EXPLORER

Willem Barentsz

1550 - 1597

Photo of Willem Barentsz

Icon of person Willem Barentsz

Willem Barentsz (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈʋɪləm ˈbaːrənts]; c. 1550 – 20 June 1597), anglicized as William Barents or Barentz, was a Dutch navigator, cartographer, and Arctic explorer. Barentsz went on three expeditions to the far north in search for a Northeast passage. He reached as far as Novaya Zemlya and the Kara Sea in his first two voyages, but was turned back on both occasions by ice. During a third expedition, the crew discovered Spitsbergen and Bear Island, but subsequently became stranded on Novaya Zemlya for almost a year. Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. Willem Barentsz is the 24th most popular explorer (up from 26th in 2019), the 23rd most popular biography from Netherlands and the 2nd most popular Dutch Explorer.

Willem Barentsz is most famous for his explorations of the Arctic and for his discovery of the Barents Sea.

Memorability Metrics

Loading...

Page views of Willem Barentsz by language

Loading...

Among EXPLORERS

Among explorers, Willem Barentsz ranks 24 out of 498. Before him are Fridtjof Nansen, Pedro Álvares Cabral, Abel Tasman, Vitus Bering, Erik the Red, and Xuanzang. After him are Jacques Cousteau, Juan Sebastián Elcano, David Livingstone, Thor Heyerdahl, Thorfinn Karlsefni, and William Adams.

Most Popular Explorers in Wikipedia

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

Contemporaries

Among people born in 1550, Willem Barentsz ranks 3. Before him are Charles IX of France, and Safiye Sultan. After him are John Napier, Charles IX of Sweden, John Davis, Do-Aklin, Henry I, Duke of Guise, Camillus de Lellis, Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, Jang-geum, and Stanislaus Kostka. Among people deceased in 1597, Willem Barentsz ranks 1. After him are Hattori Hanzō, Paulo Miki, Infanta Catherine Michelle of Spain, Peter Canisius, Alfonso II d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, Maharana Pratap, Joseph of Anchieta, Franciscus Patricius, Ashikaga Yoshiaki, Edward Kelley, and Barbara Blomberg.

Others Born in 1550

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

Others Deceased in 1597

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

In Netherlands

Among people born in Netherlands, Willem Barentsz ranks 23 out of 1,646. Before him are Daniel Bernoulli (1700), Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff (1852), Hugo Grotius (1583), Pieter Zeeman (1865), Abel Tasman (1603), and Sophia of Hanover (1630). After him are Heike Kamerlingh Onnes (1853), M. C. Escher (1898), Wilhelmina of the Netherlands (1880), Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands (1967), Johannes Diderik van der Waals (1837), and Juliana of the Netherlands (1909).

Others born in Netherlands

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

Among EXPLORERS In Netherlands

Among explorers born in Netherlands, Willem Barentsz ranks 2. Before him are Abel Tasman (1603). After him are Jan van Riebeeck (1619), Jacob Roggeveen (1659), Willem Schouten (1567), Willem Janszoon (1570), Frederick de Houtman (1571), Alexandrine Tinné (1835), Cornelis de Houtman (1565), Jan Joosten van Lodensteijn (1556), Jacob van Heemskerck (1567), and Anthony van Diemen (1593).

Dutch born Explorers

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous