Amalia Holst

Amalia Holst (née Amalia von Justi; 1758–1829) was a German writer, intellectual, and feminist. Her work examined traditional pedagogy and challenged Enlightenment writers such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau. She is often called the German counterpart to Mary Wollstonecraft.

Holst was the daughter of Johann Heinrich Gottlob Justi. Her father died in Küstrin Prison when she was thirteen. Holst supported herself through teaching from a young age, and eventually became the director of a school.

In 1791, her work Observations on the Errors of Our Modern Education by a Practical Teacher (German: Bemerkungen über die Fehler unserer modernen Erziehung von einer praktischen Erzieherinn) was published. The work examined conservative teaching methods. As an educator, in 1802, she published On the Purpose of Woman's Advanced Intellectual Development (German: Über die Bestimmung des Weibes zur höhern Geistesbildung) which promoted equal education for women and protested concepts put forth by Enlightenment writers.

Holst is memorialized in Judy Chicago's The Dinner Party installation.