The Glossolalia debate was a literary debate on modernist poetry

Modernist poetry

Modernist poetry refers to poetry written between 1890 and 1950 in the tradition of modernist literature in the English language, but the dates of the term depend upon a number of factors, including the nation of origin, the particular school in question, and the biases of the critic setting the...

 in Norway in the 1950s. The debate started with Arnulf Øverland

Arnulf Øverland

Ole Peter Arnulf Øverland was a Norwegian author born in Kristiansund and raised in Bergen. His works include Berget det blå and Hustavler .-Life:...

's nationwide touring with the speech Tungetale fra Parnasset (Glossolalia

Glossolalia

Glossolalia or speaking in tongues is the fluid vocalizing of speech-like syllables, often as part of religious practice. The significance of glossolalia has varied with time and place, with some considering it a part of a sacred language...

 from the Parnassus) in 1953, characterizing modernist literature as babble

Babbling

Babbling is a stage in child development and a state in language acquisition, during which an infant appears to be experimenting with uttering sounds of language, but not yet producing any recognizable words...

 and nonsense

Nonsense

Nonsense is a communication, via speech, writing, or any other symbolic system, that lacks any coherent meaning. Sometimes in ordinary usage, nonsense is synonymous with absurdity or the ridiculous...

. His talk was published in Arbeiderbladet in 1954, and resulted in a fierce debate. Among the defenders of modernist poetry were Odd Solumsmoen

Odd Solumsmoen

Odd Solumsmoen was a Norwegian novelist and literary critic.Solumsmoen was awarded the Mads Wiel Nygaards Endowment in 1972. Among his works are the short story collection Barn i søndagsskolen from 1943 and the novel Hjem, kjære hjem from 1955.-References:...

, Olav Dalgard

Olav Dalgard

Olav Dalgard, given name Olaf Hanssen was a Norwegian filmmaker, advocate of Nynorsk, and a literature and art historian....

 and Paal Brekke

Paal Brekke

Paal Brekke was a Norwegian lyricist, novelist, translator of poetry, and literary critic. Brekke fled from occupied Norway to Sweden in 1940, when he was 17 years old. He made his literary debut in 1942, with the poetry collection Av din jord er vi til...

, while poet and literary critic André Bjerke

André Bjerke

Jarl André Bjerke was a Norwegian writer and poet. His debut was in 1940 with a collection of poems, Syngende Jord . He has written a wide range of material: poems , mystery novels , essays, and articles...

 joined Øverland's criticism.

The glossolalia debate was discussed in the literary magazine Profil

Profil (literary magazine)

Profil was a Norwegian literary magazine which had great influence in the late 1960s and the 1970s. The magazine was founded in 1938 as Filologen, a house organ for the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Oslo. Its name was changed to Profil in 1959. In 1966 the magazine was taken over by a...

in 1968.