Christian Eduard Langethal (6 January 1806,

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital (political), capital and largest city of the Central Germany (cultural area), Central German state of Thuringia, with a population of around 216,000. It lies in the wide valley of the Gera (river), River Gera, in the so ...

– 28 July 1878,

Jena Jena (; ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Germany and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 in ...

) was a German

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

and

agronomist An agriculturist, agriculturalist, agrologist, or agronomist (abbreviated as agr.) is a professional in the science, practice, and management of agriculture and agribusiness. It is a regulated profession in Canada, India, the Philippines, the Uni ...

. He is known for his writings involving agricultural botany and

agricultural history Agriculture began independently in different parts of the globe, and included a diverse range of taxa. At least eleven separate regions of the Old and New World were involved as independent centers of origin. The development of agriculture ...

. Beginning in 1827 he studied

natural sciences Natural science or empirical science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer ...

at the

University of Jena The University of Jena, officially the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (, abbreviated FSU, shortened form ''Uni Jena''), is a public research university located in Jena, Thuringia, Germany. The university was established in 1558 and is cou ...

. During the winter term of 1834/35 he began teaching classes in

natural history Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

at the recently built scientific academy at

Eldena Eldena is a municipality in the Ludwigslust-Parchim district, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the ...

(near

Greifswald Greifswald (), officially the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald (, Low German: ''Griepswoold'') is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin and Neubrandenburg. In 2021 it surpa ...

), where he worked closely with his former teacher, Friedrich Gottlob Schulze (1795–1860). In 1839, with Schulze, he returned to the University of Jena as an associate professor of botany. At Jena he distinguished himself in studies of botany as it applied to

agricultural science Agricultural science (or agriscience for short) is a broad multidisciplinary field of biology that encompasses the parts of exact, natural, economic and social sciences that are used in the practice and understanding of agriculture. Professio ...

Principal writings

* ''Lehrbuch der landwirtschaftlichen Pflanzenkunde'' (1841–1845, 3 volumes; fifth edition 1874–76, 4 volumes) - Manual of agricultural botany. * ''Geschichte der deutschen Landwirthschaft'' (Jena 1847–1856, 4 volumes) - History of German agriculture. * ''Beschreibung der Gewächse Deutschlands nach ihren natürlichen Familien und ihrer Bedeutung für die Landwirtschaft'' (Jena 1858, second edition 1868) - Description of plants in Germany according to their natural families and their importance in agriculture. With

Diederich Franz Leonhard von Schlechtendal Diederich Franz Leonhard von Schlechtendal (27 November 1794, Xanten – 12 October 1866, Halle an der Saale, Halle) was a German botanist. Life and work Von Schlechtendal was born in Xanten, Xanten am Rhein and when his father Diederich Fried ...

and Ernst Schenk, he continued

Jonathan Carl Zenker Jonathan Carl (or Karl) Zenker (1 March 1799 – 6 November 1837) was a German naturalist born in Sundremda, located in the Saalfeld-Rudolstadt district. Originally a student of theology at the University of Jena, he subsequently devoted his ...

's ''Flora von Thüringen: Und den angrenzenden Provinzen'' (1830–1855, 145 issues).Google Books
Flora von Thüringen: Und den angrenzenden Provinzen

References

Langethal, Christian Eduard] {{DEFAULTSORT:Langethal, Christian Eduard Academic staff of the University of Jena University of Jena alumni 1806 births 1878 deaths 19th-century German botanists German agronomists Scientists from Erfurt