Pehr Philander
Johan Pehr Gustav Philander | |
|---|---|
| Born | Unknown c. 1757 |
| Died | 27 February 1811 (aged 53–54) |
| Occupation(s) | Slave, Gardener |
| Spouses | Anna Kajsa Svensdotter
(m. 1779; died 1803)Catharina Stenholm
(m. 1807) |
| Children | 5 |
Johan Pehr Gustav Philander[a], also known as Javanen (The Javan in Swedish) was a gardener and former Dutch slave from the island Nias. He was bought in Canton and adopted by Carl Gustaf Ekeberg, who took him to Sweden, where he became free, slavery having no legality in Sweden.
Early life and enslavement
[edit]Pehr Philander was born circa 1757 on the island Nias off the coast of Sumatra. At a young age, Philander was kidnapped and Enslaved by members of the Dutch East India Company. Along with two other boys, he was brought by the Dutch to Canton in China.[1]
The boys were brought to a market in Canton where they were being sold as "three Malay-boys". The Dutch supposedly nailed the boys' earlobes to the ships' chests, which meant that Philander carried a scar on his ear for the rest of his life. In 1766, the boys were spotted by the crew of the ship Stockholms slott, while on their Second octroi under the Swedish East India Company. Philander was bought by Carl Gustaf Ekeberg for 1800 Copper coins, the other two boys were bought by the supercargoers. But shortly after the purchase, one of the two supercargoers, Anders Gadd, died, and according to the rules, which were strictly economic, when someone died, his goods were to be sold so that his survivors would get the biggest possible profit. This meant that the little boy he had just bought would also be sold on the slave market again. But the crew of the ship got together and paid for him so that he would avoid the slave market a second time. [1][2]
The two other boys were given the names Johan Gustaf Agorander[b] and Ludvig Ulric Javander upon their arrival in Sweden.[4]
Life in Sweden
[edit]Philander was brought along with the cargo to Uppsala. Upon his arival, he was automatically free, since slavery in Sweden had been outlawed since 1335. He was adopted by Ekeberg and grew up along his other children in Tensta where he learned Swedish and Christian faith. Philander was baptized on the 15 october 1769 in the Tensta Church where he was given his Swedish name. He had an unusually magnificent baptism, with at least 14 godparents including the governor of Uppsala, Counts, Barons and a Vicer, perhaps because it was considered significant to baptize a "heathen". Since people in Sweden had not heard of Sumatra, let alone Nias, he became known as Javanen (The Javan).[1][5]
On the seventh November 1779, he married Anna Kajsa Svensdotter whom was pregnant and gave birth 3 months after the wedding. They moved around a lot and ended up in the Strängnäs area where he worked as a gardener. The croft they lived on is now known as Java. Anna died in 1803 and Philander remarried in 1807 to Catharina Stenholm. Philander died in 1811, his family ended up in the poorhouse. Philander was buried in an unmarked grave at Tensta Church.[1][6]
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c d "Förslavad och frigiven - Släktband". sverigesradio.se (in Swedish). Sveriges Radio. Retrieved 2025-06-08.
- ^ "Från Nias till Strängnäs år 1766" (PDF). Sahabat (in Swedish). Svensk-Indonesiska Sällskapet. Retrieved 2025-06-08.
- ^ https://forum.rotter.se/index.php?topic=68185.0
- ^ Tobias Hübinette. "Om de första icke-vita och icke-kristna invandrarna i Sverige" (in Swedish). Retrieved 2025-06-08.
- ^ Anders Svensson. "Stockholms slott". Göteborgs historia (in Swedish). Det Gamla Göteborg. Retrieved 2025-06-08.
- ^ Maya Hedberg. "Vem är Javanen?". Javanen.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 2025-06-08.