Albert Ulrik Bååth, often mentioned as A.U. Bååth (13 July 1853, in

Malmö Malmö is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, sixth-largest city in Nordic countries, the Nordic region. Located on ...

, Sweden – 2 August 1912, in

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, Sweden) was a Swedish poet, translator, lecturer and author. He was a senior lecturer in Old Norse literature at Gothenburg

University College In a number of countries, a university college is a college institution that provides tertiary education but does not have full or independent university status. A university college is often part of a larger university. The precise usage varies f ...

from 1881 until 1911. He was the brother of Cecilia Bååth-Holmberg.

Biography

Bååth was born the son of Lorentz Andreas Bååth, a Malmö preacher who, four years after his son's birth, would become a reverend in Hammarlöv. Bååth was therefore raised in

Söderslätt Söderslätt ("South Plain") is a Swedish agricultural district, known for its very high quality soil. It is located in the south-west of Scania, at the southernmost peak of the Scandinavian Peninsula. It isn't an administrative area but is usuall ...

, while attended a school in Malmö and would in 1871 become a student at

Lund University Lund University () is a Public university, public research university in Sweden and one of Northern Europe's oldest universities. The university is located in the city of Lund in the Swedish province of Scania. The university was officially foun ...

. Early on, he caught an interest for the

Icelandic language Icelandic ( ; , ) is a North Germanic languages, North Germanic language from the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family spoken by about 314,000 people, the vast majority of whom live in Iceland, where it is the national languag ...

, particularly when visiting

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after receiving a stipend, when he was acquainted with

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and author of an Icelandic dictionary, Eirikur Jonsson. In 1877, he graduated from Lund University with a B.A degree in philosophy and would move on to take his licentiate degree in 1884 and eventually finishing his doctoral thesis ''Studier öfver kompositionen i några isländska ättsagor'' in 1886. Between 1875 and 1879, he was a teacher at the higher education academy Hvilan where he would come to meet the principal Leonard Holmström. For some years, Bååth worked as a lecturer in

and, in 1891, he would be named Intendent for the

Gothenburg Museum The Museum of Gothenburg () is a local history museum located in the city centre of Gothenburg in western Sweden. It is located in the East India House (), originally built as the Swedish East India Company offices in 1762. The city museum was es ...

's department of

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, as well as senior lecturer in Old Nordic literature at what would eventually become

University of Gothenburg The University of Gothenburg () is a List of universities in Sweden, university in Sweden's second largest city, Gothenburg. Founded in 1891, the university is the third-oldest of the current List of universities in Sweden#Public universities, S ...

. Additionally, he was active for some years as a lecturer with Gothenburg's workers institute. His name is written on the balcony of the grand hall of the Academic Society's Castle in Lund. The Nordic enlightenment of the 1870s made a significant impression on Bååth, and this time had a profound impact on his works. He enthusiastically partook in the

folk high school Folk high schools (also ''adult education center'') are institutions for adult education that generally do not grant academic degrees, though certain courses might exist leading to that goal. They are most commonly found in Nordic countries and i ...

movement. In addition to his poetry, Bååth has also published works on Old Nordic literature and culture, and has also interpreted prominent Icelandic works. He was named a member of the

Royal Society of Arts and Sciences in Gothenburg The Royal Society of Arts and Sciences in Gothenburg (, abbreviated KVVS and often known simply as ''Samhället'') is a Swedish Royal Academy. Its predecessor was founded in Gothenburg in 1773 and the academy took its present name in 1778. The sam ...

in 1889.

Private life

Bååth married Emma Charlotta "Lulli" Ahlberg (1864–1964) in 1894, who would outlive her husband by 52 years. Bååth was the brother of Cecilia Bååth-Holmberg.

References

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Additional reading

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Baath, Albert Ulrik Swedish poets Swedish male writers 1853 births 1912 deaths Swedish male poets Lund University alumni Writers from Malmö