Norwegian Literature
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Norwegian Literature
Norwegian literature is literature composed in Norway or by Norwegian people. The history of Norwegian literature starts with the pagan Eddaic poems and skaldic verse of the 9th and 10th centuries with poets such as Bragi Boddason and Eyvindr Skáldaspillir. The arrival of Christianity around the year 1000 brought Norway into contact with European medieval learning, hagiography and history writing. Merged with native oral tradition and Icelandic influence, this was to flower into an active period of literature production in the late 12th and early 13th centuries. Major works of that period include ''Historia Norwegie'', '' Thidreks saga'' and ''Konungs skuggsjá.'' The period from the 14th century to the 19th is considered a Dark Age in the nation's literature though Norwegian-born writers such as Peder Claussøn Friis, Dorothe Engelbretsdatter and Ludvig Holberg contributed to the common literature of Denmark–Norway. With the advent of nationalism and the struggle for independ ...
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Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of Norway. Bouvet Island, located in the Subantarctic, is a dependency of Norway; it also lays claims to the Antarctic territories of Peter I Island and Queen Maud Land. The capital and largest city in Norway is Oslo. Norway has a total area of and had a population of 5,425,270 in January 2022. The country shares a long eastern border with Sweden at a length of . It is bordered by Finland and Russia to the northeast and the Skagerrak strait to the south, on the other side of which are Denmark and the United Kingdom. Norway has an extensive coastline, facing the North Atlantic Ocean and the Barents Sea. The maritime influence dominates Norway's climate, with mild lowland temperatures on the se ...
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Alexander Kielland
Alexander Lange Kielland (; 18 February 1849 – 6 April 1906) was a Norwegian realistic writer of the 19th century. He is one of the so-called "The Four Greats" of Norwegian literature, along with Henrik Ibsen, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson and Jonas Lie. Background Born in Stavanger, Norway, he grew up in a rich merchant family. He was the son of consul Jens Zetlitz Kielland and great-grandson of Gabriel Schanche Kielland (1760–1821). Kielland was the younger brother of Norwegian landscape painter Kitty Lange Kielland. His family also included his son, Jens Zetlitz Kielland, (1873–1926); uncle Jacob Otto Lange (1833–1902), cousin Axel Christian Zetlitz Kielland (1853–1924), nephew Jens Zetlitz Monrad Kielland (1866–1926), cousin Anders Lange (1904–1974) and great nephew Jacob Christie Kielland (1897–1972). His great niece Axeliane Christiane Zetlitz Kielland (1916–1995) married Agnar Mykle (1915–1994). Career Despite being born wealthy, he had a since ...
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Eddic Poems
The ''Poetic Edda'' is the modern name for an untitled collection of Old Norse anonymous narrative poems, which is distinct from the ''Prose Edda'' written by Snorri Sturluson. Several versions exist, all primarily of text from the Icelandic medieval manuscript known as the ''Codex Regius'', which contains 31 poems. The ''Codex Regius'' is arguably the most important extant source on Norse mythology and Germanic heroic legends. Since the early 19th century, it has had a powerful influence on Scandinavian literature, not only through its stories, but also through the visionary force and the dramatic quality of many of the poems. It has also been an inspiration for later innovations in poetic meter, particularly in Nordic languages, with its use of terse, stress-based metrical schemes that lack final rhymes, instead focusing on alliterative devices and strongly concentrated imagery. Poets who have acknowledged their debt to the ''Codex Regius'' include Vilhelm Ekelund, August Strin ...
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Sigrid Undset
Sigrid Undset () (20 May 1882 – 10 June 1949) was a Norwegian-Danish novelist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928. Undset was born in Kalundborg, Denmark, but her family moved to Norway when she was two years old. In 1924, she converted to Catholicism. She fled Norway for the United States in 1940 because of her opposition to Nazi Germany and the German invasion and occupation of Norway, but returned after World War II ended in 1945. Her best-known work is ''Kristin Lavransdatter'', a trilogy about life in Norway in the Middle Ages, portrayed through the experiences of a woman from birth until death. Its three volumes were published between 1920 and 1922. Early life Sigrid Undset was born on 20 May 1882 in the small town of Kalundborg, Denmark, at the childhood home of her mother, Charlotte Undset (1855–1939, née Anna Maria Charlotte Gyth). Undset was the eldest of three daughters. She and her family moved to Norway when she was two. She grew up in ...
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Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis powers. World War II was a total war that directly involved more than 100 million personnel from more than 30 countries. The major participants in the war threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. Aircraft played a major role in the conflict, enabling the strategic bombing of population centres and deploying the only two nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II was by far the deadliest conflict in human history; it resulted in 70 to 85 million fatalities, mostly among civilians. Tens of millions died due to genocides (including the Holocaust), starvation, ma ...
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Edith Øberg
Edith Justine Øberg (October 5, 1895 – September 21, 1968) was a Norwegian novelist. Biography She was born in Lysekil, Sweden, and grew up in Kristiania Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ..., Norway. She was married to writer Hans Christian Lyche. She studied languages and music, and made her debut as a singer in 1915. Øberg made her literary debut in 1916 with the novel '. Her first major recognition came with her third novel: (1921). She published several popular novels under the pseudonym "Lita", including ' from 1929, and ' from 1931. Her novels ' from 1939, followed by ' (1940) and ' (1945) are regarded among her more serious works, which earned her artistic recognition. References 1895 births 1968 deaths People from Lysekil Municipality 20th-cent ...
