Harvard announced Friday that Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany will deliver the school’s 2019 commencement address on May 30.
Merkel has served as chancellor since 2005 and is often called the “de facto leader of Europe,” as the most senior leader in the G7 and the longest-serving head of government in the European Union.
In October, she announced she would not seek a fifth term as chancellor in 2021.
“Angela Merkel is one of the most widely admired and broadly influential statespeople of our time,” Harvard’s president, Larry Bacow, told The Harvard Gazette. “Over her four terms as Germany’s chancellor, her leadership has done much to shape the course not only of her nation, but also of Europe and the larger world.”
She began her political career in 1989 after being inspired by the Peaceful Revolution, which led to the fall of the Berlin Wall.
She was elected to the German parliament in 1990 and was elected secretary-general of her party in 1998.
“Angela Merkel is one of our era’s most globally respected leaders, a statesperson of formidable intellect, commitment, empathy, and principle,” said Margaret Wang, president of the Harvard Alumni Association.
Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, the billionaire Medford native whose recent moves have sparked rumors of a possible run for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020, was selected to give the 2019 commencement address at MIT.
Last year, Harvard selected Representative John Lewis of Georgia to give the commencement address.
Abbi Matheson can be reached at abbi.matheson@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter at @AbbiMatheson