Constantin von Economo

Constantin Freiherr von Economo (August 21, 1876 – October 21, 1931) was an Austrian psychiatrist and neurologist of Greek origin. He is mostly known for his discovery of encephalitis lethargica and his atlas of cytoarchitectonics of the cerebral cortex.

Constantin Economo von San Serff was born in Brăila, Romania, to Johannes and Helene Economo, a wealthy family with large holdings in Thessaly and Macedonia. The Economo (Οικονόμου, Oikonomou) family originated from Edessa, in the Ottoman Sanjak of Salonica (modern Edessa, Central Macedonia, Greece) where some of Constantin's ancestors were notables, and his family included many bishops. In 1877, the family moved to Trieste, Austria-Hungary, and Constantin spent his childhood and youth in Trieste. He was a good student, speaking several languages fluently. In 1906, his family was ennobled and Economo obtained the title "Freiherr" (Baron).

At the request of his father, Economo began his study of mechanical engineering at the Polytechnic University of Vienna in 1893 but switched to medicine after two years. His first scientific work, "Zur Entwicklung der Vogelhypophyse" ("On the Development of the Pituitary Gland in Birds") was published in 1899. Economo worked as an assistant for Sigmund Exner from 1900 until 1903. He received his medical degree in 1901.

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