Magnus Olsen
Magnus Olsen | |
---|---|
Born | Arendal, Norway | 28 November 1878
Died | 16 January 1963 Oslo, Norway | (aged 84)
Spouse |
Gjertrud Mathilde Kjær
(after 1912) |
Awards |
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Academic background | |
Royal Frederick University | |
Academic advisors | |
Academic work | |
Discipline | Old Norse philology |
Institutions | Royal Frederick University |
Notable students | Didrik Arup Seip |
Main interests | |
Notable works |
|
Influenced |
Magnus Bernhard Olsen (28 November 1878 – 16 January 1963) was a Norwegian
Born and raised in
During the
Early life and education
Magnus Olsen was born in
From 1899, Olsen worked as a
Early career
Upon graduating, Olsen was employed as a researcher at his university, where he became involved in the teaching of students.[3] In 1905–1906 he was in Copenhagen working on the publication of a critical edition of the Vǫlsunga saga and Ragnars saga loðbrókar.[2]
After Bugge's death, Olsen succeeded him in 1908 as Professor of
In 1909, Olsen founded the journal Maal og Minne, which he personally edited for forty years. The first issue included his inaugural lecture on the Skírnismál, in which he presented parallels between Njörðr of Norse mythology and Nerthus mentioned by Tacitus.[2] Olsen married Gjertrud Mathilde Kjær, daughter of university librarian Albert Kjær (1852–1941) and Johanne Marie Torp (1863–1948), on 28 June 1912. In 1911, he became a corresponding member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities.[5] From 1914 to 1956, Olsen was the editor of Bidrag til nordisk filologi. Between 1910 and 1924, he authored three volumes of the monumental Norske Gaardnavne, which examined the toponymy of Norwegian farms.[1] The third volume was authored together with Just Knud Qvigstad.[6] Olsen eventually assumed responsibility for the publication of this series, and had assisted its prior publisher Oluf Rygh.[6] Two of his best known publications are Hedenske kultminder i norske stedsnavne (1915) and Ættegård og helligdom (1926), which used toponymic evidence to examine Old Norse religion; these pioneering works made significant contributions to its scholarship.[1] Notably, the evidence presented by Olsen showed that the Norse gods were venerated not only as creatures from another world, but as powers intertwined with the environment of the people. His Ættegård og helligdom was eventually translated into English and published under the title Farms and Fanes of Ancient Norway (1928).[2] Gabriel Turville-Petre mentions Olsen along with Georges Dumézil and Jan de Vries as one of the most influential scholars on Old Norse religion. Olsen's research on Scandinavian place names were instrumental in restoring confidence in Icelandic literature as a useful source of information on Old Norse religion.[7]
Olsen's research on runology was significant. He succeeded Bugge as the publisher of Norges innskrifter med de ældre runer volumes (Norwegian Runic Inscriptions in the Older Runes), which examined Elder Futhark inscriptions in Norway. By 1924, it had been published in five volumes. Between 1941 and 1960, he published his subsequent Norges innskrifter med de yngre runer (Norwegian Inscriptions in the younger Runes) in five volumes. This work examined Younger Futhark inscriptions in Norway. Vols. 3–5 were published in cooperation with Aslak Liestøl .[2] Olsen was convinced that runes were not merely used as an instrument for communication, but were also believed to have magical purposes.[1]
World War II
During the German occupation of Norway in World War II, Olsen distinguished himself as a fierce opponent of Nazism, and was close to the resistance movement at the University. He was among the professors at the University of Oslo who on 15 May 1941 issued a public denunciation of the crimes of Josef Terboven against the Norwegian people.[3] Upon the arrest of Francis Bull by the German authorities, Olsen replaced him as acting dean at the University of Oslo.[1] On 15 October 1943, he was arrested by the German occupation authorities and interned at Bredtveit internment camp. He was however quickly released, and continued his involvement with the resistance.[3]
Later career
Olsen retired from his professorship upon reaching the age limit in 1948, but continued to research and write.[6] He was appointed a Commander of the Order of St. Olav in 1945. He was also a recipient of the Grand Knight's Cross of the Order of the Falcon and the Knight of the Order of the Polar Star, and a recipient of honorary doctorates from several universities. Olsen was a member of a large number of scholarly societies, including the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters (1904) and the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters, and a corresponding member of the Göttingen Academy of Sciences and Humanities.[1][2]
During his last years, Olsen made important contributions to the field of
Selected publications
- Olsen, Magnus; Bugge, Sophus, eds. (1891–1924). Norges Indskrifter med de ældre Runer [Norwegian Inscriptions in Elder Futhark]. Vol. 1–4. Kristiania: A. W. Brøggers Bogtrykkeri.
