Joachim Neander
Born: 1650, Bremen, Germany.
Died: May 31, 1680, Bremen, Germany, of tuberculosis.
Grandson of a musician and son of a teacher, Neander studied theology at Bremen
University, 1666-1670. His family name was Neumann (“new man”), but, as was
popular at the time, his grandfather (also a preacher, and also named Joachim!),
changed it to a foreign equivalent, in this case Greek.
In 1671, Neander moved his studies to Heidelberg (locale of The
Student Prince musical). In 1673, he moved to Frankfurt, where he met
Pietistic scholars Philipp Jakob Spener (1635-1705) and Johann Schütz
(1640-1690).
From 1674-1679, Neander was principal of the Reformed Lateinschule
(grammar school) in Düsseldorf. During these years, he used to wander the
secluded Düssel River valley, which was, until the 19th Century, a deep ravine
between rock faces and forests, with numerous caves, grottos and waterfalls.
Probably, Neander wrote and sang many of his poems there, but also held
gatherings and services. In the early 19th Century, a large cave was named Neanderhöhle
after him. In the mid-19th Century, the cement industry started to quarry the
limestone, and the narrow ravine became a wide valley, which was now named the
Neander Valley (in German, Neanderthal). The “Neanderthal Man” was
found there in the summer of 1856, giving Joachim the distinction of being the
only hymnist with a fossil hominid named after him!
In 1679, Neander moved to Bremen and worked as assistant
preacher at St. Martini church. The next year he became seriously ill and died,
presumably of the plague.
Hymns
Music