Peter Forsskål

{{short description|Swedish explorer, orientalist and naturalist}} {{Infobox scientist | name = Peter Forsskål | other_names = Pehr Forsskål, Peter Forskaol, Petrus Forskål, Pehr Forsskåhl | image = Peter Forsskaal year1760.jpg | birth_date = 11 January 1732 | birth_place = [[Helsinki]], [[Uusimaa]], [[Sweden]] (now [[Finland]]) | death_date = {{death date and age|df=y|1763|7|11|1732|1|11}} | death_place = [[Yarim]], [[Yemeni Zaidi State|Yemen]] | citizenship = [[Sweden|Swedish]] | field = [[exploration]], [[oriental studies|orientalism]] and [[natural history]] | education = [[Uppsala University]], [[University of Göttingen]] | work_institutions = | alma_mater = | doctoral_advisor = | doctoral_students = | known_for = | author_abbrev_bot = '''Forssk.''' | author_abbrev_zoo = '''Forsskål''' | prizes = }}

'''Peter Forsskål''', sometimes spelled '''Pehr Forsskål''', '''Peter Forskaol''', '''Petrus Forskål''' or '''Pehr Forsskåhl''' (11 January 1732 – 11 July 1763) was a [[Sweden|Swedish]] [[exploration|explorer]], [[oriental studies|orientalist]], [[natural history|naturalist]], and an [[Apostles of Linnaeus|apostle of Carl Linnaeus]].<ref>{{BLF|2465|Peter Forsskål}}</ref>

==Early life==

Forsskål was born in [[Helsinki]], now in [[Finland]] but then a part of [[Sweden]], where his father, the priest {{ill|Johannes Forsskål|fi|Johan Forsskåhl|sv}}, was serving as a Lutheran clergyman, but the family moved to Sweden in 1741 when the father was appointed to the parish of [[:sv:Tegelsmora församling|Tegelsmora]] in [[Uppland]] and the [[Archbishop of Uppsala|archdiocese of Uppsala]]. As was common at the time, he enrolled at [[Uppsala University]] at a young age in 1742, but returned home for some time and, after studies on his own, rematriculated in Uppsala in 1751, where he completed a [[Theology|theological]] degree the same year.

==Linnaeus's disciple==

In Uppsala Forsskål was one of the students of [[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], but apparently also studied with the orientalist [[Carl Aurivillius]], whose contacts with the Göttingen orientalist [[Johann David Michaelis]] are probably the reason why Forsskål travelled to the [[University of Göttingen]] in 1753; he studied Oriental languages and Philosophy and completed a doctorate there with a dissertation entitled ''Dubia de principiis philosophiae recentioris'' (1756). Returning to Uppsala in 1756, he wanted to pursue studies in economics.

In November 1759, he published a political pamphlet called, in Swedish, ''Tankar om borgerliga friheten''<ref>[http://sv.wikisource.org/wiki/Tankar_om_borgerliga_friheten Facsimile of the swedish version from 1759 at Swedish Wikisource]</ref> (Thoughts on civil liberty). As it advocated complete [[freedom of the press]], it was at the time controversial and was consequently suppressed by the authorities on the day of publication.<ref>''Thoughts on Civil Liberty'' / ''Tankar om borgerliga friheten (1759)''. Stockholm: Bokförlaget Atlantis, 2009; http://www.peterforsskal.com/firstedition.html</ref> The pamphlet was censored by the "[[Hats (party)|Hats]]" government and caused him to be warned by the Royal Chancellery.

==Journey to Yemen and death==

On Michaelis's recommendation, and with Linnaeus's approval, Forsskål the next year (1760) was appointed by [[Frederick V of Denmark]] to join, amongst others, the orientalist and mathematician [[Carsten Niebuhr]] on an [[Danish Arabia expedition (1761–67)|expedition to Arabia]]. The group first went to [[Egypt]] where they stayed for about a year, with Forsskål pursuing studies in [[Arabic]] [[dialect]]s, and arrived in South Arabia ([[Arabia Felix]], present-day [[Yemen]]) at the end of December 1762. Just 31 years old, Forsskål worked hard on collecting botanical and zoological specimens, but fell ill with [[malaria]] and died in July 1763. He was buried at night in [[Yarim]], Yemen.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F_lNAQAAIAAJ&q=Forssk%C3%A5l+Yarim|title=Cactus and Succulent Journal|date=2004|language=en}}</ref>

Linnaeus mourned the death of his young student and named one of the plants Forsskål had sent home ''[[Forsskaolea tenacissima]]'' because the plant was as stubborn and persistent as the young man had been.

The entire journey of this Danish expedition was the subject of [[Thorkild Hansen]]'s first book, ''Det lykkelige Arabien'' (1962, translated into English as ''[[Arabia Felix]]'').

