Anders Sørensen Vedel
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Anders Sørensen Vedel (9 November 1542 – 13 February 1616)Anders Sørensen Vedel - Biografi
at Kalliope.org
was a Danish
priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...
and
historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...
. He translated the ''
Gesta Danorum ("Deeds of the Danes") is a patriotic work of Danish history, by the 12th-century author Saxo Grammaticus ("Saxo the Literate", literally "the Grammarian"). It is the most ambitious literary undertaking of medieval Denmark and is an essentia ...
'' by
Saxo Grammaticus Saxo Grammaticus (), also known as Saxo cognomine Longus, was a Danish historian, theologian and author. He is thought to have been a clerk or secretary to Absalon, Archbishop of Lund, the main advisor to Valdemar I of Denmark. He is the author ...
into Danish in 1575, and published the influential "''Hundredvisebogen''" in 1591.


Biography

Anders Sørensen was born in Vejle, from which place the Vedel name comes. Carl Frederik Bricka, ''Dansk Biografisk Lexikon'', vol. XVIII bbe - Wimpffen 1904, pp.292-30
Available online
/ref> At 14 years old, he moved to study in
Ribe Ribe () is a town in south-west Jutland, Denmark, with a population of 8,367 (2025). It is the seat of the Diocese of Ribe. Until 1 January 2007, Ribe was the seat of both a surrounding municipality and county. It is now part of the enlarged E ...
, and after finishing his education he moved on to Copenhagen University in 1561. In 1562, he was the tutor of astronomer
Tycho Brahe Tycho Brahe ( ; ; born Tyge Ottesen Brahe, ; 14 December 154624 October 1601), generally called Tycho for short, was a Danish astronomer of the Renaissance, known for his comprehensive and unprecedentedly accurate astronomical observations. He ...
on Brahe's Grand Tour in
Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
, forming a lasting bond of friendship with him. Vedel started studying at
Wittenberg Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is the fourth-largest town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, in the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. It is situated on the River Elbe, north of Leipzig and south-west of the reunified German ...
in 1565, which he finished in 1566, and was appointed priest at Copenhagen Castle in 1568.Anders Sørensen Vedel
at Gyldendals Encyklopædi
Vedel's historical knowledge was admired by leading politicians including Christoffer Valkendorf, Bjørn Andersen, Arild Huitfeldt, Johan Friis and Peder Oxe, and he was seen as the right man to continue Christiern Pedersen's
Danish language Danish (, ; , ) is a North Germanic languages, North Germanic language from the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family spoken by about six million people, principally in and around Denmark. Communities of Danish speakers are a ...
translation of the
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
chronicle ''
Gesta Danorum ("Deeds of the Danes") is a patriotic work of Danish history, by the 12th-century author Saxo Grammaticus ("Saxo the Literate", literally "the Grammarian"). It is the most ambitious literary undertaking of medieval Denmark and is an essentia ...
'' by
Saxo Grammaticus Saxo Grammaticus (), also known as Saxo cognomine Longus, was a Danish historian, theologian and author. He is thought to have been a clerk or secretary to Absalon, Archbishop of Lund, the main advisor to Valdemar I of Denmark. He is the author ...
. He started his translation in 1570, and the finished work "''Den danske Krønicke''" was published in 1575. The work was both a translation and rewriting of the original Latin phrases. While working on the translation, he was given the income of a ''canon'' at
Ribe Cathedral Ribe Cathedral or Our Lady Maria Cathedral ( or ''Vor Frue Maria Domkirke'') is located in the ancient city of Ribe, on the west coast of southern Jutland, Denmark. It was founded in the Viking Age as the first Christian church in Denmark by Ansgar ...
in 1573. After pressure from Peder Oxe, Niels Kaas, and , Vedel wrote a proposal for a Latin continuation of Saxo's work in 1578 which was finalized in 1581. He was relieved of his priesthood in Copenhagen, and moved to Ribe in 1581. He was appointed Royal
historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...
in 1584 and received a prelature at Ribe to support himself, and undertook the task of continuing the Danish chronicle in that year.Anders Sørensen Vedel - (1542-1616)
at NOMOS-DK.dk
However, he overreached himself in his attempt to do so. He planned an ambitious work in twenty-two books dealing with both
language Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...
and
topography Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the landforms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary sci ...
as well as with history. However other tasks, lack of help from secretaries, his own slowness and carefulness—and perhaps also a general underestimation of the demands of this work—led to very modest results. In 1594, after the death of chancellor Niels Kaas, the task was given to Niels Krag, under Vedel's protestations. He got a one-year reprieve, but could not produce satisfactory results, after which he turned his work over to Niels Krag. Much of what he had written was lost at the fire of Copenhagen in 1728. One spin-off from this task which survived was his "''Hundredvisebogen''" (1591) of a hundred Danish ballads which became a solid foundation of later knowledge of the older Danish literary tradition. It was published with the support of Queen Sophie (it has been suggested that as a result, Vedel opted to omit certain ballads which portrayed a Queen Sophie – ostensibly
Sophia of Minsk Sophia of Minsk or Sophia of Polotsk (died 5 May 1198) was a Danish queen consort by marriage to King Valdemar I of Denmark, and a landgravine of Thuringia by marriage to Louis III, Landgrave of Thuringia. Life Origin Sophia was the daughter of ...
– in a negative light). Vedel's one hundred songs were republished by
Peder Syv Peder Pedersen Syv (also spelled Siuf) or in Latin Petrus Petri Septimius (22 February 1631 – 17 February 1702) was a Danish Philology, philologist, folklore, folklorist, and priest, best known for his collections of Danish proverbs and folk s ...
in 1695, as half of his collection of 200 folksongs. Vedel's own re-creation of some of the ballads shows his ability as a poet. In the
Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faroes) are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. Located between Iceland, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the islands have a populat ...
, texts from "''Hundredvisebogen''" have been in use among folk singers right up until today.
Marianne Clausen Marianne Clausen (25 December 1947 – 17 September 2014) was a Danish musicologist and Choirmaster, choir conductor. She was the daughter of composer, choir conductor and musicologist Karl Clausen (1904–1972). Her main achievement, begun in col ...
(2010): Vísuløg í Føroyum / Danish folk ballads in the Faroes, 506 pp, UJDS nr. 573, Stiðin
Vedel died on 13 February 1616 in Ribe.


Bibliography

* ''Pavekrønike'', 1571. * ''Den danske Krønicke'', 1575 * ''Hundredvisebog'', 1591. (facsimile)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vedel, Anders Sorensen 1542 births 1616 deaths 16th-century Danish clergy 17th-century Danish clergy 16th-century Danish historians 17th-century Danish historians People from Vejle Municipality University of Copenhagen alumni University of Wittenberg alumni Danish folk-song collectors