St. Olaf was founded and shaped by Norwegian immigrants. On this 10-day tour, we’ll explore how people have been on the move to, from, and within Norway over the past millennium, changing the course of transatlantic history. We’ll learn about migration within Norway, emigration to North America in the 19th and 20th centuries, and the return migration that followed. We’ll also examine how Norwegians have influenced the migration of other ethnic groups. We’ll investigate the voluntary and involuntary movements of the Sámi, Norway’s Indigenous people, and look at the role that Norwegians played in forced migration during the transatlantic slave trade while under Danish rule. Along the way, we’ll offer discussions of two migration-themed novels, giving travelers the chance to learn more about modern migration to Norway and the shared experiences of immigrants.
The group meets in Stavanger, where the first organized group of immigrants left Norway for North America in 1825 on the sloop, Restauration. We’ll visit Old Stavanger and explore how the modern city is a center for the petroleum industry and its related migration. While in the area, we’ll visit a replica of the Restauration and see the nearby home of Kleng Peerson, the “father of Norwegian immigration.” Next we’ll travel by boat to Bergen, a major international trade center since 1350. With our hotel near the historic Bryggen, we’ll explore why traders and merchants have traveled to and from this Northern European hub for centuries. From Bergen we’ll fly to Trondheim, Norway’s medieval capital and home to the world’s northernmost Gothic cathedral, Nidaros. Built over the grave of Norway’s patron saint Olav, the cathedral has been an important pilgrimage site since 1031. While in the region, we’ll learn more about the life and death of Saint Olav at Stiklestad National Culture Center. In nearby Snåsa we’ll visit the birthplace of St. Olaf College founder and immigrant pastor B.J. Muus and delve into the history and culture of the Sámi.
Readings
- Peder Victorious: A Tale of the Pioneers Twenty Years Later
Rølvaag, O. E. (Ole Edvart), Nora O. Solum, Gudrun Hovde Gvåle, and Einar Haugen. Peder Victorious : a Tale of the Pioneers Twenty Years Later. Translated by Nora O. Solum. New York: Harper & Row, 1966. - Pakkis by Khalid Hussain (available in Norwegian and English editions)
Hussain, Khalid, Claudia Jean Berguson, and Ingeborg R. Kongslien. Translated by Claudia Jean Berguson and Ingeborg R. Kongslien. Chicago: Nordic Studies Press, 2013.
This tour is full. Be sure to add your name to the waitlist. Because we’re more than a year from departure, there’s a good chance there will be movement on the roster. Also, if enough people are interested, we may consider adding another trip (though it would not be led by Amy and Kari).
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