Carpzov is the name of a

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

, many of whose members attained distinction in

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

in the 17th and 18th centuries as jurists,

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

s and statesmen.

Origins

They were said to be descended from a Spanish family named Carpezano, who were driven from their country by religious persecution at the beginning of the 16th century. The family traced its origin to Simon Carpzov, who was

burgomaster Burgomaster (alternatively spelled burgermeister, literally "master of the town, master of the borough, master of the fortress, master of the citizens") is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chie ...

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 sq ...

in the middle of the 16th century.

Members

Simon left two sons, Joachim Carpzov (d. 1628), master-general of the ordnance in the service of the

Christian IV of Denmark Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian mon ...

, and Benedikt Carpzov (1565–1626), an eminent jurist who was professor of jurisprudence at

Wittenberg Wittenberg ( , ; Low Saxon: ''Wittenbarg''; meaning ''White Mountain''; officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg (''Luther City Wittenberg'')), is the fourth largest town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Wittenberg is situated on the River Elbe, north o ...

, chancellor of the dowager electress Sophie, and again professor. Of Benedikt's five sons, his son Benedikt Jr. (1595–1666) is considered the founder of criminal jurisprudence in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, whose ''Practica nova Rerum Criminalium'' (Wittenberg, 1635; new ed. by Böhmer, 5 vols., Frankfurt am Main, 1758) and other works exerted great influence on the judiciary in Saxony and other countries; and his son Johann Benedikt (1607-1657) was professor of theology and preacher at Leipzig, and the author of ''Systema Theologiae'' (2 vols., Leipzig, 1653) and other works. Of Johann Benedikt's children, his son Johann Benedikt (1639-1699) was a Christian

and Hebraist, who published ''De Pontificum Hebraeorum Vestitu'' and other critical works; his son Friedrich Benedikt (1649-1699) was a collaborator in Mencke's ''Acta Eruditorum''; and his son Samuel Benedikt (1647-1707) was professor of poetry and chief chaplain of the court of Saxony. Samuel Benedikt's son Johann Gottlob Carpzov (1679-1767) was an eminent theologian and professor of oriental languages. Among the later members of the family, Johann Benedikt Carpzov (1720-1803) was successively professor of philosophy at Leipzig and of poetry and Greek philology at Helmstedt, and ended his life as an abbot after having taught theology. He occupied himself with philological labors, especially with grammatical commentaries on the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...

Notes

References

* *{{AmCyc, wstitle=Carpzov German families Lutheran families People from the Electorate of Saxony Families of Spanish ancestry