==Legacy==

Forsskål's companion Niebuhr, who was the only one of the participants to survive the expedition, was entrusted with the care of editing his manuscripts, and published in 1775 ''Descriptiones Animalium – Avium, amphiborum, insectorum, vermium quæ in itinere orientali observavit Petrus Forskål''. In the same year his account of the plants of Yemen and of lower Egypt also appeared, under the title of ''Flora Ægyptiaco-Arabica sive descriptiones plantarum quas per Ægyptum Inferiorem et Arabiam felicem detexit, illustravit Petrus Forskål''. Most of his specimens were lost in transport or deteriorated due to bad storage in [[Copenhagen]]; his [[herbarium]] was reconstructed some 150 years after his death by the botanist [[Carl Christensen (botanist)|Carl Christensen]].

In his taxonomy work, Forsskål assigned the local Arabic name of the fish as the Latin species name:<ref>{{cite web |last1=Baheyeldin |first1=Khalid |title=Forsskål's use of Arabic names for fish species |url=https://baheyeldin.com/linguistics/forsskaal-arabic-species-names-fish-taxonomy.html |website=baheyeldin.com |access-date=8 May 2019}}</ref> so they reflect the names used then (and now) on the coasts of the Red Sea for many species of fish.

In his pamphlet, ''Thoughts on Civil Liberty'' (1759), Forsskål argues the case for civil liberties of the kind people in modern democracies take for granted. A sample (para 21):

<blockquote>Finally, another important right in any free society is the liberty to contribute to the Public Good. But for this to happen, it must be possible to make the state of affairs in society known to one and all, and everyone must be free to express their thoughts about it. Where this is lacking, liberty is not worth its name.</blockquote>

Shortly after its publication the pamphlet was banned, and Forsskål was forced into exile. But only seven years later, in 1766, freedom of the press was given protection in Swedish constitutional law – the first such legislation in world history. (Under the reign of Gustaf III Sweden fell back into repression. Freedom of the press was reinstated in the Constitution of 1809.)

== Species named in his honor ==

The tiger fish ''[[Hydrocynus forskahlii]]'' was named in his honor by [[Georges Cuvier]]. Forsskål originally reported this species as ''Salmo (=Alestes) dentex'' in 1775.<ref name = ETY>{{cite web | url = http://www.etyfish.org/characiformes1/ | title = The ETYFish Project: Order Characiformes: Families Distichodontidae, Citharinidae, Crenuchidae, Alestidae and Hepsetidae | accessdate = 29 September 2021 | publisher = Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara | work = The ETYFish Project | date = 2016-08-09 | archive-date = 2019-10-15 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20191015052827/http://www.etyfish.org/characiformes1/ | url-status = dead }}</ref>

The [[siphonophore]] ''[[Forskalia]]'' in the monotypic family Forskaliidae was named in his honor by [[Kölliker]].

The black sea cucumber ''[[Holothuria forskali]]'' was named in his honor by [[Delle Chiaje]].

The plant genus ''[[Forsskaolea]]'' L. was named in his honor.

Many plants also bear his name in the epithet, among which : *''[[Gymnosporia forsskaoliana]]'' (Sebsebe) Jordaan, Celastraceae. *''[[Dracaena forskaliana]]'' (Schult. f.) Byng & Christenh., Asparagaceae. *''[[Cynanchum forskaolianum]]'' (Schult.) Meve & Liede, Apocynaceae. *''[[Viola forskaalii]]'' Greuter, Violaceae. *''[[Centropodia forskaolii]]'' (Vahl) Cope, Poaceae. *''[[Helichrysum forskahlii]]'' (J. F. Gmel.) Hilliard & B. L. Burtt, Asteraceae. *''[[Aneilema forskaolii]]'' Kunth, Commelinaceae. *''[[Ruellia forsskaolii]]'' Thulin, Acanthaceae.

His name is one of those with most variants, as botanists are free to choose their latinization, and the transcription to the vowel å has varied through time.

==Variant spellings of his name== In subsequent botanical works many different variants of his name were recorded (Forsskål, Forskål, Forskåhl, Forsskåhl, Forsskaal, Forskal, Forsskal, occasionally also Forsskaol).<ref>Friis, I. & Thulin, M. 1984. ''The spelling of Pehr Forsskål's family name.'' - Taxon 33: 668-672.</ref> For citing the scientist's name it was recommended not to replace å by a. Family members in these times used three alternative spellings Forsskål, Forskål and Forsskåhl. Modern members of the family seem to prefer Forsskåhl. Peter's father and brother used the spelling Forsskåhl. Peter himself alternatively used Forsskål and Forsskaal, in approximately the same frequency, but the choice depended on the language of a letter's recipient. In one letter to England he once spelled his name Forsskol. [[Linnæus]] spelled Peter's name Forskåhl,<ref>p. 1040 in [http://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?PPN362053006 Linnæus, C. 1758.] ''Systema naturæ per regna tria naturæ, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Tomus I. Editio decima, reformata.'' - pp. [1-4], 1-824. Holmiæ. (Salvius).</ref> not in agreement with the student's father. In publications issued during Peter's lifetime the spelling Forsskål was used, including in his dissertation issued in 1756 in [[Göttingen]].<ref>[http://resolver.sub.uni-goettingen.de/purl?PPN641608004 Forsskål, P. 1756.] ''Dvbia de principiis philosophiae recentioris''. - pp. (1-9), 1-65. Goettingae. (Lvsac).</ref>

