Houtman

Houtman, Cornelius van, Dutch seaman, was commander, in 1594, of the first Dutch expedition to the East Indies; but on a subsequent voyage, on which he was accompanied by John Davis, the English navigator, he was murdered by the natives of Acheen. His brother Frederick, who also accompanied him, was at the same time taken prisoner, and during a two years' captivity compiled the first Malay dictionary, and made many valuable observations of stars in the southern hemisphere.