Inge Krokann (19 August 1893 – 27 September 1962) was a Norwegian writer. His most famous work is '' I Dovre Sno '' (1929), an epic story of the Loe family during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

. Because his writing was full of local expressions and is so strongly tied to the use of the Oppdal dialect and idiosyncratic

Nynorsk Nynorsk () () is one of the two written standards of the Norwegian language, the other being Bokmål. From 12 May 1885, it became the state-sanctioned version of Ivar Aasen's standard Norwegian language ( no, Landsmål) parallel to the Dano-No ...

, his works are largely inaccessible and difficult to translate.

Biography

Ingebrikt Krokann was born at Oppdal in

Trøndelag Trøndelag (; sma, Trööndelage) is a county in the central part of Norway. It was created in 1687, then named Trondhjem County ( no, Trondhjems Amt); in 1804 the county was split into Nord-Trøndelag and Sør-Trøndelag by the King of Denma ...

, Norway. He was the son of Trond Jonsson Krokann (1858-1936) and Dørdi Olsdatter Lo (1859-1933). In 1915 he took his final exam at Volda lærarskule. He worked as a

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

first at the children's school in Rennebu. During the winter of 1917–18, he got a leave to go to

Askov Askov is a city in Pine County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 364 at the 2010 census. Minnesota State Highway 23 serves as a main route in the community, and Interstate 35 is nearby. History The village was originally within t ...

Folk High School in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

, and then he took a college course in Volda. From 1920 to 1923 he taught at Skogn Folkhøgskule. He developed

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, ...

and never fully recovered. He taught at the Nordic folk college in Fredriksberg in Denmark during 1937–1938. Krokann received several travel grants and traveled to many countries in Europe and Africa. He was married in 1921 with Gunvor Widebæk Lund (1899-1991). He died at

Gausdal Gausdal is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Segalstad bru. Other villages in Gausdal include Follebu, Forse ...

Oppland Oppland is a former county in Norway which existed from 1781 until its dissolution on 1 January 2020. The old Oppland county bordered the counties of Trøndelag, Møre og Romsdal, Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Akershus, Oslo and Hedmark. The c ...

, Norway. His work was characterized by: * Vivid descriptions of the relationships between man and nature in the harsh environment around his birthplace of Oppdal; * Effective and innovative use of the Oppdal dialect and

nynorsk Nynorsk () () is one of the two written standards of the Norwegian language, the other being Bokmål. From 12 May 1885, it became the state-sanctioned version of Ivar Aasen's standard Norwegian language ( no, Landsmål) parallel to the Dano-No ...

in his writing; * A strong sense of history in his writing, tying together the

pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. I ...

and Christian eras in Norwegian history.

Bibliography

* ''I Dovre-sno'',

Gyldendal Gyldendalske Boghandel, Nordisk Forlag A/S, usually referred to simply as Gyldendal () is a Danish publishing house. Founded in 1770 by Søren Gyldendal, it is the oldest and largest publishing house in Denmark, offering a wide selection of ...

, 1929. * ''Gjenom fonna'', 2 volumes, Gyldendal, 1931. * ''Olav Aukrust'', 1933. * ''På linfeksing'', Gyldendal, 1934. * ''Blodrøter'', Gyldendal, 1936. * ''Då bøndene reiste seg'', Gyldendal, 1937. * ''Det store hamskiftet i bondesamfunnet'',

Samlaget Det Norske Samlaget is a Norwegian publishing house founded on 24 March 1868 with the aim to promote and publish books in Landsmål, now known as Nynorsk. ''Det Norske Samlaget'' is now divided into two institutions: a literature organization, ' ...

, 1942. * ''Under himmelteiknet'', Gyldendal, 1944. * ''Dikt'', Gyldendal, 1947. * ''Ut av skuggen'', Gyldendal, 1949. * ''Gravlagt av lynet'', Gyldendal, 1952. * ''Oppdal, bygda mi'', 1952.

Awards

Gyldendal's Endowment Gyldendal's Endowment was a literature prize which was awarded in the period 1934–1995 by the Norwegian publisher Gyldendal Norsk Forlag. The prize was awarded to significant authors, regardless of which publisher the author was associated w ...

for 1942 *

Melsom-prisen The Melsom Prize () is a Norwegian literary award. It is given annually to a writer or translator who writes in Nynorsk, for a work published during the preceding year. The prize was established in 1922 by the shipowner Ferdinand Melsom. The prize s ...

1942 (together with Ragnvald Vaage) *

Dobloug Prize The Dobloug Prize ( sv, Doblougska priset, no, Doblougprisen) is a literature prize awarded for Swedish and Norwegian fiction. The prize is named after Norwegian businessman and philanthropist Birger Dobloug (1881–1944) pursuant to his bequest. T ...

1954

References

1893 births 1962 deaths People from Oppdal People from Gausdal Norwegian educators Nynorsk-language writers 20th-century Norwegian novelists Norwegian people with disabilities XU Dobloug Prize winners 20th-century Norwegian writers Norwegian writers {{Norway-writer-stub