EXPLORERS from Sweden

Top 5

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Swedish Explorers of all time. This list of famous Swedish Explorers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.

1. Sven Hedin (1865 - 1952)

With an HPI of 66.50, Sven Hedin is the most famous Swedish Explorer.  His biography has been translated into 45 different languages on wikipedia.

Sven Anders Hedin, KNO1kl RVO, (19 February 1865 – 26 November 1952) was a Swedish geographer, topographer, explorer, photographer, travel writer and illustrator of his own works. During four expeditions to Central Asia, he made the Transhimalaya known in the West and located sources of the Brahmaputra, Indus and Sutlej Rivers. He also mapped lake Lop Nur, and the remains of cities, grave sites and the Great Wall of China in the deserts of the Tarim Basin. In his book Från pol till pol (From Pole to Pole), Hedin describes a journey through Asia and Europe between the late 1880s and the early 1900s. While traveling, Hedin visited Turkey, the Caucasus, Tehran, Iraq, lands of the Kyrgyz people and the Russian Far East, India, China and Japan. The posthumous publication of his Central Asia Atlas marked the conclusion of his life's work.

2. Salomon August Andrée (1854 - 1897)

With an HPI of 59.20, Salomon August Andrée is the 2nd most famous Swedish Explorer.  His biography has been translated into 29 different languages.

Salomon August Andrée (18 October 1854 – October 1897), during his lifetime most often known as S. A. Andrée, was a Swedish engineer, physicist, aeronaut and polar explorer who died while leading an attempt to reach the Geographic North Pole by hydrogen balloon. The balloon expedition was unsuccessful in reaching the Pole and resulted in the deaths of all three of its participants.

3. Pehr Osbeck (1723 - 1805)

With an HPI of 53.99, Pehr Osbeck is the 3rd most famous Swedish Explorer.  His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Pehr Osbeck (1723 – 23 December 1805) was a Swedish explorer, naturalist and an apostle of Carl Linnaeus. He was born in the parish of Hålanda on Västergötland and studied at Uppsala with Carolus Linnaeus.

4. Oscar Dickson (1823 - 1897)

With an HPI of 49.88, Oscar Dickson is the 4th most famous Swedish Explorer.  His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Baron Oscar Dickson, or Oskar Dickson (2 December 1823 – 6 June 1897) was a Swedish magnate, bulk merchant, industrialist and philanthropist from a family of Scottish origin. In his time he was considered the most affluent of all Swedes.

5. Charles John Andersson (1827 - 1867)

With an HPI of 46.59, Charles John Andersson is the 5th most famous Swedish Explorer.  His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Karl John (Karl Johan) Andersson (4 March 1827 in Norra Råda Värmland, Sweden – 9 July 1867 in Angola) was a Swedish explorer, hunter and trader as well as an amateur naturalist and ornithologist. He is most famous for the many books he published about his travels, and for being one of the most notable explorers of southern Africa, mostly in present-day Namibia.