Willem Barentsz, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

Willem Barentsz

Dutch navigator, cartographer, and Arctic explorer

Date of Birth: 01-Jan-1550

Place of Birth: Terschelling, North Holland, Netherlands

Date of Death: 20-Jun-1597

Profession: navigator, cartographer, explorer, polar explorer

Zodiac Sign: Capricorn

Willem Barentsz (Dutch pronunciation: ['??l?m 'ba?r?nts]; 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.
Barentsz died on the return voyage in 1597. The Barents Sea was named in his honour.