Hulda Garborg
Encyclopedia
Folk dance
The term folk dance describes dances that share some or all of the following attributes:*They are dances performed at social functions by people with little or no professional training, often to traditional music or music based on traditional music....
r, and theatre instructor. She was married to Arne Garborg
Arne Garborg
Arne Garborg, born Aadne Eivindsson Garborg was a Norwegian writer.Garborg championed the use of Landsmål , as a literary language; he translated the Odyssey into it...
, and is today perhaps best known for kindling interest in the bunad
Bunad
Bunad is an umbrella term encompassing, in its broadest sense, a range of both traditional rural garments as well modern 20th century folk costumes. In its narrow sense the word Bunad does only refer to garments constructed in the early 20th century very loosely based on tradition...
tradition.
Personal life
Karen Hulda Bergersen was born on the farm Såstad in StangeStange
is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Hedmarken. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Stangebyen.-Name:...
, Hedmark
Hedmark
is a county in Norway, bordering Sør-Trøndelag, Oppland and Akershus. The county administration is in Hamar.Hedmark makes up the northeastern part of Østlandet, the southeastern part of the country. It includes a long part of the borderline with Sweden, Dalarna County and Värmland County. The...
, to the lawyer Christian Frederik Bergersen (1829–1973) and his wife Marie Petrine Olsen (1835–1888). She had two elder sisters, Martha and Sophie. Her parents divorced when Hulda was two years old, and she moved to Hamar
Hamar
is a town and municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Hedmarken. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Hamar. The municipality of Hamar was separated from Vang as a town and municipality of its own in 1849...
with her mother. The family later moved to Kristiania
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
, when Hulda was twelve years old, and from she was seventeen she started working in a store, helping feed the family. During this period she was a central person among the radical youth in Kristiania. In 1887 she married writer Arne Garborg
Arne Garborg
Arne Garborg, born Aadne Eivindsson Garborg was a Norwegian writer.Garborg championed the use of Landsmål , as a literary language; he translated the Odyssey into it...
.
Tynset
Tynset is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Østerdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Tynset.-Name:...
in Østerdalen
Østerdalen
Østerdalen is a valley and traditional district in Hedmark County, in Eastern Norway. It consisting of the municipalities Rendalen, Alvdal, Folldal,Tynset, Tolga and Os in the north, Elverum, Stor-Elvdal, Engerdal, Trysil and Åmot in the south.-Geography:...
, where they lived for nine years in a small cabin at the small farm "Kolbotnen", near the lake Savalen
Savalen
Savalen is a lake in Hedmark country, Norway, in the municipalities Tynset and Alvdal, about 18 square kilometres. The river Sivilla, which connects Savalen and Glomma, is regulated and exploited by the Savalen hydropower station . A tourist resort is located at the northern end of the lake, with...
. She gave birth to a child, Arne, also called Tuften, in 1888. During the period at Kolbotn, the family often visited Kristiania, they stayed longer periods in Dießen am Ammersee
Dießen am Ammersee
Dießen am Ammersee is a municipality in the district of Landsberg in Bavaria in Germany.-References:...
, Fürstenfeldbruck
Fürstenfeldbruck
Fürstenfeldbruck is a town in Bavaria, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Fürstenfeldbruck. it has a population of 35,494. Since the 1930s, Fürstenfeldbruck has had an air force base....
and Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
in Germany, and also lived one winter in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. In 1896 they left Tynset and moved to Stokke
Stokke
Stokke is a municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Stokke.-Background:The municipality of Stokke was established on 1 January 1838...
. In 1897 they moved to Labraaten in Hvalstad
Hvalstad
Hvalstad is a village and a small part of the Municipality Asker. Hvalstad has slightly more than 2000 inhabitants, a number that has doubled since the seventies. Hvalstad is located 20 kilometres from the centre of Oslo....
, which became their home for the rest of their lives. Arne Garborg later built a summer residence, Knudaheio, in Time
Time, Norway
Time is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is part of the region of Jæren. The administrative centre of Time is the town of Bryne.-Name:...
. Arne and Hulda were both buried at Knudaheio.
Cultural work
Garborg was a pioneer in areas as theatreTheatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
and folk dance
Folk dance
The term folk dance describes dances that share some or all of the following attributes:*They are dances performed at social functions by people with little or no professional training, often to traditional music or music based on traditional music....
, cooking
Cooking
Cooking is the process of preparing food by use of heat. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely across the world, reflecting unique environmental, economic, and cultural traditions. Cooks themselves also vary widely in skill and training...
, bunad
Bunad
Bunad is an umbrella term encompassing, in its broadest sense, a range of both traditional rural garments as well modern 20th century folk costumes. In its narrow sense the word Bunad does only refer to garments constructed in the early 20th century very loosely based on tradition...
tradition and women's rights
Women's rights
Women's rights are entitlements and freedoms claimed for women and girls of all ages in many societies.In some places these rights are institutionalized or supported by law, local custom, and behaviour, whereas in others they may be ignored or suppressed...
.
