Famous Swedish Intellectuals & Academics

Dag Hammarskjöld was a Swedish diplomat and economist. In 1953, Hammarskjöld became the youngest person to be appointed as the Secretary-General of the United Nations. He died in airplane crash in 1961. Dag Hammarskjöld became the first person to be honored with a Nobel Peace Prize posthumously.

Emanuel Swedenborg was a Swedish pluralistic-Christian philosopher, mystic, theologian, and scientist. Swedenborg started hogging the limelight after writing a book on the afterlife titled Heaven and Hell, which released in 1758. A prolific scientist and inventor, Swedenborg experienced spiritual awakening after which he started working on reforming Christianity. He even claimed that he could converse with angels and demons.

A Swedish physician, academic, and public speaker, Hans Rosling was the co-founder of Gapminder Foundation, that is known for the development the Trendalyzer software system. He gave several talks/lectures, presented television documentaries like Don’t Panic: The Truth about Population and also co-authored a bestselling book titled Factfulness. Additionally, he was a professor of international health at Karolinska Institute too.

German Jewish philosopher Ernst Cassirer was a major figure of the Weimar intellectual circle. While he initially followed in the path of his mentor Hermann Cohen, he later developed and promoted philosophical idealism and also penned books such as Philosophy of Symbolic Forms. His The Myth of the State dealt with Nazi Germany.

Son of a building contractor, Nobel Memorial Prize-winning Swedish economist and sociologist Gunnar Myrdal attained a Rockefeller fellowship to the U.S. and also taught as a professor. Through his book An American Dilemma, he explored the socio-economic issues of the African-American community and laid down concepts such as cumulative causation.

Nick Bostrom is a Swedish philosopher best known for his work concerning issues like existential risk, human enhancement, the anthropic principle, and risks with super-intelligence. A prolific writer, Bostrom has authored more than 200 books. Nick Bostrom is also an advocate of transhumanism. In 2009, he received the Eugene R. Gannon Award.

A prominent name in the field of economics, Knut Wicksell was a Swedish economist known for his pioneering work in monetary theory. His work has influenced numerous economists like James M. Buchanan and John Maynard Keynes and various economic schools of thought like Keynesian and Austrian school. During his career, he also worked as a professor at the Lund University.

Fredrik Reinfeldt is a Swedish lecturer, economist, and former politician. He served as the Prime Minister of Sweden from 6 October 2006 to 3 October 2014. By virtue of his victories in 2006 and 2010, Fredrik Reinfeldt became the only person to lead the Moderate Party to two successive general election victories. 

Since 2012, Swedish businessman Carl-Henric Svanberg has led AB Volvo, the global trucks and construction equipment manufacturer, as its chairman. Previously he worked as the chairman of British oil and gas company BP plc and CEO of the Swedish telecommunication company Ericsson. Still earlier, as CEO, he led the Assa Abloy Group to become a global leader in its industry.

Nobel Prize-winning Swedish poet Tomas Tranströmer was raised by his mother after his parents split. He initially worked as a psychologist. Known for books such as 17 dikter, he specialized in modernist imagery and metaphors. A skilled pianist, he played with his left hand after his right side was paralyzed.

Sven Hedin was a Swedish topographer, geographer, photographer, explorer, illustrator, and travel writer. He is best known for making four expeditions to Central Asia. He later shared his experience in a book titled From Pole to Pole. A respected explorer, Hedin was honored with several prestigious awards and medals during his lifetime.

Sara Danius was a Swedish professor of literary studies and essayist. She is best remembered for writing about the relationship between society and literature and dealt with authors like Gustave Flaubert, Thomas Mann, and Marcel Proust. Over the course of her illustrious career, Sara Danius was honored with several prestigious awards like Gerard Bonnier's Essay Prize and Lena Nyman Prize.

Alva Myrdal was a Swedish politician, diplomat, and sociologist. She played a major role during the disarmament movement in Sweden, for which she was honored with the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize in 1982. She also chaired the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute after playing a key role in its creation. Throughout her career, Myrdal was honored with many prestigious awards.

Swedish pharmacologist Arvid Carlsson’s research work establishing dopamine as a significant neurotransmitter in the brain resulted in the development of drugs for Parkinson’s disease. In the year 2000, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work. During his career, he was also awarded the Wolf Prize in Medicine, the Japan Prize and Italy's Feltrinelli Prize.

Swedish professor of anatomy Anders Retzius is best remembered for his ground-breaking research on craniometry, or the human skull. He was associated with the Karolinska Medic-Kirurgiska Institutet in Stockholm. A Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences member, he was also the father of renowned Swedish physican Gustaf Retzius.

