| Carl Peter Holbøll | |
| Office: | Royal Inspector of South Greenland |
| Predecessor: | Ove Valentin Kielsen |
| Successor: | Jørgen Nielsen Møller |
| Office2: | Royal Inspector of North Greenland |
| Predecessor2: | Johannes West |
| Successor2: | Ludvig Fasting |
| Birth Date: | 31 December 1795 |
| Birth Place: | Copenhagen, Denmark |
| Death Date: | 1856 |
| Death Place: | North Atlantic |
| Nationality: | Danish |
| Occupation: | Soldier, explorer, administrator |
| Term Start: | 1828 |
| Term End: | 1856 |
| Term Start2: | 1825 |
| Term End2: | 1828 |
Carl Peter Holbøll (1795–1856) was an officer in the Danish Royal Navy, Greenland colonial officer and explorer of the Greenlandic fauna.
Holbøll served as Royal Inspector of Colonies and Whaling in North Greenland (1825–1828), and later as Inspector of South Greenland (1828–1856). During his tenure, he developed an interest in natural history and contributed significantly by sending extensive faunistic collections to zoologists in Copenhagen. For instance, Professor Johannes Theodor Reinhardt described the North American form of the red-necked grebe, naming it Podiceps holboellii (now Podiceps grisegena holboellii). Holbøll himself authored a treatise on Greenlandic birds.[1] [2] In the paper, he described the hoary redpoll (Linota hornemanni, now known as Carduelis hornemanni), naming it in honor of botanist Jens Wilken Hornemann. Hornemann had previously received plant collections from Holbøll and named a new species Arabis holboellii (now known as Boechera holboellii).
Holbøll was also a skilled amateur botanist and entomologist.He wrote a mathematics textbook for Greenlandic schools, which remained in use for about a century.
Tragically, after visiting Denmark, Holbøll boarded the brig Baldur, which sank en route to Greenland, resulting in the loss of all on board.