Ericus Olai (ca. 1420-1486) was a Swedish theologian and historian. He served as a professor of theology at

Uppsala University Uppsala University ( sv, Uppsala universitet) is a public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. The university rose to significance durin ...

and dean at

Uppsala Cathedral Uppsala Cathedral ( sv, Uppsala domkyrka) is a cathedral located between the University Hall of Uppsala University and the Fyris river in the centre of Uppsala, Sweden. A church of the Church of Sweden, the national church, in the Lutheran t ...

. Ericus Olai was the author of the chronicle ''Chronica regni Gothorum'' and was an early proponent of

Gothicismus Gothicism or Gothism ( sv, Göticism ; la, Gothicismus) was a cultural movement in Sweden, centered on the belief in the glory of the Swedish Geats, who were identified with the Goths. The founders of the movement were Nicolaus Ragvaldi and t ...

Biography

Neither the date nor place of his birth are known with certainty. He was probably born during the 1420s. Olai studied in the

University of Rostock The University of Rostock (german: link=no, Universität Rostock) is a public university located in Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Founded in 1419, it is the third-oldest university in Germany. It is the oldest university in contine ...

(Magister Artium. 1452). After working as canon in Uppsala, he attended the

University of Siena The University of Siena ( it, Università degli Studi di Siena, abbreviation: UNISI) in Siena, Tuscany, is one of the oldest and first publicly funded universities in Italy. Originally called ''Studium Senese'', the institution was founded in 1240 ...

(Magister de Sacra Theologia. 1475). He became a professor of theology at Uppsala University in 1477 and dean at

in 1479. He died on Christmas eve in 1486 and was buried in Uppsala Cathedral. His tomb was the center of a substantial local tradition of veneration of the "holy doctor Ericius". His tombstone was destroyed in a fire in 1702. Olai initiated what would become the

movement of Swedish Romantic nationalism in his ''Chronica Regni Gothorum'', an account of Swedish history until 1468 (completed before 1475). ''Chronica'' was first edited in 1615 by historian John Messenius (1579–1636) and became influential in early modern Swedish historiography. ''Chronica'' has been preserved in three medieval manuscript copies from the first decades of the sixteenth century at the

Uppsala University Library The Uppsala University Library ( sv, Uppsala universitetsbibliotek) at Uppsala University in Uppsala, Sweden, consists of 11 subject libraries, one of which is housed in the old main library building, Carolina Rediviva. The library holds books ...

in Uppsala, the

National Library of Sweden The National Library of Sweden ( sv, Kungliga biblioteket, ''KB'', meaning "the Royal Library") is Sweden's national library. It collects and preserves all domestic printed and audio-visual materials in Swedish, as well as content with Swedish ...

in Stockholm and in the

National Archives of Sweden The National Archives of Sweden (Swedish: ''Riksarkivet'', RA) is the official archive of the Swedish government and is responsible for the management of records from Sweden's public authorities. Although the archives functions primarily as the go ...

at Stockholm.

References

Addition sources

*Ella Heuman and Jan Oberg (eds.) '' Chronica Regni Gothorum'' (Almqvist & Wiksell International, Series: Studia Latina Stockholmiensia 35, Stockholm, 1993-1995) {{authority control 15th-century births 1486 deaths Swedish theologians 15th-century Swedish historians Uppsala University faculty University of Rostock alumni University of Siena alumni