- Tre orknøske runeindskrifter [Three Orcadian Runic Inscriptions]. Kristiania: J. Dybwad. 1903.
- Völsunga saga ok Ragnars saga loðbrókar [The Saga of the Völsungs and the Saga of Ragnar Lodbrok]. Copenhagen: S.L. Møllers bogtrykkeri. 1908.
- Rygh, Oluf, ed. (1910). Søndre Bergenhus amt [Søndre Bergenhus County]. Norske gaardnavne. Vol. 11. Kristiania: W. C. Fabritius.
- Stedsnavnestudier [Place Name Studies]. Kristiania: H. Aschehoug. 1912.
- Hedenske kultminder i norske stedsnavne [Heathen Cultic Memories in Norwegian Place Names]. Kristiania: J. Dybwad. 1915.
- Rygh, Oluf, ed. (1915). Stavanger amt [Stavanger County]. Norske gaardnavne. Vol. 10. Kristiania: W. C. Fabritius.
- Olsen, Magnus, ed. (1922). Norrøne Gude- og Heltesagn [Old Norse Sagas of Gods and Heroes]. Kristiania: P.F. Steensballe.
- Olsen, Magnus; Qvigstad, Just Knud, eds. (1924). Finmarkens amt [Finnmark County]. Norske gaardnavne. Vol. 18. Oslo: W. C. Fabritius.
- Ættegård og helligdom: Norske stedsnavn sosialt og religionshistorisk belyst [Ancestral Farms and Holiness: Norwegian Place Names in a Social and Religious-Historical Light]. Oslo: Institutted for sammenlignende kulturforskning. 1926. ISBN 9788200052111.
- Farms and Fanes of Ancient Norway: The Place-Names of a Country Discussed in Their Bearings on Social and Religious History. Oslo: H. Aschehoug. 1928.
- Stedsnavn og gudeminner i Land [Place Names and Memories of Gods in Land]. Oslo: J. Dybwad. 1929.
- Hvad våre stedsnavn lærer oss [What We Can Learn From Our Place Names]. Oslo: J.M. Stenersens Forlag. 1934. OCLC 491675968.
- Runekammen fra Setre [The Runic Comb of Setre]. Bergen: Grieg. 1934. OCLC 251995832.
- Norrøne studier [Old Norse Studies]. Oslo: H. Aschehoug. 1938.
- Stedsnavn [Place Names]. Oslo: H. Aschehoug. 1939.
- Olsen, Magnus; Liestøl, Just Aslak (1941–1960). Norges innskrifter med de yngre runer [Norwegian Inscriptions in Younger Futhark]. Vol. 1–5. Oslo: J. Dybwad. ISBN 9788270610228.
- Fra norrøn filologi [From Old Norse Philology]. Oslo: H. Aschehoug. 1949.
- Edda- og skaldekvad [Eddaic- and Skaldic Poetry]. Vol. 1–7. Oslo: H. Aschehoug. 1960–1964.
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Rindal, Magnus (13 February 2009). "Magnus Olsen". Norsk biografisk leksikon. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
- ^ ISBN 3-11-017351-4.
- ^ a b c d e f Seip, Didrik Arup (18 January 1963). "Magnus Olsen død" [Magnus Olsen is dead]. Aftenposten. p. 3.
- ^ Schulz-Berend, George; Lehmann, Winfred P.; Miller, David L.; Wilson, A. Leslie (1976). "In Memoriam: Lee M. Hollander" (PDF). University of Texas at Austin. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 July 2003. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
- ^ Nordisk familjebok (in Swedish). Vol. 20: Norrsken-Paprocki. 1914. p. 649. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
- ^ a b c "Magnus Olsen". Great Norwegian Encyclopedia. 24 October 2020. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
- ISBN 0837174201.
Further reading
- ISBN 8252106501.