Þórður Þorláksson

Þórður Þorláksson with his wife Guðríður Gísladóttir on the painting by an anonymous painter from 1697

Þórður Þorláksson (German Thordur Thorlaksson ) (born August 14, 1637 , † March 17, 1697 in Skálholt ) was a Protestant bishop of Skálholt in the south of Iceland .

He held his office from 1674 until the day of his death.

Family and education

Þórður Þorláksson was the son of Þorlákur Skúlason , bishop of Hólar . Therefore, he first went to the renowned school in Hólar. Like most of his evangelical predecessors, he later went to Denmark and completed his studies at the University of Copenhagen .

After an interlude in Iceland, he pursued further studies abroad from 1663, initially at the universities of Rostock and Wittenberg . Then he stayed in Paris , Belgium and Holland . In 1669 he can be found in Stangerland in Norway .

Professional background

From 1660 to 1663 he was the principal of the school in Hólar.

In 1772 he was ordained bishop and took over the office in Skálholt from Brynjólfur Sveinsson .

Natural scientist

Bishop Þórður was a good musician, but he was particularly passionate about the natural sciences, not least geography and agriculture.

He also followed the tradition of other Skálholt bishops to publish a description of Iceland in Latin. The title was Dissertatio chorographico-historica de Islandia . The treatise was published in Wittemberg in 1666 . He also drew maps of Iceland and Greenland .

He also initiated experimental breeding of wheat species in Skálholt.

printing house

He ordered the relocation of the episcopal print shop from Hólar to Skálholt and was the first to have medieval works printed in Iceland, including a. the first printed edition of the land acquisition book (1688). He is also said to have introduced technical innovations in the print shop.

marriage and family

His wife was Guðríður Gísladóttir (1651–1707).

One of his sons became a farmer in Hlíðarendi , Fljótshlíð , the farm known from the Njálssaga .

Web links

• Skálholt's website (Icelandic)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ See also the entry of Þórður Þorláksson's matriculation in the Rostock matriculation portal
2. ↑ Skálholt's website on Þórður Þorláksson ( memento of the original from February 20, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed August 6, 2010. 
3. ↑ see Oddur Einarsson , Gísli Oddsson

predecessor	Office	successor
Brynjólfur Sveinsson	Bishop of Skálholt 1674 - 1697	Jón Vídalín

Note: Icelanders are referred to by their first name or first and last name, but not just their surname. Further information can be found under Icelandic personal name .