Arnved Nedkvitne (born 21 May 1947) is a Norwegian historian of the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

and

Professor Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

of mediaeval history. He held the chair of Norwegian mediaeval history at the

University of Trondheim A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

from 1991 to 1993 and at the

University of Oslo The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

from 1993 to 2009. He is a member of the

Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters The Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters ( da, Det Kongelige Norske Videnskabers Selskab, DKNVS) is a Norwegian learned society based in Trondheim. It was founded in 1760 and is Norway's oldest scientific and scholarly institution. The s ...

, and was elected in 1993. Nedkvitne is regarded as "one of Norway's preeminent commercial historians" and as Norway's foremost mediaeval historian. His research has focused on Norwegian urban history, foreign trade, the economy of coastal communities and pre-modern social organisation. He is the foremost scholar of the relations between the

Hanseatic League The Hanseatic League (; gml, Hanse, , ; german: label=Modern German, Deutsche Hanse) was a medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Central and Northern Europe. Growing from a few North German to ...

and Norway; his research has also explored topics such as honour, law and religious ethics in Scandinavia, the social consequences of literacy in the Middle Ages, lay beliefs of mediaeval Scandinavia, and the Norse settlement of Arctic Greenland.

Career

Born in

Haugesund Haugesund () is a municipality on the North Sea in Rogaland county, Norway. While the population is greater in the neighboring Karmøy municipality, the main commercial and economic centre of the Haugaland region in northern Rogaland and southern ...

, Nedkvitne obtained his cand.philol. degree in history at the

University of Bergen The University of Bergen ( no, Universitetet i Bergen, ) is a research-intensive state university located in Bergen, Norway. As of 2019, the university has over 4,000 employees and 18,000 students. It was established by an act of parliament in 194 ...

in 1975 with a dissertation on ''Handelssjøfarten mellom England og Norge i høymiddelalderen'' (Sea-based trade between England and Norway in the High Middle Ages). He earned his dr. philos. degree in 1983 on the thesis ''Utenrikshandelen fra det vestafjelske Norge'' (The Foreign Trade of Western Norway). He was employed as a research fellow and senior researcher at the University of Bergen until 1991. He was professor of mediaeval history at the

from 1991 to 1993, and was appointed as professor of mediaeval history at the

in 1993.

Scholarly work

Nedkvitne's research focuses on Norwegian urban history, foreign trade, the economy of coastal communities and pre-modern social organisation. He has written several books, especially on Scandinavia's foreign trade relations in the Middle Ages, on literacy and beliefs in mediaeval Scandinavia and on the Norse settlement of Greenland. A major research focus of Nedkvitne is also relations between the

and Norway. According to historian

Kåre Lunden Kåre Lunden (8 April 1930 – 18 July 2013) was a Norwegian historian, and Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Oslo. Lunden was born in Naustdal. He originally studied agronomy at the Norwegian College of Agriculture, graduating i ...

, Nedkvitne has "authored several major works of Norwegian economic history. In recent years, he has been an important innovator, linked to the 'cultural turn' in the discipline". Ian Peter Grohse notes that "Nedkvitne's extensive work on the history of Norwegian fishing, shipping, and foreign trade has duly affirmed his place as one of Norway's preeminent commercial historians and a leading scholar in the field of Norwegian–Hanseatic relations."Ian Peter Grohse (2015) The German Hansa and Bergen 1100–1600 (book review), ''Scandinavian Journal of History'', 40:1, 119-123, DOI: 10.1080/03468755.2014.968754 The book ''Norse Greenland: Viking Peasants in the Arctic'' (Routledge, 2018) discusses how a community of 2000–3000 Viking peasants survived in Arctic Greenland for 430 years (ca. 985–1415), and why they finally disappeared.

Honours

He was elected as a member of the

in 1993.

Controversy over academic freedom and dismissal in 2009

In February, 2009, Nedkvitne was dismissed from his position as professor by the university board of the University of Oslo after he had refused to attend a meeting with the dean of the faculty of humanities Trine Syvertsen. This happened in the context of a years-long conflict at his institute involving several professors. A point of contention was the management style of then-institute director Jorunn Bjørgum, who was accused of being "highly authoritarian" by one of Nedkvitne's professor colleagues, and both sides accused each other of harassment. The case caused concern among other Norwegian professors and academics (including Jan Helge Solbakk, Henning Jakhelln,

Bernt Hagtvet Bernt Hagtvet (born 5 March 1946) is a Norwegian political scientist. He is a professor emeritus of political science at the University of Oslo. Among his areas of interest are European politics, extremist movements and human rights. He was born in ...

