Frederic, was a native of East Gothland, and born in the year 1722. He prosecuted his medical and botanical studies at Upsal. The great Linnaeus having represented in his lectures what important advantages might be gained by a young student, by travelling through the country of Palestine, at that time but little known, Hasselquist felt the fire of ambition burn within him at the declaration of his master. The crown giving no pecuniary encouragement for undertakings of this magnitude, extensive collections were made by private individuals, especially from the country of our author, and stipends were granted him by all the faculties in the university of Upsal.

Protected in this manner, he began his journey in 1749 during the summer season, and he obtained a passage to Smyrna in a Swedish East-Indiaman, through the influence of Lagerstroem. The Swedish consul at Smyrna received him in the most friendly manner, at which place he arrived about the latter end of the year. In the beginning of 1750 he set out for Egypt, and remained in the metropolis of that country for about nine months, from which place he transmitted to Linnaeus some specimens of his researches, which obtained the approbation of the public after they were published. By the influence of Dr Wargentin, a collection of 10,000 dollars of copper currency was made for the encouragement of young Hasselquist in the prosecution of his researches. In the spring of 1751, he passed through Jaffa to Jerusalem, and returned afterwards to Smyrna by the way of Rhodes and Scio, completely... Hasselquistia, a genus of plants belonging to the pentandria class, and in the natural method ranking under the 45th order, Umbellatae. See Botany Index.