Carl Boberg
Carl Gustav Boberg (16 August 1859 – 7 January 1940) was a Swedish poet, preacher, government official and member of parliament, best known for writing the Swedish-language poem "O Store Gud" ('O Great God') from which the English language-hymn "How Great Thou Art" is derived.
Also recorded as Carl Gustav Boberg · Carl Gustaf Boberg
Carl Boberg
Lars Hjertén, Fortsätt! Perspektiv på hundra år med moderaterna. 2004 · Public domain
- Name
- Carl Gustav Boberg
- Born
- 16 August 1859
- Birthplace
- Mönsterås parish, Kalmar County, Sweden
- Died
- 7 January 1940
- Place of death
- Kalmar Cathedral parish, Kalmar County, Sweden
- Occupation
- Poet, preacher, writer, member of the Riksdag
- Nationality
- Sweden
- Fields
- psalm
- Honours
- Litteris et Artibus
- Languages
- Swedish
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Documentary summary
Carl Gustav Boberg (16 August 1859 – 7 January 1940) was a Swedish poet, preacher, government official and member of parliament, best known for writing the Swedish-language poem "O Store Gud" ('O Great God') from which the English language-hymn "How Great Thou Art" is derived.
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Note VALÉORINE
Carl Boberg (1859–1940) was a composer, newspaper editor and poet, among other activities, of Swedish nationality. The composer was born in Mönsterås församling and died in Kalmar cathedral parish. Carl Boberg held the position of member of the First Chamber and worked in Mönsterås församling and Stockholm.
The work spans psalm. Languages used include Swedish. Honours include Litteris et Artibus.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 26 September 2026
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Authority files
wikidata · Q3489146 · wikipedia · Carl Boberg
In this article
Biography
Biography
The recorded working language is Swedish. Subjects and genres recorded for the work are psalm. Places of work recorded in the authority are Stockholm and Mönsterås församling. Positions recorded include member of the First Chamber. Distinctions recorded are Litteris et Artibus.

uploaded from Portrattarkiv.se picture of Carl Gustaf Boberg 1859

uploaded from Portrattarkiv.se picture of Carl Gustaf Boberg 1859
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Carl Gustav Boberg • Born — 16 August 1859 • Birthplace — Mönsterås parish, Kalmar County, Sweden • Died — 7 January 1940 • Place of death — Kalmar Cathedral parish, Kalmar County, Sweden • Occupation — Poet, preacher, writer, member of the Riksdag
Upbringing and work in the free church movement
Upbringing and work in the free church movement
Born in Mönsterås, Kalmar County, in Småland, Boberg was the son of carpenter Nils Petter Jonsson Boberg and Hedvig Gustava Jonsdotter. The religious revival movements of the time strongly affected him as a young man. He worked briefly as a sailor and served as a lay minister in the Mission Covenant Church of Sweden. Boberg studied at the church's school in Kristinehamn from 1879 to 1882 and was then a preacher for the Mönsterås Mission Association from 1882 to 1889. However, he earned his living mainly as a sloyd teacher. Boberg was also the editor of the free-church magazine Sanningsvittnet ('Witness of the Truth') from 1889 to 1916. He published his own books and poetry through the magazine's publishing house, and bought the magazine in 1894. He was a preacher at Flora Church from 1890 to 1892 and Immanuel Church from 1892 to 1909, both in Stockholm. Boberg was a member of the board of the Mission Covenant Church of Sweden from 1897 to 1902, but resigned so as not to have to take a stand between its two leaders, Paul Peter Waldenström and Jakob (E. J.) Ekman. The latter was Boberg's former teacher at the mission school.
Political roles and views
Political roles and views
Boberg served in the Riksdag's Första kammare (upper house of Parliament) from 1912 to 1931. From 1921, he was also a state auditor. Unlike many of the free church leaders who were free-thinkers and liberals, Boberg moved in an increasingly conservative direction and ran for the General Electoral Association (Allmänna valmansförbundet, today's Moderate Party). In the parliamentary presentation material published on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of women's suffrage, it is stated that Boberg argued against women's suffrage. He is reported to have said that 'women, if elected as members of parliament, would obscure the view in the meeting rooms with their wide-brimmed hats.' Moreover, he argued, the sharp hatpins were a weapon, so women with hatpins were unthinkable as parliamentarians."
Family
Family
On 5 January 1884 Boberg married Anna Maria Elisabet Pettersson. On 23 November 1915 he married Selma Charlotta Elisabet Ydrén.
Identity and origins
Identity and origins
The authorities additionally record the headings Carl Gustav Boberg and Carl Gustaf Boberg. His recorded language was Swedish. He was the child of Nils Petter Jonsson Boberg and Hedvig Gustafva Persdotter. He married Anna Maria Elisabeth Persson and Selma Charlotta Elisabet Ydrén.
Identity
Identity
Carl Boberg is recorded as poet, writer, newspaper editor, politician and publisher.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1859
Carl Boberg born at Mönsterås församling.
1940
Carl Boberg died at Kalmar cathedral parish.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Mönsterås församling.
Birth place
Kalmar cathedral parish.
Death place
Writings
He published more than 60 poems, hymns, and gospel songs, including a collaboration with Swedish hymnist Lina Sandell. Of his works, "O store Gud" ('O Great God'), upon which "How Great Thou Art" is based, the best known. The song is a natural romantic description of God's creation, which in each chorus ends with the songwriter wanting to cry out that God is great. It was written after Boberg experienced a thunderstorm at the Kalmar Strait. Boberg is represented in the Church of Sweden's fourth hymnal, Den svenska psalmboken (1986) with three works, ("O store Gud", Det susar genom livets strid, and Den stunden i Getsemane) and in other hymnals such as the Swedish-American Herde-Rösten (1892), Emil Gustafson's Hjärtesånger (1895), the EFS tillägg till Den svenska psalmboken (1986) (1986) and the Bibeltrogna Vänner hymnal Lova Herren (1987). He is abundantly represented in the Mission Covenant Church's 1920 hymnal Svenska Missionsförbundets sångbok (1920). Several of his songs are also published for children in the Sunday school hymnal Svensk söndagsskolsångbok (1908).
Legacy
For his literary output, Boberg was awarded the Litteris et Artibus medal in 1916. Boberg's writings have been freely available for publication since 1 January 2011. For his political work, Carl Boberg was made a Knight of the Order of Vasa in 1917 and of the Order of the Polar Star in 1923. Carl Boberg is also the name of a Kustpilen regional train, which operates the Stångådal line between Linköping and Kalmar.
Literature
Scholarly footprint
A count of publications is evidence of attention, not of standing, and is given here only as a measure.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Söderberg, E. N. Carl G Boberg. Svenskt Biografiskt Lexikon.
- 2.Carlgren, Maria. En otäck gammal hattfuling. Demokrati100. 2019-03-23. 2003-1564.
- 3.McCann, Forrest M. Hymns and History: An Annotated Survey of Sources. A·C·U Press. 224–225, 360, 584. 1997. 978-0-89112-058-2.
- 4.O store Gud. Swedish Institute for Language and Folklore. September 2023.
- 5.Vagnguide - Motorvagn Y2. www.jarnvag.net.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Wikidata, structured authority record Q3489146: Carl BobergWikimedia Foundation
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
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