She published articles about traditional cooking in the Nynorsk
Nynorsk
Nynorsk or New Norwegian is one of two official written standards for the Norwegian language, the other being Bokmål. The standard language was created by Ivar Aasen during the mid-19th century, to provide a Norwegian alternative to the Danish language which was commonly written in Norway at the...
newspaper Den 17de Mai
Den 17de Mai
Den 17de Mai is a former Norwegian newspaper, issued in Oslo from 1894 to 1935.The founder and first editor-in-chief of Den 17de Mai was Rasmus Steinsvik, who edited the newspaper until his death in 1913. Arne Garborg was co-editor the first four years. Later editors were Anders Hamre and Einar...
, and these articles were later published in the book Heimestell (1899).
She wrote the play Mødre (1895, performed at the Christiania Theatre
Christiania Theatre
Christiania Theatre, or Kristiania Theatre, was Norway's finest stage for the spoken drama between October 4, 1836 - September 1, 1899. It was located at Bankplassen by the Akershus Fortress in central Christiania, in Norway...
), and the comedies Rationelt Fjøsstell (1896, performed both at the Christiania Theatre and in Bergen), Hos Lindelands (1899) and Noahs Ark (1899), and the dramas Sovande sorg (1900), Liti Kersti (1903), Edderkoppen (1904, anonymously; played at Nationaltheatret
Nationaltheatret
The National Theatre in Oslo is one of Norway's largest and most prominent venues for performance of dramatic arts.The theatre had its first performance on 1 September 1899 but can trace its origins to Christiania Theatre, which was founded in 1829...
), Sigmund Bresteson (1908), Under Bodhitræet (1911) and Den store Freden (1919; issued in USA as Hiawatha's Vision, 1927). She founded Det norske spellaget in 1899, with its first performance in Eldorado Teater, and was co-founder of Det Norske Teatret
Det Norske Teatret
Det Norske Teatret is a theatre in Oslo. The theatre was founded in 1912, after an initiative from Hulda Garborg and Edvard Drabløs. It opened in 1913, touring with two plays, Ervingen by Ivar Aasen and Rationelt Fjøsstell by Hulda Garborg...
. She edited the song book Norske folkevisor in 1903, and issued the book Song-Dansen i Nord-Landi, also in 1903, and Norske dansevisur (1913). She wrote the book Norsk klædebunad (1903), on the bunad
Bunad
Bunad is an umbrella term encompassing, in its broadest sense, a range of both traditional rural garments as well modern 20th century folk costumes. In its narrow sense the word Bunad does only refer to garments constructed in the early 20th century very loosely based on tradition...
tradition.
She participated in the contemporary debates both as a speaker and article writer. She wrote a series of articles in magazines and newspapers, such as Syn og Segn
Syn og Segn
Syn og Segn is a Norwegian cultural and political magazine. It was founded in 1894, and Rasmus Flo and Arne Garborg were the magazine's first editors....
, Edda
Edda. Scandinavian Journal of Literary Research
Edda. Scandinavian Journal of Literary Research is a magazine for research on Scandinavian literature, and for literary researchers in the Scandinavian countries. It was founded by Gerhard Gran in 1914. The magazine's first publishing house was Aschehoug. Gran edited the magazine until his death...
, Samtiden
Samtiden
Samtiden is a Norwegian political and literary magazine. It was founded by Jørgen Brunchorst and Gerhard Gran in 1890. The magazine's first publisher was John Griegs forlag , and from 1900 Aschehoug . Gran was the magazine's editor from 1892 to 1925. Cathrine Sandnes has been editor-in-chief from...
, Den 17de Mai
Den 17de Mai
Den 17de Mai is a former Norwegian newspaper, issued in Oslo from 1894 to 1935.The founder and first editor-in-chief of Den 17de Mai was Rasmus Steinsvik, who edited the newspaper until his death in 1913. Arne Garborg was co-editor the first four years. Later editors were Anders Hamre and Einar...
, Dagbladet
Dagbladet
Dagbladet is Norway's second largest tabloid newspaper, and the third largest newspaper overall with a circulation of 105,255 copies in 2009, 18,128 papers less than in 2008. The editor in chief is Lars Helle....
and Verdens Gang. The books Kvinden skabt af Manden (Woman created by Man, 1904) and Fru Evas Dagbog (1905) were contribution to the debate on women's rights.
Her first novel, Et frit forhold, was issued anonymously in 1892. Her novel Eli (1912) was translated into Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
in 1915, and into Swedish
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
in 1916. Other novels were Mot Solen (1915), Gaaden. Efter Præstedatteren Else Marie Lindes Optegnelser (1916), Mens dansen gaar (1920), I huldreskog (1922), Naar heggen blomstrer (1923), Grågubben (1925), Trollheimen (1927), Helenes historie (1929) and Hildring (1931). She issued the poetry collections Kornmoe (1930) and Symra (1934).
She edited the diaries of her husband Arne Garborg, which were issued after his death. Selected parts from her own diaries were issued in 1962 as Dagbok 1903–1914.
Hulda Garborg also participated in politics, and represented the Liberal Left Party in Asker
Asker
Asker is a municipality in Akershus county, Norway. It is part of the Viken traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Asker. The municipality is a suburb of Oslo, the national capital...
municipal council. She was appointed Knight, First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav in 1932.
External links
Hulda Garborg- (Norwegian) Garborgsenteret