User:Generalissima/Johann August Miertsching

Johann August Miertsching
Jan Awgust Měrćink
Born	(1817-08-21)August 21, 1817 Gröditz, Kingdom of Saxony
Died	March 30, 1877(1877-03-30) (aged 59) Kleinwelka, Saxony, German Empire

Johann August Miertsching (Upper Sorbian: Jan Awgust Měrćink, August 21, 1817 – March 30, 1875) was a Moravian missionary, noted for his service as an interpreter under Robert McClure during the search for Franklin's lost expedition. Born to a Sorbian and German parents, Miertsching was trained as a cobbler before joining the Moravian Church. After training, he was sent to Okak mission in northern Labrador, where he learned Inuktitut. Called upon by the British Admiralty to serve as an interpreter, he served for five years in the disastrous McClure expedition. He served at the mission of Genadendal in the Cape Colony before retiring to Germany.

References

Sources

• http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/miertsching_johann_august_10E.html
• Weil ich ein Inuk bin: Johann August Miertsching, Ein Lebensbild (978-3-86732-411-3)
• Frozen ships : the Arctic diary of Johann Miertsching
• Lobsticks and Stone Cairns: Human Landmarks in the Arctic