Hans Strøm

Who was Hans Strøm?

Hans Strøm was a prominent Norwegian zoologist and naturalist. He is best associated with his topographical description of Sunnmøre.

Hans Strøm' was born in the traditional district of Sunnmøre, in Borgund in Møre og Romsdal County, Norway. His father was a clergyman and many other relatives of both his father and mother were ministers. He attended the Bergen Cathedral School. He was educated as a Lutheran clergyman and in 1745 took a theological degree at the University of Copenhagen. Then he worked from 1750 to 1764 as chaplain in Borgund. In 1764 he became parish priest, first in Volda where he served until 1779, when he went to Eiker where he served as Vicar for 18 years.

Hans Strøm was the first Norwegian who gave species descriptions for Norwegian animals. The results of his research was published as Physisk og Oeconomisk Beskrivelse over Fogderiet Søndmør I-II, a work that established his reputation as a scientific authority. He followed up this work with a number of articles, particularly where the natural sciences were strongly represented.