Eggert Ólafsson was an Icelandic naturalist, poet, and one of the pioneers of the Enlightenment movement in Iceland in the eighteenth century. He was born in December 1726 on the small island of Svefneyjar in Breiðafjörður and was brought up with his parents until he was ten years old when he went into fostering with his uncle Guðmundur Sigurðsson, the county magistrate in Snæfellsnes. Eggert was a promising student and had the support from his family to go for further education in Skálholt in the south of Iceland, one of the two bishoprics at the time. After finishing his final exams, Eggert went to Denmark to study natural science, philosophy, and Nordic studies at The University of Copenhagen. His final thesis concerned Iceland’s volcanic activity and formation. His theory…
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Citation: Pálsson, Oddur. "Eggert Ólafsson". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 05 August 2024 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=15192, accessed 31 October 2024.]