Nils Andreas Økland (10 June 1882 – 1969) was a Norwegian Esperantist and teacher in Stord (Hordaland), Norway. He spent some years in his youth on the island Utsira, where his father was a school teacher. Nils Økland was married to Hanna Olava Bergstøl, and they had 3 sons. His father Matthias Larsen Økland (b. 1844) was also a school teacher and a church chorister; his mother was Signi Nilsdatter (b. 1853) from Eidsvåg. Having learned

Esperanto Esperanto (, ) is the world's most widely spoken Constructed language, constructed international auxiliary language. Created by L. L. Zamenhof in 1887 to be 'the International Language' (), it is intended to be a universal second language for ...

indirectly through his friend Haldor Midthus by 1904, he served as president on the executive council of Stord's Norwegian Esperanto League branch.

Brief biography

Born in Valestrand in 1882, Økland was confirmed in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in 1896; the parish priest made particular note of his "knowledge, diligence and conduct with distinction." By 1900 he was a student at a Stord teachers training college. Beginning in the spring of 1904, Økland taught Esperanto courses at the Bethania Waisenhus in

Stavanger Stavanger, officially the Stavanger Municipality, is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the third largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the ...

. Under the direction of the Stavanger parish priest, the Bethania complex, housing about 150 orphans in three asylum buildings and a further 20 to 30 young offenders in a separate youth detention center on Lindøy, operated a printing shop producing newspapers, religious tracts and books. In the early period of the movement's growth he propagated the planned language among his colleagues and through newspaper and magazine articles. In 1910 and 1912 he taught adult Esperanto courses in Haugesund, and in 1932 he taught a children's Esperanto course in Stord. Økland was a school inspector in

Rogaland Rogaland () is a Counties of Norway, county in Western Norway, bordering the North Sea to the west and the counties of Vestland to the north, Telemark to the east and Agder to the east and southeast. As of 1 January 2024, it had a population of 49 ...

for some years. He was also Stord's county mayor ''(ordførar)'' from 1932 to 1934, representing the party Venstre.
''Utdrag arkivkatalog Stord 1838–1965'' in Interkommunalt arkiv Hordaland (Norwegian)

Author

Økland wrote a book of

poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

, ''Heime og ute'', (Home and abroad), published in Kristiania (Oslo) by Olaf Norlis forlag in 1917. This book contains 27 poems, and it includes translations of

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...

and

Heinrich Heine Christian Johann Heinrich Heine (; ; born Harry Heine; 13 December 1797 – 17 February 1856) was an outstanding poet, writer, and literary criticism, literary critic of 19th-century German Romanticism. He is best known outside Germany for his ...

. In 1940 he wrote a short

biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curri ...

of David Livingstone, published by Norsk Bokreidingslag in

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

. Both books were written in

nynorsk Nynorsk (; ) is one of the two official written standards of the Norwegian language, the other being Bokmål. From 12 May 1885, it became the state-sanctioned version of Ivar Aasen's standard Norwegian language (''Landsmål''), parallel to the Da ...

''Øklandhuset''

During his time as the schoolteacher in Haugesund, Økland had had a simple house built just west of the school.Fra Nærbutikk til Supermarked
(From Neighbourhood Store to Supermarket (Norwegian), a history of stores in Torvastad, ca.1900–1997 After World War II that house, still known as ''Øklandhuset'' ("Økland's house") was owned by Sofie Håland, who lived on the main floor and rented out the other two floors to Agnes Vikshåland, a seamstress. She kept her sewing studio in the attic and also operated a store in the basement. Økland died in Haugesund.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oekland, Nils 1882 births 1969 deaths Norwegian Esperantists Norwegian resistance members People from Hordaland People from Stord