Norway • Digizitation

The National Library of Norway is digitizing its ENTIRE collection.

Yes, you read that sentence accurately!

In a article published by the Atlantic, on December 3, 2013 journalist Alexis C. Madrigal penned the sub-title "Between this and the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, Norsk people are set for the future." The article was published in the 'Technology" section of the periodical, so this may have gone unnoticed by Norwegian-American family historians. You can read the article for yourself on the Atlantic's website.

The news-story stated that "By law, 'all published content, in all media, [must] be deposited with the National Library of Norway,' so when the library is finished scanning, the entire record of a people's language and literature will be machine-readable and sitting in whatever we call the cloud in 15 years." This is simply amazing. The Norwegians are a people that are preparing for the deep future. "Suddenly, the Norwegians become to 27th-century humans what the Greeks were to the Renaissance."

"If you happen to be in Norway, as measured by your IP address, you will be able to access all 20th century works, even those still under copyright."

What does this mean for us here...in the United States?
Not all is lost. As I sit here in my studio in Seattle, some 4551 miles from Oslo -- a journey of 11 hours and 10 minutes by air-- I have some access to this amazing digitization initiative. It does take some patience and tenacity. Take your time, be patient, and don't give up. It's kind of like mining for gold. Yes, much of the site is written in Norwegian (obviously), but some is in English and trusting that you can pick out some words is encouraging.

Here are some suggestions to get started. 

1. This is a link to the section of the library that has been digitized: https://www.nb.no/nbsok/search.

2. On the left side of the page you will see these options: Category • Period • Sorting • Language. You can limit your search using these fields. However I suggest that you begin more simply and search on a general subject, like Sami. When you do this you'll see that you get the following hits (as of 1.5.2018)

• Newspapers (17,802)
• Books (679)
• Radio (2476)
• Program reports (3711)
• Journal (587)

You can click on any of the categories and it will help limit your search. I've found it useful to limit the search by 'Period', such as 1800-1899. You'll see that some are written in Norwegian, some in Sami and some in English.  Note: You will even see other languages, like Swedish, Norwegian Bokmål, Danish, German, Norwegian (Old Norse), etc.

3. When you click on the link, wait.  It may be slow, but it will then provide you with a digitized version of the book. You can then use the toolbar to view the image. AMAZING. To help you get started, here are links to some of the 'gold nuggets' that I found:

• The History of Lapland: where are shed the original, manners, habits, marriages, conjurations, and c. of that people.  written by Johannes Schefferus in 1674 and translated into English.

• Norwegian-American: Viking Saga and Pioneer History, Statistics and Biographical Information on North Americans in America written by a Seattle Norwegian-American, Martin Ulvestad.

• Norwegian Pictures: Drawn with Pen and Pencil by Richard Lovett in 1885. It has stunning images of remarkable scenes.

• Minnesota: A Brief History of the Settlements of the North Men of the State, Their Business, Associations, and Living Conditions: with a section on the history of the Norwegian Church: in attendance of Minnesota's participation in the Norwegian Anniversary Exhibition of 1914. 

4. You will notice that all of the titles listed above are in English, but the actual book is in Norwegian. My search engine, Google Chrome, automatically translates (if I say yes to the prompt) SOME information into English. NOT the digitized item, but what will get me to the item. Also, some books were published in Norway, but others were published in America and have been deposited in the National Library. 

5. Search for something!  Explore the search options. Be patient. Some books will be accessible by your US IP address, and some won't. If you find a book that is limited to a Norwegian IP address, then go to Worldcat.org and see if that book is available in a library closer to home. 

I would be very interested to hear about what you discover. Please share your finds in the comment section of this blog.

Tusen Takk

What Separates Norwegian Lutherans in America?

I’ve found that among the most eye-opening dialogues are those between early Norwegian-Americans. Two such men in particular come to mind: Rev. U. V. Koren and Martin Ulvestad. Their debate focused on the question of “Why is There No Church Unity Among Norwegian Lutherans in America?”

Source: Luther Seminary • ELCA Region 3 Archives

THE HISTORIAN & THE PREACHER

Martin Ulvestad (1865-1942) was born in Volda, Møre og Romsdal, Norway, and immigrated at age 20 in 1888 from Trondheim. His ‘claim to fame’ was as an author, publisher, and historian. He lived in Minneapolis, Tacoma, and Seattle (1917-1942). The 1930 Federal Census lists his occupation as "Publisher, Norwegian Genealogy." You can read more about him at Great Norwegian Lexicon and The Promise of America. His final resting spot is listed on Find-A-Grave Memorial #84290423. He is best known for his two volume Norwegian language history "Nordmændene i Amerika" (Norwegians in America) was published in 1907. It was translated and republished in this century by Astri My Astri Publishing.

Rev Ulrik Vilhelm Koren (1826-1910) was a Norwegian-American author, theologian and church leader, as well as a pioneer Lutheran minister who served at Little Iowa Congregation (later called Washington Prairie Lutheran) in Winneshiek County, Iowa. He was the first Lutheran minister from Norway to settle west of the Mississippi.  You can read about him on the Great Norwegian Lexicon, and find his final resting spot on Find-A-Grave Memorial #133783360.  On a personal note, he was the minister of the church my mother’s paternal family attended, and was also the mentor and role model for my grandfather, Rev. Gustav Hegg.

At the turn of the twentieth century, Mr. Ulvestad made several public statements in various publications, asking the question, “What separates Norwegian Lutherans in America?” He followed this with the following challenge: “What is needed is a straightforward explanation and comparison of the doctrinal differences that are said to exist.”

Mr. Ulvestad continued, saying, “…[I’ve] come to the conclusion, that it is [Norwegian Lutheran] Christianity, and not our doctrinal concepts, that has suffered the most.” He wrote, “If this were the main issue about which there was disagreement, namely, the way to life in God and the way to salvation, then there would be no talk of uniting. One cannot compromise the Word of God. The way which God has prescribed seems, however, to be clear enough, if only we would follow it.”

Reverend Koren, an octogenarian, took up the challenge and wrote a public response to Mr. Ulvestad's question, which was then printed in the Clergy Bulletin in 1905. The piece was lengthy – 15,400 words – and covered a vast amount of history and theology.

Today we have the opportunity to read and study the famous article in English translation You can read it online here:

  Why Is There No Church Unity Among Norwegian Lutherans in America?

If you are up to the challenge, please read the piece and share some of your thoughts about it.