Jacob Roggeveen (1659–1729) was a Dutch explorer who is best known for leading the first recorded European expedition to discover and explore the Easter Island. He was born on 01 February 1659, in Middelburg, in the Zeeland province of the Netherlands.
In 1721, the Dutch West India Company commissioned Roggeveen to lead an expedition to find Terra Australis, a hypothetical southern continent. Instead, during his voyage, he encountered Easter Island in the southeastern Pacific Ocean on 05 April 1722. Roggeveen named it Paasch-Eyland (Easter Island) due to the day of the discovery, which was Easter Sunday.
Roggeveen continued his explorations, reaching other islands in the Pacific, such as Samoa and the Marquesas Islands. After returning to the Netherlands, he wrote an account of his travels, titled "A Voyage Round the World," which was published posthumously in 1728.
Jacob Roggeveen died on 31 July 1729, in Middelburg. His exploration of Easter Island marked a significant moment in the history of European contact with the remote islands of the Pacific.
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