Anna Maria van Schurman

Anna Maria van Schurman

Anna Maria van Schurman (November 5, 1607 – May 4, 1678) was a Dutch painter, engraver, poet, classical scholar, philosopher, and feminist writer who is best known for her exceptional learning and her defence of female education. She was a highly educated woman, who excelled in art, music, and literature, and became a polyglot proficient in fourteen languages, including Latin, Ancient Greek, Biblical Hebrew, Arabic, Syriac, Aramaic, and Ethiopic, as well as various contemporary European languages. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Anna Maria van Schurman has received more than 130,404 page views. Her biography is available in 28 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 26 in 2019). Anna Maria van Schurman is the 459th most popular painter (down from 429th in 2019), the 1,279th most popular biography from Germany (down from 1,139th in 2019) and the 41st most popular German Painter.

Anna Maria van Schurman was a Dutch scholar and philosopher. She was the first woman to receive a university degree and was a leading figure in the intellectual circles of the Dutch Golden Age. Van Schurman was a gifted linguist and one of the first female academics in the world. She corresponded with the likes of René Descartes, Queen Christina of Sweden, and John Milton.