Clara Holst. Clara Holst (4 June 1868 – 15 November 1935) was a Norwegian

philologist Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources; it is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics (with especially strong ties to etymology). Philology is also defined as ...

and women's rights pioneer. She was born in

Kristiania Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of i ...

as a daughter of physician

Axel Holst Axel Holst (6 September 1860 – 26 April 1931) was a Norwegian Professor of Hygiene and Bacteriology at the University of Oslo. He was most known for his contributions to the study of the treatment of Beriberi and Scurvy. Biography Holst was bo ...

(1826–1880) and German citizen Anna Mathilde Charlotte Flemming (1832–1897). She was a granddaughter of Frederik Holst, sister of

and aunt of Peter Midelfart Holst. She finished her secondary education as a private candidate in 1889, and had attended Nissens School. The next year, in 1890, she became the first female philology student at the

Royal Frederick University The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

, Norway's only university at the time. She was the first woman to take the cand.philol. degree in Norway, in 1896, and the first to take a doctorate at a Norwegian university. Her academic advisor was

Johan Storm Johan Fredrik Breda Storm (24 November 1836 – 26 October 1920) was a Norwegian professor, linguist and philologist. He is known for his development of the Norvegia transcription. Biography Johan Storm was born at Lom in Gudbrandsdalen. Hi ...

, whose acquaintances enabled her to study at

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge beca ...

in 1892,

Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...

in 1893,

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

in 1897,

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

in 1898–99 and

Berlin Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...

in 1902–03. She finished the

dr.philos. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

degree in 1903 with the thesis ''Studier over middelnedertyske laaneord i dansk i det 14. og 15. aarhundrede''. She thereby followed in the footsteps of her grandfather, who in 1817 became the first person to take a doctorate in the independent Norway. Johan Storm was a doctoral opponent together with

Hjalmar Falk Peterolsen Groth Hjalmar Seierstedt Falk (April 2, 1859 – November 2, 1928) was a Norwegian linguist and philologist. Early life and education Falk was born in Vang. He started his university studies in 1876 and graduated with an education ...

and

Sophus Bugge Elseus Sophus Bugge (5 January 1833 – 8 July 1907) was a Norwegian philologist and linguist. His scholarly work was directed to the study of runic inscriptions and Norse philology. Bugge is best known for his theories and his work on the runic ...

. Holst had short tenures as a German teacher at the Royal Frederick University and

Aars og Voss Aars or Års, () is a Danish town with a population of 8,474 (1 January 2022)Wellesley College Wellesley College is a private women's liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henry and Pauline Durant as a female seminary, it is a member of the original Seven Sisters Colleges, an unofficia ...

from 1906 to 1907 and the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...

in Lawrence from 1907 to 1908. Holst then retired and returned to lead a quiet life in Norway. She was unmarried, and resided in

Fagerborg Fagerborg is a neighbourhood in the St. Hanshaugen borough in Oslo, Norway. Located at the northwestern end of the borough, it is bounded by Majorstua in Frogner in the west, by Marienlyst in the north, by Adamstuen and Bolteløkka in the east, ...

with her two older sisters Anna Amalie and

Thea Thea may refer to: * Thea (name), a given name * Ancient Greek term for goddess, including an alternative spelling of Theia * ''Thea'', the former name of the tea plant genus, now included in ''Camellia'' * Thea, a village in the municipal unit Me ...

.1910 census
/ref> She died in her hometown in November 1935.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holst, Clara 1868 births 1935 deaths Academics from Oslo Norwegian people of German descent Norwegian philologists Women philologists University of Oslo alumni Norwegian expatriates in the United Kingdom Norwegian expatriates in France Norwegian expatriates in Germany Norwegian expatriates in the United States Wellesley College faculty University of Kansas faculty