The Norwegian Society (''Norske Selskab'') was a literary society for

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

students in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

active from 1772 to 1813. Its members included authors, poets and philosophers. The Norwegian Society was formed in 1772 by Ove Gjerløw Meyer. Their meeting place was Madame Juel's Coffeehouse ('' madame Juels Kaffehus'') in the ''Læderstræde''. It was a gentlemen's club, with the exception of the waitress Karen Bach and the poet Magdalene Sophie Buchholm, and the meetings were lively with speakers, song and discussion, poetry recitation improvisations and relatively significant intakes of punch. The club considered itself culturally conservative and devoted to the rationalistic

empirical Empirical evidence for a proposition is evidence, i.e. what supports or counters this proposition, that is constituted by or accessible to sense experience or experimental procedure. Empirical evidence is of central importance to the sciences and ...

style of

Ludvig Holberg Ludvig Holberg, Baron of Holberg (3 December 1684 – 28 January 1754) was a writer, essayist, philosopher, historian and playwright born in Bergen, Norway, during the time of the Dano-Norwegian dual monarchy. He was influenced by Humanism, ...

. The members of the Norwegian Society are often viewed as playing a central role in the wakening of Norwegian patriotic awareness at the close of the 18th century. Many of the poems and plays had patriotic themes. The society was discontinued in 1813 after the battle was won to establish the first Norwegian university, but a new gentlemen's club with the same name started in 1818.Norske Selskab history
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Central members

Johannes Ewald Johannes Ewald (18 November 174317 March 1781) was a Danish national dramatist, psalm writer and poet. The lyrics of a song from one of his plays are used for one of the Danish national anthems, ''Kong Christian stod ved højen mast'' which ...

(1743–1781) * Johan Nordahl Brun (1745–1816) * N. K. Bredal * Magdalene Sophie Buchholm (1758–1825), only female member * Ove Gjerløw Meyer *

Johan Vibe Johan Vibe (also Wibe) (16 April 1637 – 20 February 1710) was a Danish military officer and engineer, who was appointed Governor-General of Norway from 10 April 1708 until his death. Biography Johan Vibe was born on as one of two illegitim ...

(1748–1782) * Søren Monrad *

Niels Treschow Niels Nicolas Treschow (5 September 1751 – 22 September 1833) was a Norwegian philosopher, educator and politician. Biography Treschow was born in Strømsø, now part of Drammen in Buskerud. He was the son of Peter Treschow (1718-1773) ...

(1751–1833) *

Jakob Edvard Colbjørnsen Jakob Edvard Colbjørnsen (19 November 1744 - 13 February 1802) was a Norwegian-Danish jurist who served as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Denmark (Da. ''Højesteret'', Nor. ''Høyesterett''). Jakob Edvard Colbjørnsen was born at Sørum in ...

Claus Fasting Claus Fasting (29 October 1746 – 25 December 1791) was a Norwegian playwright, literary critic, editor and civil servant. Among his literary works were the song ''Harmonisang'' (1769) and his journals ''Provinzialsamlinger'' (1791). Bio ...

* Claus Frimann (1746–1829) * P. H. Frimann * Jonas Rein *

Edvard Storm Edvard Storm (21 August 1749 – 29 September 1794) was a Norwegian poet, songwriter and educator. His writings were frequently characterized by the Norwegian romantic nationalism common to the age. Background Storm was from Vågå in Oppland, Nor ...

Jens Zetlitz Jens Zetlitz (26 January 1761 – 14 January 1821) was a Norwegian priest and poet. Zetlitz was born at Stavanger in Rogaland, Norway. At the close of the 18th century he traveled to the University of Copenhagen to study theology. He became a ...

Johan Herman Wessel Johan Herman Wessel (6 October 1742 – 29 December 1785) was an 18th-century Danish-Norwegian poet, satirist and playwright. His written work was characterized by the use of parody and satiric wit. Biography Wessel was born and raised at Vest ...

(1742–1785)

References

External links

Source
Norwegian literature Organizations established in 1772 1772 establishments in Denmark 1813 disestablishments in Denmark Organizations disestablished in 1813 Organizations based in Copenhagen Norwegian nationalism Denmark–Norway relations Diaspora organizations in Denmark {{Denmark-org-stub