Jan Lever

Jan Lever (Groningen, 20 July 1922 – Amsterdam, 23 November 2010) was a Dutch biologist specialized in zoology, endocrinology and evolutionary biology.

Lever was an important voice in shaping Dutch public debate on evolution and biology, particularly in protestant circles.

[4] At the beginning of his career, Lever’s ideas about evolution and the species concept were inspired by the Reformational philosophy of philosopher Herman Dooyeweerd.

During his student days, Lever became acquainted with the biologist Johann Heinrich Diemer, who had published about Dooyeweerd's approach in the domain of biology in the 1930s.

In his book, Creatie en Evolutie (1956), Lever still subscribed to Dooyeweerd’s philosophy but also suggested that it is possible that biological evolution occurred.