Johann Gramann or Graumann (5 July 1487 – 29 April 1541), also known by his

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

Johannes Poliander, was a German pastor, theologian, teacher, humanist, reformer, and

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

leader.

Life

Gramann was born in

Neustadt an der Aisch Neustadt an der Aisch (officially: ''Neustadt a.d.Aisch'') is a small town of around 13,000 inhabitants in the northern part of Bavaria (Germany), within the Franconian administrative region Middle Franconia. "Neustadt an der Aisch" (mapping), ...

Middle Franconia Middle Franconia (german: Mittelfranken, ) is one of the three administrative regions of Franconia in Bavaria, Germany. It is located in the west of Bavaria and borders the state of Baden-Württemberg. The administrative seat is Ansbach; however, ...

. He worked as rector of the

Thomasschule St. Thomas School, Leipzig (german: Thomasschule zu Leipzig; la, Schola Thomana Lipsiensis) is a co-educational and public boarding school in Leipzig, Saxony, Germany. It was founded by the Augustinians in 1212 and is one of the oldest scho ...

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 ...

. Poliander was

Johann Eck Johann Maier von Eck (13 November 1486 – 13 February 1543), often anglicized as John Eck, was a German Catholic theologian, scholastic, prelate, and a pioneer of the counter-reformation who was among Martin Luther's most important inte ...

's secretary at the 1519

Leipzig Debate The Leipzig Debate (german: Leipziger Disputation) was a theological disputation originally between Andreas Karlstadt, Martin Luther and Johann Eck. Karlstadt, the dean of the Wittenberg theological faculty, felt that he had to defend Luther ...

, where he met

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Luther ...

and joined the Protestant

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and i ...

. Poliander became pastor of Altstadt Church in 1525 in

Königsberg Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was na ...

(Kaliningrad), capital of the new

Duchy of Prussia The Duchy of Prussia (german: Herzogtum Preußen, pl, Księstwo Pruskie, lt, Prūsijos kunigaikštystė) or Ducal Prussia (german: Herzogliches Preußen, link=no; pl, Prusy Książęce, link=no) was a duchy in the region of Prussia establish ...

(a fief of the

Crown of Poland The Crown of the Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Korona Królestwa Polskiego; Latin: ''Corona Regni Poloniae''), known also as the Polish Crown, is the common name for the historic Late Middle Ages territorial possessions of the King of Poland, includi ...

), succeeding the fiery

Johannes Amandus Johannes is a Medieval Latin form of the personal name that usually appears as " John" in English language contexts. It is a variant of the Greek and Classical Latin variants (Ιωάννης, '' Ioannes''), itself derived from the Hebrew name '' Y ...

. The

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...

was well-regarded by his peers, including the

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

Johannes Dantiscus Johannes Dantiscus, (german: Johann(es) von Höfen-Flachsbinder; pl, Jan Dantyszek; 1 November 1485 – 27 October 1548) was prince-bishop of Warmia and Bishop of Chełmno (Culm). In recognition of his diplomatic services for Polish kings, th ...

. He wrote secular and religious poetry in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

and

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

. He was a strong advocate with

Albert, Duke of Prussia Albert of Prussia (german: Albrecht von Preussen; 17 May 149020 March 1568) was a German prince who was the 37th Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, who after converting to Lutheranism, became the first ruler of the Duchy of Prussia, the secu ...

, for the creation of the

University of Königsberg The University of Königsberg (german: Albertus-Universität Königsberg) was the university of Königsberg in East Prussia. It was founded in 1544 as the world's second Protestant academy (after the University of Marburg) by Duke Albert of Pruss ...

. He donated his personal collection of 1,000 books to

Altstadt ''Altstadt'' is the German language word for "old town", and generally refers to the historical town or city centre within the old town or city wall, in contrast to younger suburbs outside. '' Neustadt'' (new town), the logical opposite of ''Alt ...

's council; this became the foundation of the later

Königsberg Public Library Public Library and Archive in Kneiphof Stamp of the library The Königsberg Public Library (german: Stadtbibliothek Königsberg) was a public library in Königsberg, Germany. Background The library developed from the personal collection of Joha ...

. He died in Königsberg.

Hymn

Gramann's hymn "

Nun lob, mein Seel, den Herren "" (Now praise, my soul, the Lord) is a Lutheran hymn written in German by the theologian and reformer Johann Gramann in 1525. It was published in 1540 and appears in 47 hymnals. A translation by Catherine Winkworth, "My Soul, now Praise thy Maker! ...

" was set by several composers.

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

used it in cantatas and organ preludes, including ''Gottlob! nun geht das Jahr zu Ende'', BWV 28 for the Sunday after Christmas.

Sources

* *

External links

*
Johann Gramann
in ''Ökumenisches Heiligenlexikon''

in the Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary Handbook

Bach-Cantatas
Johannes Poliander
in Kulturportal West – Ost 1487 births 1541 deaths 16th-century German composers 16th-century German Lutheran clergy Clergy from Bavaria Clergy from Königsberg German Lutheran theologians German Protestant hymnwriters People from Neustadt (Aisch)-Bad Windsheim People from the Duchy of Prussia People of the Protestant Reformation Pseudonymous writers {{Germany-writer-stub