Lund University
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Latin: Universitas Lundensis or Universitas Gothorum Carolina. Also the older Academia Carolina lundensis, or Academia Carolina conciliatrix. |
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| Motto | Ad utrumque (Prepared for both) |
|---|---|
| Established | 1666 |
| Type | Public |
| Rector magnificus | Prof. Göran Bexell |
| Staff | 6 000 |
| Students | 42,500 |
| Undergraduates | 30,800 |
| Doctoral students | 3,200 |
| Location | Lund, Scania, Sweden |
| Campus | Urban |
| Affiliations | Universitas 21, LERU, EUA |
| Website | http://www.lu.se/ |
Lund University (Swedish: Lunds universitet), Universitas Gothorum Carolina, is a Swedish university and Scandinavia's largest institution for education and research,[1] located in Lund in southernmost Sweden. The university was founded in 1666 and is the second oldest within Sweden's present borders.
Lund University has 7 faculties, with additional campuses in the cities of Malmö and Helsingborg, with a total of over 34,000 people studying in 50 different programmes and 800 separate courses. It belongs to the League of European Research Universities as well as the global Universitas 21 network.
The university traditionally centers on the Lundagård park adjacent to the Lund Cathedral, with various departments spread in different locations in town, but mostly concentrated in a belt stretching north from the park connecting to the university hospital area and continuing out to the northeastern periphery of the town, where one finds the large campus of the Faculty of Engineering, known domestically as the Lund Institute of Technology.
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[edit] History
The city of Lund has a long history as a center for learning and was the ecclesiastical centre and seat of the archbishop of Denmark. A cathedral school (the katedralsskolan) for the training of clergy was established in 1085 and is today one of Scandinavias oldest schools.
A studium generale (a medieval university education) was founded in 1425, but had to close in 1536 in connection with the Danish reformation.
After the Treaty of Roskilde in 1658, the Scanian lands came under the possession of the Swedish Crown, which quickly founded the Lund University in 1666 as the means of Swedification. It was the fifth university under the Swedish king, after Uppsala University 1477, the Academia Gustaviana 1632, now in Estonia; the Academy of Åbo 1640, now in Finland; and the University of Greifswald, 1648, now in Germany.
The university was named Academia Carolina after Charles X Gustav of Sweden. The name was in some formal use until the late 19th century, when Lund University became the widespread denomination.
The university was at its founding granted four faculties: law, theological, medicine and philosophy. They were the corner stones, and for more than 200 years this system was in effect. Towards the end of the 17th century, the number of students hovered around 100. Some notable professors in the early days were Samuel Pufendorf, a juridical historian; and Canutus Hahn and Kristian Papke in philosophy.
The Scanian War in 1676 led to a shut-down, which lasted until 1682. The university was re-opened largely due to regional patriots, but the university was not to enjoy a high status until well into the 19th century. Lecturing rooms were few, and lectures were held in the Lund Cathedral and its adjecent chapel. The professors were underpaid.
In 1713, Charles XII of Sweden entered Lund. He stayed in Lund for three years, in between his warlike expeditions. The town of Lund and the university attracted a temporary attention boost. The most notable lecturer during this time was Andreas Rydelius.
Peace was finally restored with the death of Charles XII in 1718, and during the first half of the 18th century the university was granted added funds. The number of students was now well around 500. Despite not being on par with Uppsala University, it had still built a solid reputation and managed to attract prominent professors.
Around 1760 the university reputation dropped as the number of students fell below 200, most of whom hailed from around the province. However, by 1780 its reputation was largely restored, and continued to rise through the 1820s. This was largely owing to popular and well-educated lecturers particularly in philology; the prominent professor Esaias Tegnér was a particularly notable character with widespread authority. He, in turn, attracted others towards Lund. One of these was the young theological student C. G. Brunius, who studied ancient languages under Tegnér and were later to become professor of Greek. With time he was to devote himself to architectures and he redesigned several of Lund's buildings, as well as churches of the province.
[edit] Faculties
- Faculty of Humanities
- Faculty of Theology
- Faculty of Medicine
- Faculty of Law
- Faculty of Natural Sciences
- Faculty of Social Sciences
- Lund School of Economics and Management
- Faculty of Engineering (Lund Institute of Technology)
- Academies of Performing and Visual Arts (the Academies of Music, Art, and Theatre)
There are also departments located in Malmö and Helsingborg.
[edit] Student nations
The nations in Lund are today best described as student societies, though they were originally more like residential colleges, offering care for students arriving from various geographical locations. It is still required to enroll in a nation to receive grades at the university.
Today students may enroll in any nation, although the nations still preserve their geographic names. In most cases it does not matter what nation one enrolls in, but different nations offer different activities for interested students. The fee of around 350 Swedish krona per semester (which also includes student union membership fees), is the closest thing to a tuition requirement found in Sweden.
Each nation has student housing, but the accommodations in no way meet demand, and they are usually appointed according to a queue system. Each nation has at least one pub evening per week, with a following night club. Most nations also host at least one banquet per week, where a three course dinner is served. Each nation also has different activities for students interested in sports, arts, or partying. All activities within the nations are voluntary, and most students are not active in them.
[edit] Notable people connected to Lund University
- Main article: List of Lund University people
- Samuel Pufendorf (1632-1694), German jurist, political scientist and historian. (Professor 1670-1677)
- Elias Magnus Fries (1794-1878), mycologist. (Student 1811, Professor 1824-1834, from 1834 professor at Uppsala University)
- Axel Möller (1830-1896), astronomer. (Ph.D. 1853, Professor 1863-1895)
- Albert Victor Bäcklund (1845-1912), mathematician and physicist. (Ph.D. 1868, professor from 1878)
- Knut Wicksell (1851-1926), economist. (Professor 1900-1916)
- Janne Rydberg (1854-1919), discovered the Rydberg formula at Lund University in 1888. (Ph.D. 1879, Professor from 1879)
- Elis Strömgren (1870-1947), astronomer and father of the astronomer Bengt Strömgren. (Ph.D. 1898, later Professor and Director of the Observatory at Copenhagen University)
- Marcel Riesz (1886-1969), mathematician. (Professor from 1926)
- Carl Hellmuth Hertz (1920-1990), together with Inge Edler pioneered Medical ultrasonography in echocardiography of the heart in cooperation between the department of cardiology and the department of electrical measurements in 1953.
- Arvid Carlsson (1923-), Nobel Laureate in medicine or physiology 2000. (M.D./Ph.D. 1951, Assistant Professor 1951-1959)
- Lars Hörmander (1931-), mathematician, awarded the Fields medal in 1962. (Ph.D. 1955, Professor 1968-1996)
[edit] Honorary doctorates
- In 1999 United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan was made an Honorary Doctor of Law.
[edit] Notable students
Being one of only two Swedish Universities until 1885, many notable figures have studied there.
- Bengt Lidner (1757-1793), poet.
- Thomas Thorild (1759-1808), poet, critic and philosopher.
- Per Georg Scheutz (1785-1873), inventor, computer technology pioneer. (J.D. 1805)
- Otto Lindblad (1809-1864), composer.
- Martin Wiberg, (1826-1905), inventor, computer technology pioneer. (Ph.D. 1850)
- Manne Siegbahn (1886-1978), Nobel Laureate in Physics 1924, Professor at Uppsala University. (Ph.D. 1911)
- Frans Gunnar Bengtsson (1894-1954), author of The Long Ships. (Licentiate in Philosophy, 1930)
- Hans Alfredson (1931-), writer, entertainer and film director, former head of Skansen. (Bachelor of Arts, 1956)
- Boris Smeds (1944-), radio engineer at ESA. (Licentiate in Electrical Measurements, 1972)
- Tage Erlander (1901-1985), politician. The longest serving Prime Minister of Sweden (1946-1969).
- Ingvar Carlsson (1934-), politician. Prime Minister of Sweden (1986-1991 and 1994-1996).
[edit] Partner Universities
- Ernst Moritz Arndt University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
- University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California
- Loughborough University United Kingdom
[edit] References
See also the article Lunds universitet from Nordisk familjebok, in Swedish.
[edit] External links
- Lund University - Official site
- Lund Institute of Technology - Official site
- Lund School of Economics and Management - Official site
[edit] Further reading
- Lunds universitets historia : utgiven av universitetet till dess 300-årsjubileum. 4 volumes. Lund: Lunds universitet 1968-1983. (The standard work on the history of the university.)
- Magnus Laurentius Ståhl, Biographiske underrättelser om professorer vid Kongl. universitetet i Lund, ifrån dess inrättning till närvarande tid. ("Biographical notes on professors at the Royal University of Lund from its foundation until the current time") Christianstad: L. Littorin, 1834. (public domain book available on Google Print, [1])
[edit] See also
| League of European Research Universities |
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Amsterdam | Cambridge | Edinburgh | ALU Freiburg | Geneva | Heidelberg | Helsinki | Karolinska (Stockholm) | Leiden | Leuven | London (UCL) | Lund | Milan | LMU Munich | Oxford | Paris VI | Paris-Sud | Strasbourg I (Louis Pasteur) | Utrecht | Zürich |
