Nanna Svartz

Nanna Charlotta Svartz (25 July 1890 in Västerås – 3 April 1986 in Stockholm) was a Swedish physician and the first female professor at a public university in Sweden. Her research focused on gastrointestinal diseases and rheumatology.

Biography Childhood Nanna Svartz was one of five children of Johan Anshelm Svartz, a Latin teacher with a Ph.D. in philosophy, and his wife Anna Charlotta (born Moxén). Her siblings were born between 1880 and 1885, but died all from 1887 to 1904. She went to the local girls' school, but girls were not allowed to take the studentexamen there. Hence, the whole family moved to Stockholm in 1908, where she was able to finish her exam at Åhlinska skolan in 1910.

Early life As Nanna Svartz wanted to become a physician,

She went on working as an active physician until 1957 and only stepped down as the head of the institute in 1960. Nevertheless, she went on pursuing research in her laboratory at Karolinska Hospital until she was 93. During her scientific career, she published over 400 articles.

She died in 1986 at the age of 96 in Stockholm.

Nanna Svartz väg on the Solna Campus of Karolinska Institute.

Family She was married to pediatrician Nils Malmberg after her licentiate on 12 October 1918. They got to know each other in school in Västerås and studied together at Karolinska Institute. In 1929, they had a daughter, Gunvor Svartz-Malmberg, who was named after both her parents. She also became a physician.

Activism From the difficulties in obtaining the student exam during her studies before she qualified, Nanna Svartz was confronted with discrimination throughout her life. She was interested in feminist issues from an early age on, for example when listening to a talk about women's suffrage in Västerås. Right after she obtained her undergraduate degree, she joined the Women Physicians Permanent Committee (Kvinnliga läkares permanenta kommitté, KLPK). This group fought against the discrimination of female physicians in times when competence was usually attributed to men. Professionalism was the group's main strategy and influenced Nanna Svartz's professional behaviour decisively.