, Kristian Gundersen,

Unni Wikan Unni Wikan (born 18 November 1944) is professor of social anthropology at the University of Oslo, Norway. She has served as visiting professor at the University of Chicago (2011), Harvard University (1999–2000), Goethe University, Frankfurt (200 ...

, Arne Johan Vetlesen,

Anine Kierulf Anine Kierulf is Associate Professor of constitutional law at the University of Oslo Department of Public and International Law, and a special advisor to the Norwegian National human rights institution, where she was Research Director from 2017-20 ...

and Jan Fridthjof Bernt) that academic freedom was not respected by the university administration. On March 11, 2009, it became known that Nedkvitne would bring the case to court with support from the Norwegian Association of Researchers. The case commenced before Oslo City Court in January 2010. Professor Finn Fuglestad testified that Jorunn Bjørgum was a "highly

authoritarian Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic votin ...

" institute director, while Professor Kristine Bruland testified that the institute leadership "systematically harassed emplyees." Bruland's testimony was also supported by Professor John Peter Collett. The city court found that the university was entitled to fire Nedkvitne. Nedkvitne first decided not to appeal to the High Court (Borgarting lagmannsrett) for economic reasons. The court's decision was criticized by several professors. In February 2010, the Board of the Norwegian Association of Researchers decided to support an appeal financially, due to the "principal character" of his case. In March 2011 the High Court's decision upheld the City Court's decision, stating that the University of Oslo was entitled to fire Nedkvitne because he allegedly refused to attend a meeting with Syvertsen. The University of Oslo offered to give Nedkvitne 2 years pay if he would turn in his

resignation Resignation is the formal act of leaving or quitting one's office or position. A resignation can occur when a person holding a position gained by election or appointment steps down, but leaving a position upon the expiration of a term, or choos ...

Selected publications

*''Utenrikshandelen fra det vestafjelske Norge 1100-1600'', 1983 (dissertation, dr. philos.) *''"Mens bønderne seilte og jægterne for" : nordnorsk og vestnorsk kystøkonomi 1500-1730'', Oslo:

Universitetsforlaget Universitetsforlaget AS (English: "The University Press"), also known in English as Scandinavian University Press, is a Norwegian academic publishing company, which publishes non-fiction literature and journals mainly oriented to Scandinavia. U ...

, 1988 *''Människan och miljön'', 1991 (with Kjell Haarstad and Lars J. Lundgren) *''Byen under Eikaberg : fra byens oppkomst til 1536'', 1991 (volume one of ''Oslo bys historie'', with Per G. Norseng) **Re-released in 2000 as ''Middelalderbyen ved Bjørvika'', Oslo: Cappelen, 475 pp., *''Norwegen und die Hanse : wirtschaftliche und kulturelle Aspekte im europäischen Vergleich'', Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang, 1994 (editor, with Volker Henn) *''Møte med døden i norrøn middelalder'', Oslo: Cappelen, 1997, 151 pp., , published in Swedish 2004 *''The social consequences of literacy in medieval Scandinavia'', Turnhout:

Brepols Brepols is a Belgian publishing house. Once, it was one of the largest printing companies in the world and one of the main employers in Turnhout (Belgium). Besides its printing business, Brepols is also active as a publisher. Formerly well known ...

, 2004, 290 pp., *''Lay belief in Norse society 1000-1350'', Copenhagen:

Museum Tusculanum Press Museum Tusculanum Press (Danish: ''Museum Tusculanums Forlag'') is an independent academic press historically associated with the University of Copenhagen, publishing mainly in the humanities, social sciences and theology. It was founded in 1975 as ...

, 2009, 401 pp., *''Ære, lov og religion i Norge gjennom tusen år'', Oslo: Spartacus Forlag, 2011, 444 pp., *''The German Hansa and Bergen 1100-1600 '', Köln: Böhlau, 2014, 785 pp., *''Norse Greenland: Viking Peasants in the Arctic'', Routledge, 2018,

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nedkvitne, Arnved 1947 births Living people Norwegian medievalists Economic historians Local historians Academic staff of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology Academic staff of the University of Oslo People from Haugesund Trials in Norway