Gad Anders Rausing was a Swedish archaeologist and industrialist. Alongside his brother Hans Anders Rausing, Gad is credited with popularizing the food packaging company Tetra Pak, which was founded by his father Ruben Rausing. Gad Rausing, who had a lifelong passion for archaeology, taught at Lund University's Institute of Archaeology. Gad Anders Rausing also authored several books on archaeology. 

Bertil Gotthard Ohlin was a Swedish economist best known for developing what became known as the Heckscher–Ohlin model together with Eli Heckscher. He had a long career as a professor of economics at the Stockholm School of Economics. Along with British economist James Meade, he was jointly awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1977. 

Rudolf Kjellén was a Swedish politician, geographer, and political scientist. Apart from coining the term geopolitics, Kjellén is also credited with laying the foundations for the German Geopolitik. Rudolf Kjellén also served as a professor of political sciences and statistics at the University of Gothenburg. 

Wife of Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme, Lisbeth Palme was also a children's psychologist in her own right, serving as the chairwoman of the Swedish UNICEF committee for about twelve long years and as its international chairwoman for one term. A witness to her husband’s assassination, she later identified the murderer, but experts believe he identified the wrong man.

Swedish computer scientist and software engineer, Ivar Jacobson is known for the development of Unified Modelling Language (UML), Rational Unified Process (RUP) and Objectory. Previously he worked for Ericsson and in 2004 founded his current company Ivar Jacobson International. He is also an author who has published numerous books and papers. Additionally, he has also delivered talks at various conferences.

Ishtiaq Ahmed is a Swedish author and political scientist. He is best known for his association with Stockholm University where he serves as Professor Emeritus of Political Science. At the University of Stockholm, Ishtiaq Ahmed taught a range of subjects including political theory.

Vilhelm Moberg was a Swedish author and historian who is internationally known for his works on Swedish emigration to the USA in the 19th century. Moberg took it upon himself to give voice to the poor and illiterate, writing several books on the subject including The Earth is Ours trilogy and the Emigrant series. Largely self-educated, he also wrote several non-frictions including two volumes on Swedish history.

Eli Filip Heckscher was a Swedish economic historian and economist best remembered for co-developing the Heckscher-Ohlin theorem alongside Bertil Ohlin. Referred to as the father of Swedish economic history, Heckscher also made an immense contribution to the establishment of political opinion in Sweden. In 1932, Eli Filip Heckscher was elected a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

Eric von Rosen was a Swedish explorer and ethnographer. An important figure in the Swedish upper class, Rosen gifted the newly independent state of Finland an aircraft in 1918, which signified the dawn of the Finnish Air Force. Eric von Rosen is also credited with popularizing the swastika in Sweden as he used the symbol as a personal owner's mark.  

Gustav Cassel was a Swedish economist who traveled around the world to lecture at universities. He also discussed economic theories with heads of government, financiers, and governors. In the late-1910s, Cassel was commissioned by the League of Nations to write statements on the monetary problems of the world. Gustav Cassel is also credited with teaching future economists like Bertil Ohlin.

Known for his seminal work on cultural diffusion, time-space geography and human migration, Swedish geographer Torsten Hägerstrand was a noted academic attached to the prestigious Lunds University of Sweden. Hailed for introducing humanistic approach to geography, he paid close attention to ideas like embodiment and emotion, which in turn helped to develop critical geography, promoting social justice and liberation. 

Hedi Fried is a Swedish-Romanian psychologist and author. She is best known as a Holocaust survivor, having passed through Bergen-Belsen as well as Auschwitz before reaching Sweden in July 1945. Over the years, Hédi Fried has been honored with several awards such as the Seraphim Medal, Natur & Kultur Culture Award, and Olof Palme Prize.

Bo Rothstein is a Swedish political scientist best known for his service as a professor in several prestigious institutions such as Uppsala University and University of Gothenburg. Over the years, Bo Rothstein has also been a visiting scholar at Harvard University, Cornell University, the University of Washington, and Stanford University among other universities.

Swedish anthropologist Ulf Hannerz is not just associated with the Stockholm University as a professor but was also named to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Interestingly, he had initially soared to fame as a child participant on the game show The 10,000 Kronor Question, which he eventually won.

Swedish geologist and archaeologist Johan Gunnar Andersson was one of the pioneers of the study on prehistoric China. He discovered the origins of what later came to be known as the Yangshao culture. The Vega Medal winner also penned works such as Children of the Yellow Earth.

