Willem Barentsz (; anglicized as
William Barents or
Barentz) (c. 1550 – 20 June 1597) was a
Dutch navigator,
cartographer, and
Arctic explorer. He went on three expeditions to the far north in search for a
Northeast passage. During his third expedition, the crew was stranded on
Novaya Zemlya for almost a year. Barentsz died on the return voyage in 1597. In the 19th century, the
Barents Sea was named after him.