Wollert Otto Hallvard Konow Keilhau (8 February 1894 – 19 October 1958) was a Norwegian librarian and encyclopedist.

Personal life

He was born 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 ...

as a son of Carl Keilhau (1864–1900) and Modesta Konow (1864–1931). Keilhau was a

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

immigrant family in the late 1700s. Wollert Keilhau was a grandson of Lieutenant Colonel Wilhelm Christian Keilhau and nephew of Major General Hans Vilhelm Keilhau, and first cousin of economist and historian Wilhelm Christian Keilhau. On the mother's side he was a great-grandson of politician Carl Konow, and named after his maternal grandfather Wollert Otto Konow (1833–1895). In 1918 he married farmer's daughter Anna Mathilde "Magnhild" Østvold. Their son

Carl Keilhau Carl Keilhau (25 July 1919 – 20 December 1957) was a Norwegian author, poet and journalist. Biography Carl Keilhau was born at Oslo, Norway. He was the son of librarian Wollert Keilhau and Anna Mathilde Østvold. He attended Fagerborg ...

became a journalist and poet.

Career

finished Finished may refer to: * ''Finished'' (novel), a 1917 novel by H. Rider Haggard * ''Finished'' (film), a 1923 British silent romance film * "Finished" (short story), a science fiction short story by L. Sprague de Camp See also *Finishing (disa ...

his secondary education in 1912, and enrolled in philology studies at the

Royal Frederick University 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 ...

. Already in 1914 he was hired at the

Deichman Library Oslo Public Library (officially called in Norwegian ''Deichman bibliotek'', Deichman Library) is the municipal public library serving Oslo, Norway and is the country's first and largest library. It employs over 300 people and has over 20 branches ...

, then at the Parliament of Norway Library. He was head librarian here from 1924. He edited the encyclopedia ''

Norsk konversasjonsleksikon Kringla Heimsins ''Norsk konversasjonsleksikon Kringla Heimsins'' is a Norwegian encyclopedia published in six volumes from 1931 to 1934, edited by librarian at Stortinget, Wollert Keilhau. A second edition was issued in eight volumes from 1948 to 1954, edited by ...

'', published in six volumes from 1931 to 1934. He was also a co-editor of the second edition of the encyclopedia, issued from 1948 to 1954. While studying he chaired the students' Nynorsk association ''Studentmållaget'' in 1916. He also contributed extensively to the biographical dictionary ''

Norsk biografisk leksikon is the largest Norwegian biographical encyclopedia. The first edition (NBL1) was issued between 1921 and 1983, including 19 volumes and 5,100 articles. It was published by Aschehoug with economic support from the state. bought the rights to ...

''. He was decorated as a Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog and the

Order of the Polar Star The Royal Order of the Polar Star (Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden'') is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Order of the Seraphim. The Order of the ...

. He died in October 1958 and was buried at

Vår Frelsers gravlund The Cemetery of Our Saviour ( no, Vår Frelsers gravlund) is a cemetery in Oslo, Norway, located north of Hammersborg in Gamle Aker district. It is located adjacent to the older Old Aker Cemetery and was created in 1808 as a result of the great ...

. His mother and his son Carl were already buried there, while his wife Magnhild was buried there in 1987.

References

1894 births 1958 deaths Writers from Oslo Norwegian librarians Norwegian encyclopedists Knights of the Order of the Dannebrog Knights of the Order of the Polar Star Burials at the Cemetery of Our Saviour {{Norway-writer-stub