The deflection of a magnetic compass needle by current in a wire was first described by Hans Oersted in 1820.
The phenomenon was studied both for its own sake and as a means of measuring electrical current.
The earliest galvanometer was reported by Johann Schweigger at the University of Halle on 16 September 1820.
André-Marie Ampère also contributed to its development. Early designs increased the effect of the magnetic field due to the current by using multiple turns of wire;
the instruments were at first called "multipliers" due to this common design feature. The term "galvanometer",
in common use by 1836,
was derived from the surname of Italian electricity researcher Luigi Galvani,
who discovered in 1771 that electric current could make a frog's leg jerk.