DALIN, OLOF VON (1708-1763), Swedish poet, was born in the parish of Vinberg in Halland, where his father was the min ister. He was nearly related to Rydelius, the philosophical bishop of Lund and was sent at a very early age to be instructed by him, Linnaeus being one of his fellow-pupils. While studying at Lund, Dalin had visited Stockholm in the year 1723, and in 1726 entered one of the public offices there. In 1733 he started the weekly Svenska Argus, on the model of Addison's Spectator, writ ing anonymously till 1736. His next work was Tiinkar Over ver Cri tiques (Thoughts about Critics, 1736). With the avowed purpose of enlarging the horizon of his cultivation and tastes, Dalin set off, in company with his pupil, Baron Ralamb's son, on a tour through Germany and France, in 1739-40. On his return the shifting of political life at home caused him to write his famous satiric alle gories of The Story of the Horse and Aprilverk (1738), which provoked countless imitations. His didactic epos of Svenska Frihe ten (Swedish Liberty) appeared in 1742. Hitherto Addison and Pope had been his models ; in this work he draws his inspiration from Thomson, whose poem of Liberty is emulated. On the acces sion of Adolphus Frederick in 1751 Dalin received the post of tutor to the crown prince, afterwards Gustavus III. Queen Louisa Ulrika made him secretary of the Swedish academy of literature, founded by her in 1753. He held the post of tutor to the crown prince until 1756, when he was arrested on suspicion of having taken part in the attempted coup d'etat of that year, and was tried for his life before the diet. He was exiled from Court, and spent his leisure in preparing the third volume of his great histori cal work, the Svea Rikes historic (History of the Swedish King dom), which came down to the death of Charles IX. in 161I. The first two volumes appeared in 1746-5o ; the third, in two parts, in 1760-62. Dalin had been ennobled in 1751, and made privy coun cillor in ; and in 1761 he once more took his place at court. On Aug. 12, 1763 he died at his house in Drottningholm. In the year 1767 his writings in belles lettres were issued in six volumes, edited by J. C. Bokman, his half-brother. During the early part of his life he was universally admitted to be facile princeps among the Swedish poets of his time.
See K. Warburg, "Olof von Dalin," in the Handlingar (vol. lix., 1884) of the Swedish Academy. A selection of his works was edited by E. V. Lindblad (Orebro, 1872).