Jacobus Ruurd "Jaap" Bruijn (13 March 1938 in The Hague – 2 November 2022 Oegstgeest[1]), was a Dutch maritime historian.
[2] During his 41-year teaching career as The Netherlands' only university professor of maritime history, he guided the doctoral theses of at least 49 graduate students.
[3] He completed his doctorate in 1970 at the University of Leiden with a thesis on De Admiraliteit van Amsterdam in rustige jaren, 1713-1751.
In 1974-75, while associate professor of history at Leiden, he was a Fellow at the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities and Social Sciences.
On his retirement, Bruijn was presented with an album amicorum, In het kielzog: maritiem-historische studies aangeboden aan Jaap R. Bruijn bij zijn vertrek als hoogleraar zeegeschiedenis aan de Universiteit Leiden, edited by Leo Akveld, [et al.], (Amsterdam: De Bataafse Leeuw, 2003).