Enlightenment historian and naturalist · 1731–1813
Enlightenment historian and naturalist
Historian, naturalist and poet. He wrote the first modern history of the Canary Islands and the "Dictionary of Natural History of the Canary Islands".
José de Viera y Clavijo was born on 28 December 1731 in Realejo Alto, Tenerife. A priest, historian, naturalist and poet, he was the most important intellectual figure of the Canary Islands in the 18th century. Trained at the seminary of La Laguna, he travelled to Madrid in 1770 as secretary to the Marquis of Santa Cruz. In the capital he made contact with Enlightenment circles and frequented the royal library and the most advanced academic environments in Spain.
His masterwork is the 'Noticias de la Historia General de las Islas Canarias' (4 volumes, 1772–1783), the first critical and documented history of the archipelago, which remains a fundamental reference for historians. But his intellectual curiosity also extended to the natural sciences: the 'Diccionario de Historia Natural de las Islas Canarias' (unfinished, published posthumously) describes the flora, fauna, geology and geography of the archipelago with Enlightenment scientific rigour. He also wrote poetry, theatre and essays.
In 1784 he was appointed archdeacon of Fuerteventura at the cathedral of Las Palmas, where he spent his final years surrounded by books and European correspondents. He died on 21 February 1813. His portrait presides over the plenary chamber of the Cabildo of Gran Canaria. The Real Sociedad Económica de Amigos del País de Las Palmas, which he helped create, is one of his most enduring institutional legacies.
