Sigrið av Skarði Joensen, also Sigrið av Skarði, (May 12, 1908 – July 3, 1975) was a Faroese journalist, teacher, and feminist.

Life

Sigrið av Skarði Joensen was born in Fagralíð,

Klaksvík Klaksvík is the second largest town of the Faroe Islands behind Tórshavn. The town is located on Borðoy, which is one of the northernmost islands (the Norðoyar). It is the administrative centre of Klaksvík municipality. History The first se ...

in 1908, the daughter of Símun av Skarði (1872–1942) and Súsanna Kathrina Jacobsen (1876–1978).''Dansk Kvindebiografisk Leksikon'': Sigrid av Skarði Joensen (1908–1975).
/ref> Both of her parents taught at the Faroese Folk High School ( fo, Føroya Fólkaháskúli), which at that time was located between Fagralíð and Klaksvík. In 1909 the school was relocated to

Tórshavn Tórshavn (; lit. "Thor's harbour"), usually locally referred to as simply ''Havn'', is the capital and largest city of the Faroe Islands. It is located in the southern part on the east coast of Streymoy. To the northwest of the city lies the ...

and the family followed. After receiving her ''

examen artium Examen artium was the name of the academic certification conferred in Denmark and Norway, qualifying the student for admission to university studies. Examen artium was originally introduced as the entrance exam of the University of Copenhagen in 1 ...

'' in Denmark in 1927, Sigrið av Skarði studied history and English at the

University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in ...

. Although she interrupted her studies, she started teaching these subjects in 1941. She also became engaged in journalism early on. She wrote an article about the anarchists

Sacco and Vanzetti Nicola Sacco (; April 22, 1891 – August 23, 1927) and Bartolomeo Vanzetti (; June 11, 1888 – August 23, 1927) were Italian immigrant anarchists who were controversially accused of murdering Alessandro Berardelli and Frederick Parmenter, a ...

, who were executed in the United States in 1927, and it was published in the newspaper '' Føroya Social Demokrat'' (The Faroes Social Democrat). She was also active in the

Faroese language conflict The Faroese language conflict is a phase in the history of the Faroe Islands in the first half of the 20th century (approx. 1908 to 1938). It was a political and cultural argument between advocates of Faroese and Danish to serve as the official ...

and published an article about it in 1938. The conflict was resolved soon thereafter in favor of the

Faroese language Faroese ( ; ''føroyskt mál'' ) is a North Germanic language spoken as a first language by about 72,000 Faroe Islanders, around 53,000 of whom reside on the Faroe Islands and 23,000 in other areas, mainly Denmark. It is one of five languages de ...

. In 1938, she married the politician

Sigurð Joensen Jóhan Hendrik Sigurð Joensen (April 27, 1911 – October 1, 1993) was a Faroe Islanders, Faroese lawyer, author, and politician for the Faroese Republic (Faroe Islands), Republican Party ( fo, Tjóðveldisflokkurin). Joensen was born in Gjógv. ...

(1911–1993), with whom she had seven children: Elspa (born 1939), Lív (1942), Búgvi (1945), Turið (1946), Sjúrður (1947), Bergljót (1950), and Inga Rósa (1953). During the Second World War, contact was broken off between German-occupied Denmark and the British-occupied Faroe Islands. Many Faroese (mostly young students) were unable to return to their homeland and remained in Denmark for the rest of the war, even if they had completed their studies. Sigrið and her husband Sigurð were active in the Faroese Society ( fo, Føroyingafelagið) in Copenhagen and in the Faroese student union. The Faroese-language newspaper ''Búgvin'' (Ready) was published from 1941 to 1946, and Sigrið wrote articles on history and current events for the paper. She also occasionally did translations, and she translated Sigert Patursson's reports of a trip to Siberia in 1901.Patursson, Sigert O. 1994. ''Á ferð í Sibiriu: frásagnir um mentanarsøgu og hendingar á seks ára ferð í norðaru og sunnaru pørtunum av Vestursibiriu og við Karahav''. Transl. Sigrið av Skarði Joensen. Tórshavn

The family relocated to the Faroe Islands in 1948, and Sigrið av Skarði Joensen established her publishing hous
Ungu Føroyar
She was among the founders of the Faorese Women's Society ( fo, Kvinnufelagið), building on the ideas of

Helena Patursson Súsanna Helena Patursson (27 August 1864 in Kirkjubøur – 15 December 1916 in Kirkjubøur) was a Faroese actress and writer, and the first political feminist in the country, particularly stressing the need for all Faroe Islanders to be able ...

. Sigrið also served as the editor of the newspaper ''Kvinnutíðindi'' (Women's News) until 1959. In the 1950s, Sigrið arranged literature and language courses for middle-aged women. She taught Latin at the lower secondary school in Tórshavn, and a singing school was established at her initiative based on her interest in Faroese folk dance and folk song. Her husband Sigurð was a politician for the Faroese Republican Party ( fo, Tjóðveldisflokkurin) and served several terms in the Tórshavn city government and

Faroese Parliament Faroese ( ) or Faroish ( ) may refer to anything pertaining to the Faroe Islands, e.g.: *the Faroese language * the Faroese people Faroese people or Faroe Islanders ( fo, føroyingar; da, færinger) are a North Germanic peoples, North Germanic ...

. Sigrið also ran for office, and she served on the youth council for many years. Sigrið av Skarði Joensen died in

References

External links

Sigrið av Skarði Joensen
in ''Dansk Kvindebiografisk Leksikon'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Skardi Joensen, Sigrid av Faroese women in politics Faroese politicians Faroese journalists Faroese women writers People from Klaksvík 1908 births 1975 deaths 20th-century Danish women writers Faroese women journalists 20th-century Danish women politicians 20th-century Danish journalists