The Center for Studies of the Holocaust and Religious Minorities ( no, Senter for studier av Holocaust og livssynsminoriteter, or ''HL-senteret'') is a Norwegian research institution. It is organised as an independent foundation and is an affiliated institute of 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 ...

History

The center was established in 2001. In 2006 it moved from the University of Oslo campus to Villa Grande, the former residence of

Vidkun Quisling Vidkun Abraham Lauritz Jonssøn Quisling (, ; 18 July 1887 – 24 October 1945) was a Norwegian military officer, politician and Nazi collaborator who nominally list of heads of government of Norway, headed the government of Norway during t ...

. The center's endowment was donated by the Norwegian government at the behest of the Jewish community of Norway as part of the restitution made to

Norwegian Jews The history of Jews in Norway dates back to the 1400s. Although there were very likely Jewish merchants, sailors and others who entered Norway during the Middle Ages, no efforts were made to establish a Jewish community. Through the early mod ...

for the confiscation of their property while Norway was occupied during

World War II 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 ...

. The center was established under the auspices of the

and has a twofold mission: # Educating the public on

the Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...

, especially as related to the Norwegian experience, i.e., disenfranchisement, persecution, arrests, confinement, confiscation, and deportation to death camps outside of Norway, especially Auschwitz. This extends to studies of

antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

in and outside of Norway, in the past, present, and future. # Studying ethnic and religious minorities, especially in Norway. To this end, the center offers educational materials, programs, exhibitions, a museum, and library collections. Though it is an independent entity, it has established formal relationships with the University of Oslo,

Yad Vashem Yad Vashem ( he, יָד וַשֵׁם; literally, "a memorial and a name") is Israel's official memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. It is dedicated to preserving the memory of the Jews who were murdered; honoring Jews who fought against th ...

, and the

Jewish Museum in Trondheim Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

. On January 23, 2008, the center announced that an object of some importance had been stolen from the center's museum on or before November 23, 2007. The museum was temporarily closed after this to improve the security system.

Directors

* Odd-Bjørn Fure 2002–2011 * Jakob Lothe 2011–2012 *

Guri Hjeltnes Guri Hjeltnes (born 23 October 1953) is a Norwegian journalist and historian. Having mainly researched Norwegian World War II history during her career, she is a professor of journalism at the BI Norwegian Business School since 2004. She has als ...

2012–

Other notable employees

* Terje Emberland (A historian; called in to testify at the

Trial of Anders Behring Breivik The trial of Anders Behring Breivik, the perpetrator of the 2011 Norway attacks, took place between 16 April and 22 June 2012 in Oslo District Court. Breivik was sentenced to 21 years of preventive detention on 24 August 2012. 170 media orga ...

—to give his professional opinions)

References

External links

Center website
Holocaust museums Jewish Norwegian history Jews and Judaism in Oslo Holocaust museum

Museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make thes ...

2006 establishments in Norway Museums established in 2006 Bygdøy World War II museums in Norway {{Norway-org-stub