Johan Wilhelm Heinrich Giess
Encyclopedia
Johan Wilhelm Heinrich Giess/Willi Giess (21 February 1910 Frankfurt-am-Main - 28 September 2000 Swakopmund
) is noted for having started an official herbarium at Windhoek
, his extensive collection of Namibian
plants and generally furthering botanical knowledge of the territory.
Giess arrived in South West Africa
with his parents on 4 February 1926 and was drawn into farming by being one of the first students to attend the Agricultural College of Neudamm near Windhoek. From 1931-33 he was employed by the Animal Breeding Institute at the University of Halle where he specialised in karakul
breeding. On his return to South West Africa, he managed a karakul farm and later bought his own farm in 1937 at Dornfontein Süd.
With the outbreak of the Second World War he and other Germans were interned in South Africa at a camp called Andalusia, now known as Jan Kempdorp
. During his internment he studied botany with Prof. Otto Heinrich Volk, who had arranged classes for scholars in the camp. The tuition they received in the various sciences was of sufficient quality to be recognised after the war as being of university standard.
As an ancillary activity Volk taught the students practical botany, assembling a herbarium from plants growing within the confines of the camp. The students also produced a booklet, a key to the genera of grasses, entitled "Bestimmungschlüssel für Südwest-Afrikanische Grasgattungen", illustrated with engravings on pieces of wood and typeset with lead from toothpaste tubes. Some of the type and engravings are on display at the Swakopmund
Museum.
Immediately after his release, Giess was employed as plant collector at the University of Stellenbosch. His botanical training during the war had not been forgotten, and in 1953 he was offered the post of curator at the national herbarium in Windhoek.
The nucleus of the new herbarium was a donation of 2 000 specimens from the initiator of the scheme, Prof Heinrich Walter of Hohenheim Technical University
. Giess spent four years establishing the infrastructure of the herbarium, while continuing work on his farm. When the South West African Administration assumed management of the herbarium in 1957 they offered Giess the curatorship on a permanent basis, a post in which he served until his retirement in 1975.
Giess resumed work under M.A.N. Müller, his successor. During his association with the herbarium he collected some 18 750 meticulously labelled specimens which are housed at BM, K, LUA, M, NBG, P, PRE and WIND. His field trips ranged over most of Namibia, visiting remote regions such as the Kaukauveld, Okavango River
, Brandberg
, Lüderitz
, Erongo Mountains and Kaokoveld
. He was founding editor of the botanical journal Dinteria (1968-1991) and compiled a Preliminary Vegetation Map of South West Africa (1971) and Bibliography of South West African Botany (1989).
Giess is commemorated in the names of numerous plant species, a beetle and a termite. This botanist is denoted by the author abbreviation Giess when citing
a botanical name
.
Swakopmund
Swakopmund is a city on the coast of northwestern Namibia, west of Windhoek, Namibia's capital. It is the capital of the Erongo administrative district. As a seaside resort, the weather is cooler here in December to January so the territorial administration moves to Swakopmund for these months...
) is noted for having started an official herbarium at Windhoek
Windhoek
Windhoek is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Namibia. It is located in central Namibia in the Khomas Highland plateau area, at around above sea level. The 2001 census determined Windhoek's population was 233,529...
, his extensive collection of Namibian
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
plants and generally furthering botanical knowledge of the territory.
Giess arrived in South West Africa
South West Africa
South-West Africa was the name that was used for the modern day Republic of Namibia during the earlier eras when the territory was controlled by the German Empire and later by South Africa....
with his parents on 4 February 1926 and was drawn into farming by being one of the first students to attend the Agricultural College of Neudamm near Windhoek. From 1931-33 he was employed by the Animal Breeding Institute at the University of Halle where he specialised in karakul
Karakul
See also: Karakul Karakul or Qaraqul is a breed of domestic sheep which originated in Central Asia...
breeding. On his return to South West Africa, he managed a karakul farm and later bought his own farm in 1937 at Dornfontein Süd.
