Øjvind Winge, 1886-1964

• Published in: Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: The Royal Society 1964
• Subjects: Norway; Rian; Iceland
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsbm.1964.0020; https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsbm.1964.0020

The Danish geneticist and mycologist Øjvind Winge was born in Aarhus, the capital of the Jutland peninsula, on 19 May 1886. His father, Sigfrid Victor Winge, was a lawyer, and his mother, born Agno Rian, came from Trondhjem in Norway. His Christian name, Øjvind, is a Norwegian rather than a Danish name, and from his mother he probably also inherited the streak of stubbornness and independence which made up a conspicuous part of his personality. Winge showed his first recorded sign of independence when he began to study at the Copenhagen University in 1905 after having graduated from the Marselisborg High School in Aarhus. His parents apparently did not encourage his interests in natural history, and in order to fulfil a promise to his family he spent his first few months at the University studying law. However, his interests in natural history were too deeply rooted, and he soon decided to switch to the Faculty of Science. Already during his high school years, Winge had become deeply interested in mycology, and although Aarhus was not at that time a University town he was fortunate enough to have the guidance of two excellent mycologists. One, Poul Larsen, was a micromycete specialist who was then a teacher of biology at various Aarhus schools. Poul Larsen has published a number of important papers on mycology, including a monograph on the fungi of Iceland. Winge’s other mentor, C. Ferdinandsen, was to become his lifelong friend. Ferdinandsen was at that time a private tutor to a noble family living at the nearby mansion of ‘Sophiendal’ where Winge was a frequent visitor.