One of the founding members of the Swedish Geatish Society, which tried to arouse nationalism through historical study, Erik Gustaf Geijer was a historian, philosopher, poet, political and social theorist all rolled into one. A professor of history at the Uppsala University, he had authored number of books and wrote music for many of his poems, chamber works, choirs etc.

Danish physician Caspar Berthelsen Bartholin, or Caspar Bartholin the Elder, is best known for his work on anatomy, Anatomicae Institutiones Corporis Humani. He also made pioneering research on the olfactory nerve. However, he is incorrectly attributed with the discovery of the Bartholin’s gland, which his grandson, Caspar Bartholin the Younger, had discovered.

Swedish economist Erik Robert Lindahl, of the Stockholm school of economics, is known for the development of sequence analysis in economics and the benefit principle in taxation. During his career, he worked at the Universities of Lund, Gothenburg and Uppsala; became the International Economic Association President and also served as an advisor to the Swedish government and the central bank.

Sixteenth-century Catholic archbishop Johannes Magnus was also a talented historian. He served as the papal emissary to Scandinavia. The brother of Swedish writer Olaus Magnus, he too penned historical works such as Historia de omnibus gothorum sueonumque regibus. He was exiled as a follow-up to the Reformation.

Swedish archaeologist Oscar Montelius is best remembered for his pioneering research on prehistoric chronology, especially that of the Bronze Age. He was associated with the Museum of National Antiquities in Stockholm, as a professor and as a museum director. He had also won honors such as the Anders Retzius Medal.

Axel Hägerström was a Swedish philosopher best remembered as the founder of the positivistic Uppsala school of philosophy, the Swedish equivalent of the Anglo-American Analytical Philosophy. Axel Hägerström is also credited with mentoring other philosophers like Alf Ross and Karl Olivecrona.

Olof Celsius was a Swedish philologist, botanist, runologist, and clergyman. He also served as a professor at the famous Uppsala University. Olof Celsius is credited with mentoring future scientist and botanist, Carl Linnaeus. In 1739, Celsius was inducted into the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.   

Swedish writer Lennart Hellsing, best known for his children’s books, was considered a master of nonsense writing and humor. He not only received the Samfundet De Nio Grand Prize but was also a finalist for the Hans Christian Andersen Award. He was married to Swedish actor Yvonne Lombard.

Nils Edén was a Swedish politician and historian. He is best remembered for serving as the Prime Minister of Sweden from 19 October 1917 to 10 March 1920. Along with Hjalmar Branting, Nils Edén helped Sweden transit from a democratic monarchy to a parliamentary democracy with equal female and male suffrage.

Swedish civil servant and author Georg Stiernhielm is regarded as the father of Swedish poetry. Best known for his epic poem Hercules, he had also penned works on philology and history and was a mathematician, too. He also laid stress on the use of Swedish words, eliminating foreign words from his vocabulary.

Swedish author and historian Olof von Dalin is remembered for his pioneering contribution in bringing in Enlightenment into Swedish culture. He anonymously wrote the first literary periodical of Sweden, Then swänska Argus. His best-known works include the allegory The Tale About the Horse and the folk ballad The Hat Ballad.

Herbert Tingsten was a Swedish writer, newspaper publisher, and political scientist. From 1935 to 1946, he served at Stockholm University as a professor of political science. From 1946 to 1959, he served as the executive editor of Dagens Nyheter, a daily newspaper. Renowned for his intuition, Tingsten anticipated issues such as apartheid in South Africa and the rise of fascism. 

Erland Nordenskiöld was a Swedish anthropologist and archeologist best remembered for his research which focused on the prehistory and ethnography of South America. He also made immense contributions to the ethnographic section of the Göteborg Museum. Erland Nordenskiöld was honored with the Royal Academy of Letters' Loubat Prize in 1912. 

Oscar Levertin was one of the finest poets and literary historians of his country and one of most prominent figures of the Swedish Romantic movement. His best-known works include Kung Salomo och Morolf and the short-story volume Rococonoveller. He was also the University of Stockholm’s first chair of literary history.

Poul Helgesen was a Danish historian and humanist. He was also an industrious author whose best known work is the unfinished Skibby Chronicle. Poul Helgesen also served as a teacher of theology in Denmark.  

Axel Brusewitz was a Swedish professor who taught political science in Uppsala. A specialist in constitutional history, Brusewitz wrote influential works about the Swedish constitution of 1809. Axel Brusewitz is also credited with mentoring other prominent political scientists like Gunnar Heckscher and Herbert Tingsten.

Harald Hjärne was a Swedish historian best remembered for his association with Uppsala University where he held one of the chairs of history from 1889 to 1913. From 1903 to 1922, Harald Hjärne also served as one of the most important members of the Swedish Academy.