Olaf Nikolas Olsen (4 March 1794 – 19 December 1848, also spelt ''Oluf Nicolai'' or ''Nicolaj'') was a

cartographer Cartography (; from , 'papyrus, sheet of paper, map'; and , 'write') is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an imagined reality) can ...

and an officer of the

Danish army The Royal Danish Army (; ; ) is the land-based branch of the Danish Armed Forces, together with the Danish Home Guard. For the last decade, the Royal Danish Army has undergone a massive transformation of structures, equipment and training method ...

. He taught cartography at the Royal

Cadet A cadet is a student or trainee within various organisations, primarily in military contexts where individuals undergo training to become commissioned officers. However, several civilian organisations, including civil aviation groups, maritime ...

School and from 1830 on also at the new Army Academy. In 1836 was made a member of the

General Staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, Enlisted rank, enlisted, and civilian staff who serve the commanding officer, commander of a ...

, and in 1842 he was named head of the

topographic Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the landforms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary scienc ...

department of the staff, with the rank of a

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. In 1848, he was promoted to the rank of

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

. As a cartographer, he edited and published many maps of Europe. In his function at the General Staff, he directed the publication of the Danish Ordnance Maps. He also oversaw the publication of the first complete map of

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

after a survey done by

Björn Gunnlaugsson Björn Gunnlaugsson (25 September 1788 – 17 March 1876)Benedikz, p. 568ff. was an Icelandic mathematician and cartographer. For the Icelandic Literary Society, he surveyed the country from 1831 to 1843. The results of his work were publis ...

in the years 1831 to 1843.

References

* Emil Elberling:
Olsen, Oluf Nicolaj
', entry in Th. Westrin (ed.): ''

Nordisk familjebok (, 'Nordic Family Book') is a Swedish language, Swedish encyclopedia that was published in print from between 1876 and 1993, and that is now fully available in digital form via Project Runeberg at Linköping University. The public domain edit ...

: Konversationslexikon och Realencyklopedi'', 2nd ed., vol. 20 (1914), p. 647. URL last accessed 2007-09-19. * E. C. Rasmussen:
Olsen, Oluf Nicolai
', entry in C. F. Bricka (ed.): ''

Dansk biografisk lexikon ''Dansk Biografisk Leksikon'' (usually abbreviated DBL; title of first edition written ''Dansk biografisk Lexikon'') is a Danish biographical dictionary that has been published in three editions. The first edition, ''Dansk biografisk Lexikon, til ...

: tillige omfattende Norge for Tidsrummet 1537–1814''; Gyldendal, Copenhagen 1887–1905; vol. XII (1898), p. 418–420. URL last accessed 2007-09-12. 1794 births 1848 deaths Danish military personnel Danish topographers Danish cartographers 19th-century Danish people {{denmark-mil-bio-stub