Andrej Kmeť (19 November 1841, Bzenica – 16 February 1908,

Martin Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...

) was a Slovak Catholic priest, botanist, ethnographer, archaeologist, and geologist. He was a founder of the

Slovak National Museum The Slovak National Museum () is the most important institution focusing on scientific research and cultural education in the field of museology in Slovakia. Its beginnings "are connected with the endeavour of the Slovak nation for national emanc ...

. Several species of fungi and plants have been named after him.

Life and work

Kmeť was born in the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

in Bzenica, today in Slovakia. He was the youngest of eight children of a blacksmith. After education at the local elementary and grammar schools he studied theology at

Esztergom Esztergom (; ; or ; , known by Names of European cities in different languages: E–H#E, alternative names) is a city with county rights in northern Hungary, northwest of the capital Budapest. It lies in Komárom-Esztergom County, on the righ ...

from 1861 and was ordained priest in 1865. He served as a curate at Senohrad (1865–1868) before becoming a priest at Krnišov (1868–1878) and Prenčov (1878–1906). In his spare time, he collected plant specimens and created a

herbarium A herbarium (plural: herbaria) is a collection of preserved plant biological specimen, specimens and associated data used for scientific study. The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts; these will usually be in dried form mounted on a sh ...

with 72,000 specimens. Kmeť issued the

exsiccata Exsiccata (Latin, ''gen.'' -ae, ''plur.'' -ae) is a work with "published, uniform, numbered set of preserved specimens distributed with printed labels". Typically, exsiccatae are numbered collections of dried herbarium Biological specimen, spe ...

-like series ''Flora Schemnitziensis rFungi Schemnitzienses'' widely distributed among herbaria. He collected in the Hont Region particularly in the Štiavnické vrchy. He was one of the first researchers who carried on modern archaeological excavations in Central Europe. He discovered a mammoth skeleton at Beš. In 1892, he founded the Slovak Learned Society (), which later became nucleus of the

Slovak Academy of Sciences The Slovak Academy of Sciences (, or SAV) is the main scientific and research institution in Slovakia fostering basic and strategic basic research. It was founded in 1942, closed after World War II, and then reestablished in 1953. Its primary ...

. He also was an initiator of the museum association in 1893 which led to collections being accumulated and the first museum which was established in 1906. He was also known for his activism against

alcoholism Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World He ...

. Andrej Kmeť retired in 1906 and lived in Turčiansky until his death and was interred in the

National Cemetery in Martin The National Cemetery () in Martin, Slovakia is the final resting place of many important personalities of Slovak history. The list includes writers, poets, national activists, pedagogues, etc. The reason why Martin was selected as the site for t ...

Works online

''Sitno a co s neho vidieť''
Ružomberok: Fr. Rich. Osvald, 1901. 140 p. - available at ULB Digital Library

References

External links

Biography of Andrej Kmeť

Andrej Kmeť Museum
1841 births 1908 deaths People from Žiar nad Hronom District Slovak botanists Slovak Roman Catholic priests Burials at National Cemetery in Martin 19th-century Austrian Roman Catholic priests {{Slovakia-bio-stub