Ole Nilsen Ravna (31 October 1841 - 11 August 1906) was a Northern Saami adventurer, explorer and reindeer herder. He skied with

Fridtjof Nansen Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen (; 10 October 186113 May 1930) was a Norwegian polymath and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He gained prominence at various points in his life as an explorer, scientist, diplomat, and humanitarian. He led the team t ...

across

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...

in 1888–89.

Biography

Ole Nilsen Ravna was born on October, 31 1841 in Karasjok, Norway. Reindeer herding was typical work for Saami, Ole Ravna had his own herd of reindeers. When Ravna was forty-six years old, he became a member of the Greenland expedition (1888-1889). The head of expedition, Fridtjof Nansen, was displeased with him, because Ravna had a family and

motion sickness Motion sickness occurs due to a difference between actual and expected motion. Symptoms commonly include nausea, vomiting, cold sweat, headache, dizziness, tiredness, loss of appetite, and increased salivation. Complications may rarely include d ...

. For the last reason, Ole and his compatriot

Samuel Balto Samuel Johannesen Balto (May 5, 1861 – 1921) was a Northern Sámi people, Saami explorer and adventurer. Balto skied with Fridtjof Nansen across Greenland in 1888–89. Biography Samuel Johannesen Balto was born in Karasjok in Finnmark county ...

had been reading the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

during storms. The members of the expedition had a long way to go. They were faced with a harsh climate, but Ravna and Balto felt good. Finally, six members of the expedition passed over the

Greenland ice sheet The Greenland ice sheet ( da, Grønlands indlandsis, kl, Sermersuaq) is a vast body of ice covering , roughly near 80% of the surface of Greenland. It is sometimes referred to as an ice cap, or under the term ''inland ice'', or its Danish equiva ...

and came to the

Nuuk Nuuk (; da, Nuuk, formerly ) is the capital and largest city of Greenland, a constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark. Nuuk is the seat of government and the country's largest cultural and economic centre. The major cities from other co ...

. But when they arrived, all the ships had sailed away. For this reason, expedition stayed there for the winter. They were able to continue their journey on 15 April, 1889. The explorers arrived in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

on 21 May. Finally, the expedition came back to the

Oslo 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 ...

nine days later Kublitskij, pp. 92 Ole Ravna was awarded a silver medal for his membership in this expedition. In 1905 sixty-four-year-old Ole Ravna went with his compatriot Isak Klemetsen and

Knud Rasmussen Knud Johan Victor Rasmussen (; 7 June 1879 – 21 December 1933) was a Greenlandic–Danish polar explorer and anthropologist. He has been called the "father of Eskimology" (now often known as Inuit Studies or Greenlandic and Arctic Studies ...

to the Greenland again. They wanted to develop reindeer herding there. Ole Ravna died on 11 August, 1906 in Porsanger, Norway. He was buried in the

Lakselv ( sme, Leavdnja; fkv, Lemmijoki) is the largest village and administrative centre of Porsanger Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The village lies at the southern end of the large Porsangerfjorden. The village has a population ...

cemetery. A monument in memory of Ravna and Balto was put in Karasjok in 2011. Fridjof Nansen - På ski over Grønland (5663854592).jpg, Greenland expedition.jpg, Greenland expedition (2).jpg, Samuel Johannesen Balto and Ole Nielsen Ravna.jpg, Ole Ravna with his compatriot Samuel Balto Return of the Nansen's Greenland expedition home.jpg,

References

Inline citations

Sources referenced

* Kublitskij Georgij (1967).
Nansen. His life and adventures
'. Moscow: Detskaya literatura.

External links

Ole Ravna

Ole Nilsen Ravna
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ravna, Ole Nilsen Norwegian polar explorers Norwegian Sámi people 1841 births 1906 deaths People from Karasjok Fridtjof Nansen