Jón Ólafsson (Adventurer)

Jón Ólafsson , called Indíafari (Isl. 'India traveler '), (born November 4, 1593 , † May 3, 1679 ) was an Icelandic author and adventurer .

Life

Ólafsson was originally from the Westfjords . In 1615 he made a passage to England on board an English ship. From there he went to Denmark, where he became a gunner on a warship of King Christian IV . Soon afterwards he traveled the North Sea to Spitsbergen . In 1622 he then sailed over the Cape of Good Hope to Ceylon (today Sri Lanka ). Later he was employed in the service of the Danes in the Tranquebar colony in India . In 1624 he was injured in an explosion and brought back to Denmark.

Two years later, Jón settled in the Westfjords and became a farmer. In 1661 he wrote his biography . His story is divided into two parts: the first part deals with the time he spent in Denmark and on Svalbard. The second is about his trip to India. A third part was written by Jón's son and deals with the time after returning home to Iceland. As far as Jón's statements can be compared with other sources, his narrative is consistent. In some places he confuses years, people and offices. Jón was a good narrator and his descriptions of life in Copenhagen, as in India, are very vivid.

Works

• Memoirs of Jon Olafsson, Icelander and traveler to India, 1622-1625, as written by himself, 1661 . Edited by Inger Barnes, Babraham, Cambridge 1998, ISBN 0-9534565-0-1

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 .