

Josephus Nelis Flavius Josephus (; grc-gre, Ἰώσηπος, ; 37 – 100) was a first-century Romano-Jewish historian and military leader, best known for ''The Jewish War'', who was born in Jerusalem—then part of Roman Judea—to a father of priestly de ...

* 1842–1843:

Georg Wilhelm Rassmann Georg may refer to: * ''Georg'' (film), 1997 *Georg (musical), Estonian musical * Georg (given name) * Georg (surname) * , a Kriegsmarine coastal tanker See also * George (disambiguation) George may refer to: People * George (given name) * G ...

* 1843–1844: Charles Van Coetsem * 1844–1845: Marie-Charles Margerin * 1845–1846: Jean-Baptiste Minne-Barth * 1846–1847:

Joseph Roulez Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...

* 1847–1848: François Verbeeck * 1848–1852:

Eloi Manderlier The Eloi are one of the two fictional post-human races, along with the Morlocks, in H. G. Wells' 1895 novel ''The Time Machine''. In H. G. Wells' ''The Time Machine'' By the year AD 802,701, humanity has evolved into two separate species: the ...

* 1852–1855: * 1855–1857:

Constant-Philippe Serrure Constant-Philippe Serrure (1805–1872) was a prolific Belgian historian and collector who taught at Ghent University. He was a founding member and active contributor of the Maetschappy der Vlaemsche Bibliophilen, which published editions of medie ...

* 1857–1864:

* 1864–1867:

* 1867–1870: * 1870–1873: Joseph Jean Fuerison * 1873–1879: * 1879–1885: * 1885–1887:

Jean-Jacques Kickx Jean-Jacques is a French name, equivalent to "John James" in English. Since the second half of 18th century, Jean Jacques Rousseau was widely known as Jean Jacques. Notable people bearing this name include: Given name * Jean-Jacques Annaud (born 19 ...

* 1887–1891:

Gustave Wolters Gustav, Gustaf or Gustave may refer to: *Gustav (name), a male given name of Old Swedish origin Art, entertainment, and media *Primeval (film), ''Primeval'' (film), a 2007 American horror film *Gustav (film series), ''Gustav'' (film series), a Hu ...

* 1891–1894:

Adhémar Motte Adhemar is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Adhemar of Salerno (died 861), prince * Adhemar of Capua (died after 1000), prince * Adhémar de Chabannes (988-1034), French monk and historian * Adhema ...

* 1894–1897: Charles Van Cauwenberghe * 1897–1900:

Polynice Van Wetter Polynice is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Eniel Polynice (born 1988), American basketball player *Olden Polynice Olden Polynice (born November 21, 1964) is a Haitian former professional basketball player. He played center ...

* 1900–1903: * 1903–1906: * 1906–1909: Hector Leboucq * 1909–1912: * 1912–1915:

Henri Schoentjes Henri is an Estonian, Finnish, French, German and Luxembourgish form of the masculine given name Henry. People with this given name ; French noblemen :'' See the 'List of rulers named Henry' for Kings of France named Henri.'' * Henri I de Montm ...

* 1916–1918:

Pierre Hoffmann Pierre is a masculine given name. It is a French form of the name Peter. Pierre originally meant "rock" or "stone" in French (derived from the Greek word πέτρος (''petros'') meaning "stone, rock", via Latin "petra"). It is a translation ...

* 1918–1919:

* 1919–1921:

* 1921–1923:

Eugène Eeman Eugene is a common male given name that comes from the Greek εὐγενής (''eugenēs''), "noble", literally "well-born", from εὖ (''eu''), "well" and γένος (''genos''), "race, stock, kin".Jean-François Heymans Jean-François Heymans, also Jan Frans Heymans (25 December 1859, Gooik – 10 April 1932, Middelkerke) was a Belgian pharmacologist and physiologist. He was the father of physiologist Corneille Heymans, Corneille Jean François Heymans. He receiv ...

* 1924–1927: * 1927–1929:

Camille De Bruyne Camille may refer to: Fictional entities * a Power Rangers Jungle Fury character * Camille Wallaby, a character in Alfred Hedgehog * a character from ''League of Legends'' video game voiced by Emily O'Brien Films *''Camille (1912 film)'', a sh ...

* 1929–1930: * 1930–1933:

* 1933–1936: * 1936–1938: * 1938–1939:

Jean Haesaert Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jean ...

* 1939–1941:

René Goubau René (''born again'' or ''reborn'' in French) is a common first name in French-speaking, Spanish-speaking, and German-speaking countries. It derives from the Latin name Renatus. René is the masculine form of the name (Renée being the feminine ...

* 1940–1944: * 1944–1947: * 1947–1950: * 1950–1953: * 1953–1957: * 1957–1961: * 1961–1969: * 1969–1973: * 1973–1977: * 1977–1981: * 1981–1985: * 1985–1993: * 1993–2001: * 2001–2005:

Andreas De Leenheer Andreas De Leenheer (16 May 1941 – 20 November 2022) was a Belgian academic and biologist. He was Vice-Rector of Ghent University from 1997 to 2001 and Rector from 2001 to 2005. Biography In 1971, De Leenheer became a lecturer at the Faculty o ...

* 2005–2013:

Paul Van Cauwenberge Paul Van Cauwenberge (born 1 April 1949 in Zottegem) is a Belgian academic and chairman of Hogeschool Gent. He was the rector of Ghent University from 1 October 2005 until 1 October 2013. His successor is Anne De Paepe. Career Van Cauwenberge is ...

* 2013–2017: * 2017–2021:

Recipients of honorary doctorates

* J. G. ten Houten,

Wageningen Agricultural University Wageningen University & Research (also known as Wageningen UR; abbreviation: WUR) is a public university in Wageningen, Netherlands, specializing in life sciences with a focus on agriculture, technical and engineering subjects. It is a globally ...

, Agricultural Sciences * Mary Beard,

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, Classics (2021)

Notes and references

External links

* {{authority control Universities in Belgium Forestry education Educational institutions established in 1817 Engineering universities and colleges in Belgium Forestry in Belgium 1817 establishments in the Netherlands William I of the Netherlands