The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters ( no, Det Norske Videnskaps-Akademi, DNVA) is a
learned society
A learned society (; also learned academy, scholarly society, or academic association) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and science. Membership ...
based in
Oslo
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...
. Its purpose is to support the advancement of science and scholarship in Norway.
History
The
Royal Frederick University in
Christiania was established in 1811. The idea of a learned society in Christiania surfaced for the first time in 1841.
The city of
Trondhjem
Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...
had no university, but had a learned society, the
Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters, established in 1760. The purpose of a learned society in Christiania was to support scientific studies and aid publication of academic papers. The idea of the
Humboldt-inspired university, where independent research stood strong, had taken over for the instrumental view of a university as a means to produce civil servants. The city already had societies for specific professions, for instance the
Norwegian Medical Society which was founded in 1833. However, these societies were open for both academics within medicine as well as physicians outside of academia. The learned society would be open to employed academics only, but from all academic branches.
[
The idea did not come to stay in 1841. Money was a problem; also there were "doubts with regards to the adequacy of the scientific powers".][ However, cross-disciplinary cooperation was flourishing. The first scientific congress in Norway was held in 1844. Two hundred people within the ]natural sciences
Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeat ...
and medicine convened for the fourth Scandinavian meeting of natural researchers. Finally, in 1857 a source of finances were found: professor of medicine Frants C. Faye. The academy was founded, and inaugurated on 3 May 1857 under the name . "Christiania" was later changed to "Kristiania". The name was taken in the early twentieth century,[Collett, 1999: p. 108] and from 1924 "i Kristiania" was dropped, when Oslo voted to return the name to its original Norwegian name.[
The economic support from the state was minimal during its first fifty years. As such the academy led a humble existence. In the early twentieth century, Waldemar Christofer Brøgger (later the university's first rector) suggested a plan to strengthen the academy. He established the ]Nansen Foundation
Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen (; 10 October 186113 May 1930) was a Norwegian polymath and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He gained prominence at various points in his life as an explorer, scientist, diplomat, and humanitarian. He led the team ...
, specifically tied to the academy to strengthen its economy. Brøgger's goal was to employ own researchers to secure independence from the university, however this never happened.[ The purpose of the academy remained to advance science and scholarship in general through meetings, seminars and support of research and publications.][ Nonetheless, the Nansen Foundation and other economic sources were important. They helped in the establishment of other bodies, such as the early ]Institute for Comparative Research in Human Culture The Institute for Comparative Research in Human Culture ( no, Instituttet for sammenlignende kulturforskning) is a humanities research institute based in Oslo, Norway.
It was established in 1922 by Fredrik Stang. An independent institute, its task ...
. The foundations lost some of their importance after World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
. However, an entirely new source of funding was found, as Otto Lous Mohr
Otto Lous Mohr (8 March 1886 – 23 June 1967) was a Norwegian medical doctor.
Mohr was born in Mandal. He was a professor of anatomy at the University of Oslo from 1919 to 1952, and served as rector from 1946 to 1952.
During the German ...
suggested to use surplus from a state-owned, national lottery.[Collett, 1999: p. 187] The establishment of Norsk Tipping was laid down in 1946, and took place in 1947. The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters wished to administer this income through a council of its own, but the Government of Norway refused and created the research council NAVF The Norwegian Research Council for Science and the Humanities (Norges almenvitenskapelige forskningsråd, NAVF) was one of Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of ...
(, the Norwegian Council of General Research). The academy could merely suggest representatives for this council. Ever since then, the state-driven research councils have been more important than the academy, economically.[ NAVF and other bodies were merged in 1993 to become the Research Council of Norway.
The Board of Directors of the Academy is elected annually. The President of the Academy for 2022 is microbiologist Lise Øvreås.
]
Organisation
The General Meeting is the supreme body of the Academy. The board of the Academy consists of its President, Secretary General and Vice-President together with the chairman,
vice-chairman and secretary of the two divisions, Mathematics and Natural Sciences and Humanities and Social Sciences.
President of the Academy is professor of law, Hans Petter Graver
Hans Petter Graver (born 5 November 1955) is a Norwegian legal scholar. He serves as professor and was the dean at the Faculty of Law, University of Oslo between 2008 and 2015. He was replaced by Dag Michalsen.
Career
He is a son of Siren and P ...
(UiO UIO may refer to:
* University of Oslo
* Mariscal Sucre International Airport, in Quito, Ecuador
** Old Mariscal Sucre International Airport
Mariscal Sucre International Airport ( es, Aeropuerto Internacional Mariscal Sucre) was the main inte ...
). Vice presidents are; Gunn Elisabeth Birkelund Gunn may refer to:
Places
* Gunn City, Missouri, a village
* Gunn, Northern Territory, outer suburb of Darwin
* Gunn, Alberta, Canada, a hamlet
* Gunn Valley, a mountain valley in British Columbia, Canada
* Gun Lake (British Columbia), a Cana ...
and Anders Elverhøi
Anders is a male name in Scandinavian languages and Fering North Frisian, an equivalent of the Greek Andreas ("manly") and the English Andrew. It originated from Andres via metathesis.
In Sweden, Anders has been one of the most common names fo ...
. King Harald V of Norway is honorary president.
The Academy aims to fulfill its mission by initiating and supporting research, organizing meetings and international conferences, publishing scientific writings and appointing representatives to national and international bodies. Each year, the Academy organizes at least 12 open meetings with topics covering a wide range of academic disciplines.
As of 1 April 2021, the Academy had 946 members, of which 535 Norwegian and 411 foreign. The members are divided into the mathematics and science class, and the humanities and social sciences class.
Prizes and other activities
The academy is responsible for awarding the Abel Prize in mathematics
Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
and the Kavli Prize
The Kavli Prize was established in 2005 as a joint venture of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research, and the Kavli Foundation. It honors, supports, and recognizes scientists for outstan ...
in astrophysics, nanoscience and neuroscience
Neuroscience is the science, scientific study of the nervous system (the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system), its functions and disorders. It is a Multidisciplinary approach, multidisciplinary science that combines physiology, an ...
. It also represents Norway in the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Union Académique Internationale
The Union Académique Internationale (UAI)—in English, International Union of Academies—is a federation of many national academies and international academies from more than 60 countries all over the world which works in the field of Humaniti ...
(UAI), the European Science Foundation (ESF) and the All European Academies
All European Academies (ALLEA) is the European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities. It was founded in 1994, and brings together more than 50 Academies of Sciences and Learned Societies from over 40 member countries of the Council of ...
(ALLEA). The academy is also part of the European Science Academies Advisory Council
European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to:
In general
* ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe
** Ethnic groups in Europe
** Demographics of Europe
** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...
(EASAC) and one representative from the academy is stationed at the headquarters in Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
. Its aim is to promote science based governing.
The academy has approximately 900 members, both foreign and Norwegian. Prize winners are also added to the member lists upon being awarded.
See also
* List of members of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
1857 establishments in Norway
National academies of sciences
National academies of arts and humanities
Organisations based in Oslo
Scientific organizations established in 1857
Science and technology in Norway
Members of the International Council for Science
Learned societies of Norway
Members of the International Science Council