The American Cyclopædia (1879)/Carpzov

CARPZOV, a family of learned Germans, said to be descended from a Spanish family named Carpezano, who were driven from their country by religious persecution at the beginning of the 16th century. The founder of the German family was Simon Carpzov, burgomaster of Brandenburg about 1550. His son Joachim reached a high rank in the Danish army, and died in 1628; and another son, Benedict (1565-1624), was professor of jurisprudence at Wittenberg, chancellor of the dowager electress Sophie, and again professor. Benedict left five sons, one of whom, also named Benedict (1595-1666), acquired eminence as a jurist in Leipsic and Dresden, and his Practica nova Rerum Criminalium (Wittenberg, 1635; new ed. by Böhmer, 5 vols., Frankfort-on-the-Main, 1758) and other works exerted great influence on the judiciary in Saxony and other countries. His four brothers were likewise men of great erudition and piety, especially Johann Benedict (1607-'57), who was professor of theology and preacher at Leipsic, and the author of Systema Theologiæ (2 vols., Leipsic, 1653) and other works. The latter had a son also named Johann Benedict (1639-'99), a clergyman, who published De Pontificum Hebræorum Vestitu and other critical works. Prominent among the brothers of the preceding were Friedrich Benedict (1649-'99), collaborator in Mencken's Acta Eruditorum, and Samuel Benedict (1647-1707), professor of poetry and chief chaplain of the court of Saxony. One of the latter's sons, Johann Gottlob (1679-1767), was in the front rank of the theologians of his day. He was professor of oriental languages at Leipsic (1719-'30), and superintendent at Lübeck (1730-'67); and his works include Introductio in Libros Canonicos Bibliorum Veteris Testamenti Omnes (Leipsic, 1721), and Critica Sacra Veteris Testamenti (1728). Among the later members of the family was Johann Benedict (1720-1803), who was successively professor of philosophy at Leipsic and of poetry and Greek philology at Helmstedt, and ended his life as an abbot after having taught theology. He occupied himself with philological labors, especially with grammatical commentaries on the New Testament.