Paul Steenstrup Koht

Paul Steenstrup Koht
Member of Parliament for Skien
In office 1889–1891
In office 1892–1894
Personal details
Born	(1844-08-28)28 August 1844 Bodø, Norway
Died	26 August 1892(1892-08-26) (aged 47) Skien, Norway
Political party	Liberal Party
Spouse	Betty Giæver
Children	Four, amongst them Halvdan Koht
Profession	Educator, Politician

Paul Steenstrup Koht (28 August 1844 – 26 August 1892) was a Norwegian educator and politician for the Liberal Party. He was the father of Halvdan Koht, historian and Labour Party politician.

Having developed a penchant for Greek and Roman poetry in his student years, Koht lectured in philology as an adult. He also taught living languages, most notably Norwegian.

Despite the conservative political views of his family, Koht became fascinated by the radical national liberal movement of the late 19th century. His first political activism was manifested in his editing of Tromsøposten; in the late 1870s and early 1880s he chaired the Tromsø Labour Association, which catapulted him into the political limelight. Eventually becoming elected as both city mayor and Member of Parliament, he advocated radical reforms, amongst them common suffrage and the eight-hour day.