Johannes Micraelius

Johannes Micraelius (1597 to 1658), born Johannes Lutkeschwager, was a German poet, philosopher and historiographer, born in Koslin and the son of an archdeacon who took the Latin family name Micraelius. He studied at Stettin and Konigsberg, became professor of rhetoric at Greifswald in 1624, rector of the Ratsschule in Stettin in 1639 and of the royal pedagogy there in 1641, and professor of theology and philosophy the same year. He took a theology degree at Greifswald in 1649 and rose to pro-chancellor of the university in 1656. He wrote six books on the history of Pomerania, tragedies and comedies on classical themes, and philosophical works including the Ethnopronius, De methodo in disciplinis, the Cosmologia and the Psychologia. His Lexicon philosophicum of 1653 became very popular and helped launch the term ontology, although he used it only in Greek characters.