Adolf Schenck
Encyclopedia
Adolf Schenck was a German geographer
, mineralogist and botanist who was a native of Siegen
. He was a brother to botanist Heinrich Schenck
(1860-1927).
Schenck studied at the Universities of Berlin and Bonn
, obtaining his doctorate in 1884. From 1884 to 1887 he was a geographer on a mineralogical expedition to German Southwest Africa. The expedition was organized by merchant Adolf Lüderitz
(1834-1886) and was under the leadership of Karl Höpfner (1857-1900). Several noted scientists participated in the venture, including Swiss botanist Hans Schinz
(1868-1941), who performed botanical investigations in the northern part of German Southwest Africa. In the southern part of the colony, Schenck collected minerals and plants, particularly lichen
s. Prior to returning to Germany, he visited mines and goldfields that are now located in the present-day nations of South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique.
From 1899 to 1922 he was a professor at the University of Halle, and continued working as a lecturer until 1932. As a teacher he specialized in the geography
of German colonies. Schenck has a handful of African spermatophyte
species named after him.
Geographer
A geographer is a scholar whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society.Although geographers are historically known as people who make maps, map making is actually the field of study of cartography, a subset of geography...
, mineralogist and botanist who was a native of Siegen
Siegen
Siegen is a city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia.It is located in the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein in the Arnsberg region...
. He was a brother to botanist Heinrich Schenck
Heinrich Schenck
Johann Heinrich Rudolf Schenck was a German botanist who was a native of Siegen. He was a brother to geographer Adolf Schenck ....
(1860-1927).
Schenck studied at the Universities of Berlin and Bonn
University of Bonn
The University of Bonn is a public research university located in Bonn, Germany. Founded in its present form in 1818, as the linear successor of earlier academic institutions, the University of Bonn is today one of the leading universities in Germany. The University of Bonn offers a large number...
, obtaining his doctorate in 1884. From 1884 to 1887 he was a geographer on a mineralogical expedition to German Southwest Africa. The expedition was organized by merchant Adolf Lüderitz
Adolf Lüderitz
Franz Adolf Eduard Lüderitz was a German merchant and founder of the first German colony in Southwest Africa....
(1834-1886) and was under the leadership of Karl Höpfner (1857-1900). Several noted scientists participated in the venture, including Swiss botanist Hans Schinz
Hans Schinz
Hans Schinz was a Swiss explorer and botanist who was a native of Zürich.In 1884 he participated in an exploratory expedition to German Southwest Africa that was organized by German merchant Adolf Lüderitz . For the next few years Schinz undertook extensive scientific studies of the northern parts...
(1868-1941), who performed botanical investigations in the northern part of German Southwest Africa. In the southern part of the colony, Schenck collected minerals and plants, particularly lichen
Lichen
Lichens are composite organisms consisting of a symbiotic organism composed of a fungus with a photosynthetic partner , usually either a green alga or cyanobacterium...
s. Prior to returning to Germany, he visited mines and goldfields that are now located in the present-day nations of South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique.
From 1899 to 1922 he was a professor at the University of Halle, and continued working as a lecturer until 1932. As a teacher he specialized in the geography
Geography
Geography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...
of German colonies. Schenck has a handful of African spermatophyte
Spermatophyte
The spermatophytes comprise those plants that produce seeds. They are a subset of the embryophytes or land plants...
species named after him.