GEOGRAPHERS from Russia

Top 4

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

1. Wladimir Köppen (1846 - 1940)

With an HPI of 66.20, Wladimir Köppen is the most famous Russian Geographer.  His biography has been translated into 50 different languages on wikipedia.

Wladimir Petrovich Köppen ( KUR-pən; German: [ˈkœpn̩]; Russian: Влади́мир Петро́вич Кёппен, romanized: Vladímir Petróvich Kyoppen, IPA: [vlɐˈdʲimʲɪr pʲɪˈtrovʲɪtɕ ˈkʲɵp(ː)ʲɪn]; 25 September 1846 – 22 June 1940) was a Russian–German geographer, meteorologist, climatologist and botanist. After studies in St. Petersburg, he spent the bulk of his life and professional career in Germany and Austria. His most notable contribution to science was the development of the Köppen climate classification system, which, with some modifications, is still commonly used. Köppen made significant contributions to several branches of science, and coined the name aerology for the science of measuring the upper air/atmosphere.

2. Pyotr Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky (1827 - 1914)

With an HPI of 56.09, Pyotr Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky is the 2nd most famous Russian Geographer.  His biography has been translated into 32 different languages.

Pyotr Petrovich Semyonov or Semenov (Russian: Пётр Петрович Семёнов; 2 January (New style: 14 January), 1827 – 26 February (New style: 11 March), 1914) was a Russian geographer and statistician who managed the Russian Geographical Society for more than 40 years. He gained international fame for his pioneering exploration of the Tian Shan mountains. He changed his surname to "Semyonov of Tian Shan" (Семёнов-Тян-Шанский, Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky) at the age of 79. Several of his descendants, including a son, Andrey Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky, and a grandson Oleg Semenov-Tian-Shansky became scientists of note.

3. Erich von Drygalski (1865 - 1949)

With an HPI of 54.98, Erich von Drygalski is the 3rd most famous Russian Geographer.  His biography has been translated into 28 different languages.

Erich Dagobert von Drygalski (German: [ˈeːʁɪç ˈdaːɡobɛʁt fɔn dʁyˈɡalski]; February 9, 1865 – January 10, 1949) was a German geographer, geophysicist and polar scientist, born in Königsberg, East Prussia. Between 1882 and 1887, Drygalski studied mathematics and natural science at the University of Königsberg, Bonn, Berlin and Leipzig. He graduated with a doctorate thesis about ice shields in Nordic areas. Between 1888 and 1891, he was an assistant at the Geodetic Institute and the Central Office of International Geodetics in Berlin. Drygalski led two expeditions between 1891 and 1893, which were supplied by the Society for Geoscience of Berlin. One expedition wintered during the winter between 1892 and 1893 in Western Greenland. He habilitated 1889 for geography and geophysics with the collected scientific evidence. In 1898, Drygalski became associate professor and 1899 extraordinary professor for geography and geophysics in Berlin.

4. Yuly Shokalsky (1856 - 1940)

With an HPI of 45.03, Yuly Shokalsky is the 4th most famous Russian Geographer.  His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Yuly Mikhailovich Shokalsky (Russian: Юлий Михайлович Шокальский; October 17, 1856 in Saint Petersburg – March 26, 1940 in Leningrad) was a Russian Empire and Soviet oceanographer, cartographer, and geographer.