Jacob Faggot


Jacob Faggot was a Swedish scientist.

Life and career

Faggot was educated at Uppsala University and later worked as a tutor of Swedish political leader Nils Reuterholm.
From 1727 onwards, he worked in the Lantmäterikontoret as a surveyor and geometry teacher. He became its director in 1747. On his initiative Sweden printed their first cadastral maps. His interest in reforming Swedish agriculture led him to implement the Storskiftet similar to the British model, begun in 1749. He was involved in the mapping of Finland and led storskiftesverket in both Finland and Scania.
From 1733 to 1739, Faggot served on the Tabellkommissionen. He later served as a member of the Commission to oversee and improve forestry schemes.
He became a founding member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in 1739, serving as secretary from 1741 to 1744 and again from 1757 to 1760. He criticized the organization for using Latin instead of Swedish, which led to his founding the breakaway group Tungomålsgillet. Due to opposition from the Royal Academy, he was unable to get a charter for the organization.
Faggot assisted in creating the first Census in Sweden in 1749. In later life, he published on agricultural topics. His work researching genealogies via hemmansklyvning led to increased interest in population studies and local history.
In 1730, Faggot married Elisabeth Ehrenström; the couple had five children.
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences posthumously awarded a medal to Faggot in 1778.

Selected bibliography