{"id":103267,"date":"2026-03-20T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T17:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.geni.com\/blog\/?p=103267"},"modified":"2026-03-20T10:01:39","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T17:01:39","slug":"profile-of-the-day-henrik-ibsen-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.geni.com\/blog\/profile-of-the-day-henrik-ibsen-3-103267.html","title":{"rendered":"Profile of the Day: Henrik Ibsen"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

On this day in 1828, Norwegian playwright and poet Henrik Ibsen<\/a> was born.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Image: Henrik Ibsen \/ National Library of Norway, Flickr<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ibsen was the oldest of five children born to Knud Ibsen and Marichen Altenburg in the small costal town of Skien in Telemark County, Norway. His maternal grandfather, Johan Andreas Altenburg was a wealthy merchant and shipowner in Skien. Although they were once a wealthy merchant family, by the time Ibsen was 8, they had been thrown into poverty. At the age of 15, Ibsen left school and became an apprentice pharmacist. It was around this time that he began writing plays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Often referred to as the “father of modern prose drama,” Ibsen is regarded as one of the most influential playwrights of his time and is one of the most frequently performed dramatists in the world after William Shakespeare<\/a>. Some of his most famous works include A Doll’s House<\/em>, Peer Gynt<\/em>, and An Enemy of the People.<\/em> Today, his plays continue to be performed all around the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ibsen died on May 23, 1906 at the age of 78.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Explore Henrik Ibsen’s family tree on Geni and share how you’re related to the Norwegian playwright!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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View Henrik Ibsen’s Geni Profile<\/a>