# Carl Semper

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{{Short description|German zoologist (1832–1893)}}
thumbnail|right|Carl Semper
'''Carl Gottfried Semper''' (July 6, 1832, [Altona](/source/Altona%2C_Hamburg), [Duchy of Holstein](/source/Duchy_of_Holstein) – May 29, 1893, [Würzburg](/source/W%C3%BCrzburg)) was a German [ethnologist](/source/ethnologist) and animal ecologist. His brother [Georg Semper](/source/Georg_Semper) took an interest in the lepidoptera while his brother Johannes Otto Semper (1830–1907) specialized in the molluscs.

==Career==

Semper attended the Hanover Polytechnic from 1851 to 1854 and achieved a [Ph.D.](/source/Ph.D.) in [zoology](/source/zoology) from the [University of Würzburg](/source/University_of_W%C3%BCrzburg) in 1856.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Sketch of Carl Semper|journal=Popular Science Monthly|date=Apr 1898|page=837|url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/20879226|accessdate=14 May 2013}}</ref>  He traveled to the [Philippines](/source/Philippines) and [Palau](/source/Palau) two years later, staying in the region until 1865 in association with [Museum Godeffroy](/source/Museum_Godeffroy). Semper published several works detailing his observations and experiences among Pacific peoples. In addition to his written work, he delivered lectures at the Lowell Technological Institute (now merged into the [University of Massachusetts Lowell](/source/University_of_Massachusetts_Lowell)) near [Boston](/source/Boston) and maintained a large collection of animal specimens. His work in Palau is especially noted as comprising one of the very few reliable accounts of cultural practices that are today severely diminished by [Westernization](/source/Westernization). Semper is also praised for his humane and even-handed attitude toward indigenous cultures.

Semper was an early supporter of [Darwinism](/source/Darwinism) in Germany.<ref>Glick, Thomas F. (1988). ''The Comparative Reception of Darwinism''. University of Chicago Press. p. 83. {{ISBN|0-226-29977-5}}</ref> He suffered a major stroke in 1887 and died a few years later.

A [species](/source/species) of Philippine sea snake he first collected, ''[Hydrophis semperi](/source/Hydrophis_semperi)'', was named in his honor,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://haribon.org.ph/|title=The Haribon Foundation - The Haribon Foundation is the Philippines' pioneer environmental organization|website=The Haribon Foundation}}</ref> as were two species of Philippine lizards, ''[Gonocephalus semperi](/source/Gonocephalus)'' and ''[Lipinia semperi](/source/Lipinia)''.<ref>Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. {{ISBN|978-1-4214-0135-5}}. ("Semper", pp. 240-241).</ref>

An [anatomical structure in the head](/source/Semper's_organ)s of certain [gastropod](/source/gastropod)s was discovered by Carl Semper in 1856 and is named after him.<ref name="Lane">Lane J. N. (1964) "Semper's Organ, a Cephalic Gland in Certain Gastropods". ''[Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science](/source/Quarterly_Journal_of_Microscopical_Science)'' '''105'''(3): 331-342.</ref>

==Bibliography==
* ''[https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k989785 Reisen im Archipel der Philippinen]'' (5 vol. of 10, 1868-1916)
* ''Palau-Inseln im Stillen Ocean'' (1873) [https://evols.library.manoa.hawaii.edu/items/1f1577d9-295c-45d0-ae76-a192ab6602f7 scan]
* ''Die Natürlichen Existenzbedingungen der Thiere'' (1880)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

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==External links==

* {{commons category-inline}}
* [http://www.wku.edu/~smithch/chronob/SEMP1832.htm "Chrono-Biographical Sketch: Carl Semper"] (Charles H. Smith at [Western Kentucky University](/source/Western_Kentucky_University))
* {{Gutenberg author |id=26755| name=Carl Semper}}
* {{Internet Archive author |sname=Carl Gottfried Semper}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Semper, Carl}}
Category:1832 births
Category:1893 deaths
Category:German naturalists
Category:19th-century German zoologists
Category:German physiologists

{{Germany-zoologist-stub}}

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Carl Semper](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Semper) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Semper?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.