The Norwegian department is excited to announce that between now and December 2025 we will be hosting and sponsoring 25 ways to engage with 2025, the commemoration of 200 years of organized migration from Norway to North America.
Just as our students are navigating their paths forward in life, so too did the Norwegian immigrants who founded the college. The year 2025 presents an opportunity to reflect on the college’s strong ties with Norway—an opportunity to remember what it means to take great risks and embark on new journeys and find new senses of belonging and home.
Note that our events seek to commemorate rather than to celebrate the past uncritically. Our intention is to educate the community on the profound impact of Norwegian-American immigration to the US, and simultaneously do so honestly.
Join us over the next year and a half as we engage in a wide range of topics related to this history, ranging from the movement of peoples, to colonialism and its consequences, to identity formation for both Norwegians and Norwegian Americans.
Fall 2024 Events
Norway: A Thousand Years of Migration Aug 4–16
Alumni & Family Travel Trip to Norway. More info
Bernt Julius Muus Quiz, September 13th
What do you know about the man with the shiny nose?
The community was welcomed to join Professor Kari Lie Dorer from the Norwegian Department for an interactive quiz filled with “uffda’s” and “Um Yah Yah’s” in Tomson Hall 280. Prizes were given to both the best score and randomly to those who participate. After the quiz, celebrate Dorer’s publication, Muus vs. Muus: The Scandal that Shook Norwegian America.
Students, faculty, staff, alumni, parents, and friends are invited to attend the Fall Showcase of CURI research projects involving nearly 150 students and faculty members from across the college. The Collaborative Undergraduate Research & Inquiry program will host a poster session exhibiting research done by CURI summer scholars, Steen Fellows, and Magnus the Good Fellows.
Amongst others, Norwegian Department scholar-students will be presenting research that they have conducted within the Collaborative Undergraduate Research & Inquiry program of the College
For those interested in digging more into the Muus vs. Muus publication, Kari Lie Dorer and her students developed lots of resources that are now available at www.kariliedorer.com
This includes interview podcasts with scholars and a reading guide.
Professor Kari Lie Dorer’s “lightning talk” on the histories of St. Olaf’s founding in Viking Theatre from 4:30 – 4:50pm as part of Ole Talks during St. Olaf Homecoming & Family Weekend.
Did Krohg’s much-loved painting of the famous Viking explorer represent the colonial ideology of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago? Created specifically for the exposition, Krong’s painting was meant to challenge Columbus’s status as the “true” discoverer of America.
It was displayed in the main exhibition area, known as the White City, while non-white cultures were segregated into a separate section that featured so- called “human zoos,” where Indigenous peoples, including several American tribes and the Sami, were put on display.
Sjästad traces the painting’s journey from Norway to the US and back again and also critically examines what Leif Erikson has come to symbolize.
talk by Øystein Sjåstad (a Professor in Art History at the Department of Philosophy, Classics, History of Art and Ideas at the University of Oslo)
By Henrik Ibsen
Adapted By Amy Herzog
Directed by William Sonnega
Play will take place in Haugen Theatre, St. Olaf College
More Info
w/ special talk about Ibsen in America by Dr. Tanya Thresher Oct. 18
Talk by Dr. Caitlin Sackrison (Assistant Professor of Norwegian, Nordic Studies and History at St. Olaf College)
Professor Kari Lie Dorer’s First Year Seminar presents their timeline!
The sesqui knitting patterns will begin to be released on Nov. 22! More details to come.
Join us on December 2 at 10.10 in Boe Chapel for our annual advent service. More details to come!
Events Winter & Spring 2025
This course examines migrations into, out of, and around Norway over time. By examining the push and pull factors for immigration and emigration, and the challenges this creates for indigenous and minority groups, students will gain an understanding of the interconnection of migrant experiences over time and geographical location. We will examine land taking of settler colonialism of Norwegian migrations both within Norway and Norwegian-America.
Follow the course on their journey by reading the blog here (link to come).
Events Summer 2025
Join us for a conference exploring the causes and affects of Norwegian migration. Geared toward the public and open to all, the gathering will include opportunities to explore Norwegian-American music, dance, historic sites, and more. Learn more on the conference website.
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