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Rolf Stenersen
Rolf Kristian Eckersberg Stenersen (13 February 1899 – 15 October 1978) was a Norwegian businessman, non-fiction writer, essayist, novelist, playwright and biographer. He was also a track and field athlete and art collector. Background Stenersen was born in Kristiania (now Oslo), Norway as the son of bookseller Johan Martin Stenersen (1866–1948) and Martha Kathrine Eckersberg (1869–1930). He graduated from Kristiania Commerce School (now Oslo Commerce School) in 1918, and studied at Queen's College, Oxford, from 1922 to 1924. He was a Norwegian champion in 200 metres in 1919 and 1920, and in 4 x 100 metres relay in 1920. He participated at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, where he competed in 100 metres, 200 metres and 4 x 100 metres relay. Career He was active on the stock market already as a teenager. From 1925 he was running his own business, A/S Stenersen og Waage, which operated in the rubber business and the Dutch stock market. He was a friend of paint ...
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Haakon Bugge Mahrt
Haakon Bugge Mahrt (1901–1990) was a Norwegian writer and attaché. He was born in Vardø and took the ''licencié ès lettres'' degree in Paris in 1928. He worked at the Norwegian embassy in Paris as a press attaché from 1946 to 1971. Books include ''Modernisme'' (1931), ''Kjære Europa'' (1932), ''Orkanen'' (1936), ''Bitter té'' (1945), ''Dikteren og eventyreren Arthur Rimbaud'' (1945) and ''Rømlingen fra Vardøhus'' (1961). He also translated John Steinbeck's novels "Of Mice and Men" and "Tortilla Flat ''Tortilla Flat'' (1935) is an early John Steinbeck novel set in Monterey, California. The novel was the author's first clear critical and commercial success. The book portrays a group of 'paisanos'—literally, countrymen—a small band of e ..." into Norwegian and is credited as one of the script writers for the 1948 French-Norwegian film "Kampen om tungtvannet." References 1901 births 1990 deaths People from Vardø 20th-century Norwegian novelists Norweg ...
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Gunnar Larsen (writer)
Gunnar Otterbech Larsen (5 February 1900, in Oslo – 5 November 1958) was a Norwegian journalist, writer, and translator. He worked in the newspaper ''Dagbladet'' from 1923 to 1958, where he was news editor from 1930 and became editor-in-chief with Helge Seip in 1954. His first novel, ''I sommer'', was published in 1932. It was followed by ''To mistenkelige personer'' (1933), a crime novel based on actual events that took place in 1926. ''To mistenkelige personer'' was praised by many critics, including Sigurd Hoel. Haagen Ringnes: ''"Den boken skulle jeg gjerne ha skrevet!"''. Article in 1983 edition of ''To mistenkelige personer'' by Gunnar Larsen ( Gyldendal Norsk Forlag). Both ''I sommer'' and ''To mistenkelige personer'' were inspired by Ernest Hemingway's writings. Larsen's third novel, ''Week-end i evigheten'' (1934), was much more experimental. His later novels were ''Bull'' (1938) and ''Sneen som falt i fjor'' (1948). His poetry has been published in the books ''Dikt'' ...
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Emil Boyson
Emil Boyson (4 September 1897 – 2 June 1979) was a Norwegian poet, writer, and translator. Biography Carl Emil Steen Boyson was born in Bergen, Norway. His parents were Immanuel Boysen (1854–1921) and Christine Steen (1869–1905). He grew up as a single child after his siblings died in childbirth. His mother died when he was nine years old. His father was a jurist who was stationed in various places: Bergen, Trondheim, Røros and finally in Kristiania. In 1906, his father was appointed at Uttrøndelag in Trondheim. In 1913 the family moved to Kristiania (now Oslo). In 1917, he obtained artium at Kristiana Cathedral School. In 1923 he married Friedel Schatz (1897–1975). They were married in Berlin where she was employed as an artist. The couple frequently lived apart until 1963, when they established residence on Hans Nielsen Hauges gate in Oslo. His actual debut was in 1920 under the pseudonym Karl Snemo, with publication of ''Åpning til regnbuen''. Boyson f ...
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Sigbjørn Obstfelder
Sigbjørn Obstfelder (21 November 1866 – 29 July 1900) was a 19th-century Norwegian writer and poet. Background Obstfelder was born in Stavanger, Norway on November 21, 1866. He was the eighth child in a family of sixteen children, being one of only six siblings to survive to adulthood. His father, Herman Friedrik Obstfelder (1828-1906), was a baker by trade and provided little financial or emotional support. His mother, Serine Obstfelder (née Egelandsdal) (1836-1880) died when he was fourteen. The difficulties he experienced, a threatening male figure, the loss of the mother and the sense of ever-present death, were strong influences on his writing. He began to study at the University of Christiania in 1886. Two years later he started studying engineering at Christiania Technical School (now ''Oslo ingeniørhøgskole''). In 1890, he moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin where he took a job as a draftsman at a bridge construction company. After only a year, he returned to Norway, ...
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Knut Hamsun
Knut Hamsun (4 August 1859 – 19 February 1952) was a Norwegian writer who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1920. Hamsun's work spans more than 70 years and shows variation with regard to consciousness, subject, perspective and environment. He published more than 20 novels, a collection of poetry, some short stories and plays, a travelogue, works of non-fiction and some essays. Hamsun is considered to be "one of the most influential and innovative literary stylists of the past hundred years" (''ca.'' 1890–1990). He pioneered psychological literature with techniques of stream of consciousness and interior monologue, and influenced authors such as Thomas Mann, Franz Kafka, Maxim Gorky, Stefan Zweig, Henry Miller, Hermann Hesse, John Fante and Ernest Hemingway. Isaac Bashevis Singer called Hamsun "the father of the modern school of literature in his every aspect—his subjectiveness, his fragmentariness, his use of flashbacks, his lyricism. The whole modern sc ...
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