With the outbreak of the Second World War he and other Germans were interned in South Africa at a camp called Andalusia, now known as Jan Kempdorp
Jan Kempdorp
Jan Kempdorp is an agricultural town situated in the centre of the Vaalharts Irrigation Scheme in the Northern Cape province of South Africa.Originally, the border between the Cape and Transvaal provinces ran through the town, making it the only town in South Africa that was in two provinces.During...
. During his internment he studied botany with Prof. Otto Heinrich Volk, who had arranged classes for scholars in the camp. The tuition they received in the various sciences was of sufficient quality to be recognised after the war as being of university standard.
As an ancillary activity Volk taught the students practical botany, assembling a herbarium from plants growing within the confines of the camp. The students also produced a booklet, a key to the genera of grasses, entitled "Bestimmungschlüssel für Südwest-Afrikanische Grasgattungen", illustrated with engravings on pieces of wood and typeset with lead from toothpaste tubes. Some of the type and engravings are on display at the Swakopmund
Swakopmund
Swakopmund is a city on the coast of northwestern Namibia, west of Windhoek, Namibia's capital. It is the capital of the Erongo administrative district. As a seaside resort, the weather is cooler here in December to January so the territorial administration moves to Swakopmund for these months...
Museum.
Immediately after his release, Giess was employed as plant collector at the University of Stellenbosch. His botanical training during the war had not been forgotten, and in 1953 he was offered the post of curator at the national herbarium in Windhoek.
The nucleus of the new herbarium was a donation of 2 000 specimens from the initiator of the scheme, Prof Heinrich Walter of Hohenheim Technical University
University of Hohenheim
The University of Hohenheim is a university in Stuttgart, Germany. Founded in 1818 it is Stuttgart's oldest university and one of Germany's leading universities both in agricultural sciences and economics.-History:...
. Giess spent four years establishing the infrastructure of the herbarium, while continuing work on his farm. When the South West African Administration assumed management of the herbarium in 1957 they offered Giess the curatorship on a permanent basis, a post in which he served until his retirement in 1975.
Giess resumed work under M.A.N. Müller, his successor. During his association with the herbarium he collected some 18 750 meticulously labelled specimens which are housed at BM, K, LUA, M, NBG, P, PRE and WIND. His field trips ranged over most of Namibia, visiting remote regions such as the Kaukauveld, Okavango River
Okavango River
The Okavango River is a river in southwest Africa. It is the fourth-longest river system in southern Africa, running southeastward for . It begins in Angola, where it is known as the Cubango River...
, Brandberg
Brandberg
Brandberg may refer to:*Brandberg, Austria, a municipality in the district of Schwaz in Tyrol*the former name of Dâures Constituency in the Erongo region of Namibia*the Brandberg Mountain in Namibia...
, Lüderitz
Lüderitz
Lüderitz is a harbour town in south-west Namibia, lying on one of the least hospitable coasts in Africa. It is a port developed around Robert Harbour and Shark Island.- Overview :...
, Erongo Mountains and Kaokoveld
Kaokoveld
The Kaokoveld Desert is a coastal desert of northern Namibia and southern Angola.-Setting:The Kaokoveld Desert occupies a coastal strip covering , and is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Namibian savanna woodlands to the east, and the Namib Desert to the south. It includes the...
. He was founding editor of the botanical journal Dinteria (1968-1991) and compiled a Preliminary Vegetation Map of South West Africa (1971) and Bibliography of South West African Botany (1989).
Awards & honours
- 1968 Lineé Medal (silver) from the Royal Academy of Sciences
- 1980 Gold medal from the South African Academy of Sciences
- 1980 Recognised by the Bavarian Academy of Sciences for his contribution to Merxmüller’s Prodromus einer Flora von Südwestafrika
Giess is commemorated in the names of numerous plant species, a beetle and a termite. This botanist is denoted by the author abbreviation Giess when citing
Author citation (botany)
In botanical nomenclature, author citation refers to citing the person who validly published a botanical name, i.e. who first published the name while fulfilling the formal requirements as specified by the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature...
a botanical name
Botanical name
A botanical name is a formal scientific name conforming to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature and, if it concerns a plant cultigen, the additional cultivar and/or Group epithets must conform to the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants...
.