Iacob Dybwad Sømme (5 September 1898 – 3 March 1944) was a Norwegian

ichthyologist Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish, including bony fish (Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fish (Agnatha). According to FishBase, 35,800 species of fish had been described as of March 2 ...

and resistance member.

Personal life

He was born in

Etnedal Municipality Etnedal is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Valdres. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Bruflat. The municipality is the 216th largest by area out of the 356 ...

as a son of chief physician Jacob Dybwad Sømme (1866–1923) and Helene Sofie Sørensen (1870–1955). The family moved to Mesnalien in 1899,

Stavanger Stavanger, officially the Stavanger Municipality, is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the third largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the ...

in 1908 and

Molde Molde () is a List of towns and cities in Norway, town and the seat of Molde Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Romsdal. It is located on the Romsdal Pen ...

in 1917. He was a brother of Sven Sømme and first cousin of Axel Sømme. His sister Ingerid Sømme married Sigval Bergesen the Younger, a son of Sigval Bergesen. Iacob Dybwad Sømme married scientist Aslaug Sverdrup (1891–1955), a daughter of bishop and politician Jakob Sverdrup, in January 1930 in Oslo. The marriage lasted until 1942. They had one child together.

Career

Sømme took his

examen artium Examen artium was the name of the academic certification conferred in Denmark and Norway, qualifying the student for admission to university studies. Examen artium was originally introduced as the entrance exam of the University of Copenhagen in 1 ...

in 1919, studied

zoology Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the anatomy, structure, embryology, Biological classification, classification, Ethology, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinction, extinct, and ...

and was a research fellow for the Directorate of Fisheries from 1924 to 1926, and graduated from the

Royal Frederick University The University of Oslo (; ) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the oldest university in Norway. Originally named the Royal Frederick University, the university was established in 1811 as the de facto Norwegian conti ...

in 1930 with the mag.scient. degree. He was a consultant for the

Norwegian Association of Hunters and Anglers The Norwegian Association of Hunters and Anglers (, NJFF) is a Norwegian organization for hunters and sport fishers. It was established in 1871, and in 2019 had around 110,000 members. The organizations primary concern is to secure the opportunie ...

from 1931 to 1940, and spent much time on the research of

freshwater fish Freshwater fish are fish species that spend some or all of their lives in bodies of fresh water such as rivers, lakes, ponds and inland wetlands, where the salinity is less than 1.05%. These environments differ from marine habitats in many wa ...

ing, particularly the biology of the

trout Trout (: trout) is a generic common name for numerous species of carnivorous freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of which are members of the subfamily Salmoninae in the ...

. In 1941 he released his main work about trout, ''Ørretboka''. As well as the 1937 handbook ''Amatørfiske og sportsfiske i sjøen'', it was revered by sport fishers.

Resistance

During the

occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until th ...

, Sømme participated in the

Norwegian resistance movement The Norwegian resistance (Norwegian language, Norwegian: ''Motstandsbevegelsen'') to the German occupation of Norway, occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany began after Operation Weserübung in 1940 and ended in 1945. It took several forms: *As ...

. He was an early member of the military organization

Milorg Milorg (abbreviation of militær organisasjon – military organization) was the main Norwegian resistance movement during World War II. Resistance work included intelligence gathering, sabotage, supply-missions, raids, espionage, transport of ...

, helped build up the organization and acted as its head of communications in South Norway. In October 1942 he was discovered by a denouncer. He was captured, incarcerated and tortured at

Victoria Terrasse Victoria Terrasse is an historic building complex located in central Oslo, Norway. The complex now houses the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. History Victoria Terrasse was built between 1884 and 1890 as an apartment complex. It was designe ...

, later in

Grini concentration camp Grini prison camp (, ) was a Nazi concentration camp in Bærum, Norway, which operated between 1941 and May 1945. Ila Detention and Security Prison is now located here. History Grini was originally built as a women's prison, near an old croft ...

from 31 October. He was sentenced to death in November 1943, by a

court-martial A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the arme ...

(an ''SS- und Polizeigericht'') led by Hans Paul Latza. He was executed at Trandumskogen on 3 March 1944 together with six other men, including sports official Osmund Brønnum. Sømme was buried at

Vår Frelsers gravlund The Cemetery of Our Saviour () is a cemetery in Oslo, Norway, located north of Hammersborg in Gamle Aker district. It is located adjacent to the older Old Aker Cemetery and was created in 1808 as a result of the great famine and cholera epidemi ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soemme, Iacob Dybwad 1898 births 1944 deaths People from Etnedal University of Oslo alumni Norwegian ichthyologists Norwegian fishermen Norwegian resistance members Norwegian torture victims Norwegian civilians killed in World War II Resistance members killed by Nazi Germany People executed by Nazi Germany by firing squad Burials at the Cemetery of Our Saviour Norwegian people executed by Nazi Germany Deaths by firearm in Norway 20th-century Norwegian zoologists