SUNDÉN, HJALMAR. Hjalmar Sundén (1908–1993) was a Swedish psychologist of religion. Sundén was born in Eksjö, Sweden, the son of a lieutenant-colonel and a homemaker. The peak of Sundén's academic career came late in life. He became a professor at the age of fifty-nine and retired eight years later, a much-appreciated mentor and friend to half a dozen postgraduates, some of whom became professors in the psychology of religion. Sundén remained active as a writer and speaker at symposia, enjoying great academic success during the last twenty-five years of his life. He died at the age of eighty-five.

Sundén was educated in Stockholm, at Norrmalm upper-secondary school and University College, obtaining his master of philosophy degree in 1930. He continued his studies at Uppsala, where he graduated from the Faculty of Theology. His rare gift for...