Jacob the Dacian

Brother Jacob the Dacian (Spanish: Jacobo Daciano; Latin: Iacobus de Dacia; c. 1484 in Copenhagen, Denmark – 1566 in Michoacán, New Spain) was a Danish-born Franciscan monk and probable Prince of Denmark, Norway and Sweden. He achieved fluency in eight languages and fame among the indigenous people of Michoacán as a righteous and helpful man toward his flock. His relics, now lost, were kept for a long time by the Indians of Tarécuato who still celebrate his birthday every year.

The translation of his name into Medieval Latin as Iacobus de Dacia stems from the fact that, during the Middle Ages, the toponym Dania, meaning Denmark, was occasionally confused with .

Brother Jacob also went by the name Iacobus Gottorpius, referring to the royal estate of Gottorp (now located in Germany).

Danish historian Jørgen Nybo Rasmussen (Rasmussen 1974, 1986) argues that Jacob was the son, apparently extramarital, of King John of the Kalmar Union and a younger brother of King Christian II, both Danes. This has not been asserted or even mentioned by all historians but it is also the basis for the novel Brother Jacob by Danish author Henrik Stangerup. Key arguments in a case for Jacob's royal lineage are the facts that he described himself as coming from Gottorp, the estate of Kings Christian I and John of Denmark; that he had an excellent education normally reserved for the higher nobility; and that he seemed to enjoy protection from higher political forces. It was also common for younger sons of royalty to enter into the clergy, since they normally would not inherit the thrones. However, Jacob's position as an inter-continental missionary was very unusual for a royal prince.

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