The St. Olav's Medal and the St. Olav's Medal With Oak Branch were instituted by King
Haakon VII of Norway on 17 March 1939. They are awarded in recognition of "outstanding services rendered in connection with the spreading of information about Norway abroad and for strengthening the bonds between expatriate Norwegians and their home country".
The medals are in silver, surmounted by the Royal Crown. On the obverse is the portrait of the reigning King with his name and motto. On the reverse, St. Olav's cross. Above the medal is the monogram of the reigning King. It is worn on the left side of the breast with the ribbon of the Order of St. Olav. The medal ranks 9th in the
order of precedence of Norwegian medals.
When awarded for services rendered in wartime, the medal carries an oak branch and ranks 6th in the
order of precedence of Norwegian medals.
Recipients of the medal
A complete searchable list of medal recipients can be foun
here
* 1939 Henry Poynter Burnett, Commander (late Rear Admiral), USN
* 1939
Brenda Ueland, author and teacher, Minneapolis, Minnesota
* c1942 Captain Andrew Henry, O.B.E. ref. Shetland Family History www.bayanne.info/Shetland Person I.D. I53644
* 1944
Egil Melsom, Assistant Engineer on the M/T Gallia
* 1951 Rev. Bent Emil Carlsen, known as "Pastor", of Milton, Massachusetts; in recognition of his work among Norwegians in America.
* 1954
Percy Grainger
Percy Aldridge Grainger (born George Percy Grainger; 8 July 188220 February 1961) was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist who moved to the United States in 1914 and became an American citizen in 1918. In the course of a long and ...
, Australian composer and pianist
* 1964
Marianne Schigutt, Austrian diplomat
* 1969
Josef Knap
Josef Knap (28 July 1900 – 13 December 1973) was a Czechs, Czech writer, poet and literary critic.
Born in Podůlší near Jičín, Knap studied at the Classical Grammar school until 1919. He graduated from the College of Philosophy at Charles ...
, Czechoslovak poet
* 1976
Helen Svensson Fletre, Swedish born Norwegian-American journalist; In 1976, King Olav bestowed the St. Olav's medal on her - for her sesquicentennial work and for her many years of service to Norway. Wife of Norwegian Artist
Lars Fletre
* 1989
Roald (Roy) Fridtjof Larsen, Røyken, Oppland, Norway. After Norwegian Navy service, raised Norge awareness and settled with his family in Bilgola, Australia.
* 1993
Margaret Miller, genealogist, Apple Valley, Minnesota
* 1994
Bradley Ellingboe, editor and translator, Albuquerque, New Mexico
* 1994
Kristin Brudevoll, former Director of Norla.
* 1995
Lyuba Gorlina, Russian translator
* 2002
Andrea Een, Hardanger fiddler, Northfield, Minnesota
* 2005
Stan Boreson, entertainer,
Seattle, Washington
Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...
* 2008 Trygve Gunnar Morkemo
*2010 Dean Madden for his contributions to the Vesterheim Museum
* 2014 Ewart Parkinson,
OBE, town planner,
Cardiff
Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...
,
Wales
Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
, for his role in saving and rebuilding the
Norwegian Church in
Cardiff Bay
Cardiff Bay (; colloquially "The Bay") is an area and freshwater lake in Cardiff, Wales. The site of a former tidal bay and estuary, it is the river mouth of the River Taff and River Ely, Ely. The body of water was converted into a lake as part ...
* 2017 Glo Wollen, Petersburg, Alaska
* 2022
Nina Malterud, Norwegian ceramist
See also
*
Orders, decorations, and medals of Norway
This is a list of Norwegian orders and medals in order of precedence. This list contains all medals approved for wearing on a Norwegian military uniform in ranked order.
Group 1: Awarded by or approved by H.M. The King
Those awards presented by ...
References
{{reflist
External links
Official Norwegian royal house web page* http://medals.org.uk/norway/norway007.htm
Orders, decorations, and medals of Norway