In the important work ''Descriptiones animalium''<ref>[https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/18564 Forskål, P. 1775.] ''Descriptiones animalium avium, amphibiorum, piscium, insectorum, vermium; quæ in itinere orientali observavit Petrus Forskål. Post mortem auctoris edidit Carsten Niebuhr. Adjuncta est materia medica Kahirina atque tabula maris rubri geographica.'' - pp. 1-20, I-XXXIV [= 1-34], 1-164, 1 map. Hauniæ. (Möller).</ref> which was published 12 years after his death and which was attributed to him<ref>Fricke, R. 2008. Authorship, availability and validity of fish names described by Peter (Pehr) Simon Forsskål and Johann Christian Fabricius in the ‘Descriptiones animalium’ by Carsten Niebuhr in 1775 (Pisces). - Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde (A Neue Serie) 1: 1-76.</ref> the spelling "Forskål" had been used. In current zoological sources both spellings Forskål and Forsskål are in use, Forskåhl and Forsskåhl are not used.<ref>[http://www.animalbase.uni-goettingen.de/zooweb/servlet/AnimalBase/home/reference?id=1541 AnimalBase reference summary for Forskål, P. 1775]</ref>

==Publications== [[File:Forsskal, Pehr – Flora Aegyptiaco-Arabica, 1775 – BEIC 8733308.jpg|thumb|''Flora Aegyptiaco-Arabica, 1775'']] # ''Thoughts on Civil Liberty'' / ''Tankar om borgerliga friheten (1759)''. Stockholm: Bokförlaget Atlantis, 2009. {{ISBN|978-91-7353-360-7}}. [Edited and translated by David Goldberg, Gunilla Jonsson, Helena Jäderblom, Gunnar Persson and Thomas von Vegesack, assisted by David Shaw.] ([http://sv.wikisource.org/wiki/Tankar_om_borgerliga_friheten Swedish Wikisource]) # * {{Cite book|title=Flora Aegyptiaco-Arabica|volume=|publisher=Nicolaus Möller|location=København|year=1775|language=la|url=https://gutenberg.beic.it/webclient/DeliveryManager?pid=8733308}} # * {{Cite book|title=Descriptiones animalium|volume=|publisher=Nicolaus Möller|location=København|year=1775|language=la|url=https://gutenberg.beic.it/webclient/DeliveryManager?pid=8737613}} # * {{Cite book|title=Icones rerum naturalium|volume=|publisher=Nicolaus Möller|location=København|year=1776|language=la|url=https://gutenberg.beic.it/webclient/DeliveryManager?pid=8738306}} # ''Resa till lyklige Arabien''. 1950.

==See also== *[[:Category:Taxa named by Peter Forsskål]]

==References== {{reflist}}

== External links == {{commons}} {{NIE Poster|year=1906|Forskål, Peter|Peter Forsskål}} *Book [https://archive.org/details/mobot31753002702097 ''Flora Aegyptiaco-Arabica''], by Peter Forskål, year 1775, in Latin. *Book [https://archive.org/details/descriptionesan00conggoog ''Descriptiones animalium ... quæ in itinere orientali''], by Peter Forskål, year 1775, in Latin. *Book [https://archive.org/details/iconesrerumnatu00niebgoog ''Icones rerum naturalium quas in itinere orientali''], by Peter Forskål, year 1776, in Latin. *[http://baheyeldin.com/linguistics/forsskaal-arabic-species-names-fish-taxonomy.html Biography of Forsskål] with links to other web sites on him, and includes how he used Arabic names for species names. *[http://www.kb.dk/da/nb/samling/os/naeroest/forsskaal.html Peter Forsskål], Royal Library, Copenhagen, Oriental collections - mainly on Forsskål's contributions to the knowledge of Arabian pharmacognosy *[http://peterforsskal.com/ Thoughts on Civil Liberty] in Swedish, and translations in English, French, German, Spanish, Ukrainian, and other languages translations of Forsskal's original (uncensored) manuscript. * {{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Forskål, Peter |short=x}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forsskal, Peter}} [[Category:Swedish naturalists]] [[Category:Swedish taxonomists]] [[Category:1732 births]] [[Category:1763 deaths]] [[Category:18th-century Swedish botanists]] [[Category:18th-century Swedish zoologists]] [[Category:Swedish phycologists]] [[Category:Swedish pteridologists]] [[Category:Swedish explorers]] [[Category:Swedish orientalists]] [[Category:Botanists active in Egypt]] [[Category:Botanists with author abbreviations]] [[Category:Uppsala University alumni]] [[Category:Scientists from Helsinki]] [[Category:Age of Liberty people]] [[Category:18th-century explorers]] [[Category:Deaths from malaria]] [[Category:Swedish expatriates in Egypt]] [[Category:Swedish expatriates in Yemen]] [[Category:Swedish people of Finnish descent]] [[Category:Swedish-speaking Finns]] [[Category:Natural history of Palestine (region)]]