Oluf Rygh (5 September 1833 – 19 August 1899) was a noted

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 ...

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsca ...

philologist Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources; it is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics (with especially strong ties to etymology). Philology is also defined ...

and

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

. Oluf Rygh is recognized as one of the founders of professional archaeology in Norway. He led the 1867 excavation of the Tune ship (''Tuneskipet'') Prof oluf rygh

Background

Oluf Rygh was born in

Verdal Verdal is a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Innherad region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Verdalsøra. Some villages in the municipality include Forbregd/Lein, Lysthaugen, Stiklest ...

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. His parents were

Peder Strand Rygh Peder Strand Rygh (7 August 1800 – 15 April 1868) was a Norwegian politician. He was elected to the Norwegian Parliament in 1839, 1842, 1845, 1851, 1854, 1857, 1862 and 1865, representing the rural constituency of ''Nordre Trondhjems Amt'' (toda ...

(1800–1868) and Ingeborg Marie Bentsen (1809–1878). He was the older brother of banker

Evald Rygh Evald Rygh (26 May 1842 – 9 May 1913) was a Norwegian banker and politician for the Conservative Party. He served as Minister of Finance and Customs and mayor of Kristiania. He was born in Verdal, and was the brother of Karl Ditlev and Olu ...

(1842–1913) and member of Parliament Karl Ditlev Rygh (1839–1915) . Oluf Rygh attended the Trondhjem Cathedral School in 1850 and went to the

University of Christiania The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

to study philology, where he graduated in 1856. In 1858, while a teacher at Nissens Skole in Christiania, he was a research fellow for history. Later he was a professor of classical philology, history and Scandinavian languages.

Career

Rygh was professor of history at the

Royal Frederick University The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

(now University of Oslo) between 1866 and 1875. He was director of ''Oldsaksamlingen'' (which subsequently became the Museum of Cultural History) from 1862 and professor of Nordic archaeology from 1875 – the first professor of archaeology at any

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and S ...

n university. He led excavation of the Tune ship 1867. His work about Norwegian antiquities ''Norske Oldsaker'' (1885) is recognized for its detailed illustrations and even today is still a significant reference source. From 1879 to 1899 he chaired the

Norwegian Historical Association The Norwegian Historical Association ( no, Den norske historiske forening, HIFO) is a Norwegian historical organization. The Association was founded in 1869 by Michael Birkeland and Ludvig Ludvigsen Daae. It works to promote historical research an ...

. Oluf Rygh is best known for creation of a registry of Norwegian farm names ''

Norske Gaardnavne ''Norske Gaardnavne'' (English: Norwegian Farm Names) is a 19-volume set of books based on a manuscript prepared from 1897 to 1924 by Oluf Rygh, a noted professor of archaeology, philology, and history at the University of Oslo. The book contains a ...

'' which is a 19 volume set of books based on a manuscript prepared from 1897 to 1924. The book contains a standardized notation, information on pronunciation, historical forms and the

etymology Etymology () The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the form of words ...

for recorded farm, estate and manor names in

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 ...

, which became the standard for place names in Norway. It inspired similar research in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...

and

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 ...

. Rygh died in 1899 at Ulefoss in

Holla, Telemark Holla was a parish, district and former municipality now located in the municipality of Nome in Telemark, Norway. History Holla is situated in the traditional region of Midt-Telemark. Holla parish included the churches at Holla and Helgen both i ...

. At the time of his death, only three and one half volumes had been published.Oluf Rygh: Norwegian Farm Names
/ref>

Legacy

The street ''Oluf Ryghs gate'' at Fagerborg has been named after him.

Bibliography

His more significant publications include: *1869 – ''Om den ældre Jernalder i Norge'' (On the Older Iron Age in Norway) *1877 – ''Om den yngre Jernalder i Norge'' (On the Younger Iron Age in Norway) *1885 – ''Norske Oldsaker'' (Norwegian Antiquities) *1897 –
Norske Gaardnavne
' (a 19 volume set on "Norwegian Farm Names" parts of which were completed for publication after his death by other researchers)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rygh, Oluf 1833 births 1899 deaths Archaeologists from Oslo 19th-century Norwegian historians Old Norse studies scholars People from Verdal University of Oslo faculty People educated at the Trondheim Cathedral School