Kjell Aartun (6 July 1925 – 28 May 2023) was a Norwegian theologian and linguist. He was considered a leading expert on

Semitic languages The Semitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. They include Arabic, Amharic, Tigrinya language, Tigrinya, Aramaic, Hebrew language, Hebrew, Maltese language, Maltese, Modern South Arabian language ...

, particularly the

Ugaritic language Ugaritic () is an extinct Northwest Semitic language known through the Ugaritic texts discovered by French archaeologists in 1928 at Ugarit, including several major literary texts, notably the Baal cycle. Ugaritic has been called "the great ...

. He was also known for several controversial theories on

runic Runes are the letters in a set of related alphabets, known as runic rows, runic alphabets or futharks (also, see '' futhark'' vs ''runic alphabet''), native to the Germanic peoples. Runes were primarily used to represent a sound value (a ...

interpretation and the origin of

Minoan civilization The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age culture which was centered on the island of Crete. Known for its monumental architecture and energetic art, it is often regarded as the first civilization in Europe. The ruins of the Minoan palaces at K ...

. Aartun received a government scholarship ( statsstipendiat) in 1983 and received HM The King's Medal of Merit in Gold for his scientific work in 2001. He was a member of the

Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters (, DNVA) is a learned society based in Oslo, Norway. Its purpose is to support the advancement of science and scholarship in Norway. History The Royal Frederick University in Christiania was establis ...

from 1986.

Life and career

Aartun was born in Sjernarøy on 6 July 1925. He obtained the

Cand.theol. Candidate ( or ) is the name of various academic degrees, which are today mainly awarded in Scandinavia. The degree title was phased out in much of Europe through the 1999 Bologna Process, which has re-formatted academic degrees in Europe. The de ...

degree in 1954, and an additional degree in Greek in 1956. He was a Research Fellow from 1956 to 1961 and a Research Fellow/Lecturer from 1962 to 1965. Aartun was Research Fellow in West Berlin from 1965 to 1968, and Lecturer/Associate Professor at Stavanger lærerhøgskole from 1968 to 1992. He was also a

Docent The term "docent" is derived from the Latin word , which is the third-person plural present active indicative of ('to teach, to lecture'). Becoming a docent is often referred to as habilitation or doctor of science and is an academic qualifi ...

in Jerusalem in 1971, director of the

Swedish Theological Institute The Swedish Theological Institute (STI) is an institute in Jerusalem supported by the Church of Sweden. Christian students of theology can gain a deeper understanding of Judaism at the Institute, and also of Christianity and Islam. Purpose The ...

in Jerusalem in 1974 and

of Semitic Languages at

Lund University Lund University () is a Public university, public research university in Sweden and one of Northern Europe's oldest universities. The university is located in the city of Lund in the Swedish province of Scania. The university was officially foun ...

from 1976 until 1978. He obtained the dr. philos. degree in 1978, with a dissertation on the

in two volumes titled ''Die Partikeln des Ugaritischen'' (

Kevelaer Kevelaer (; Low Rhenish: ''Käwela'') is a town in the district of Kleve, in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. It is the largest Catholic pilgrimage location within north-western Europe. Over one million Marian devotees, mostly from Germany and ...

, 1974/1978). In his extensive two-volume work on Minoan civilization, ''Die Minoische Schrift'' (

Harrassowitz Verlag Harrassowitz Verlag is a German academic publishing house, based in Wiesbaden. It publishes about 250 scholarly books and periodicals per year on Oriental, Slavic, and Book and Library Studies. The publishing house is part of the company Otto Ha ...

, 1992/1997), Aartun asserts that the ancient Minoan culture was Semitic. His book ''Runer i kulturhistorisk sammenheng'' ( Pax Forlag, 1994) asserts that

Runic Runes are the letters in a set of related alphabets, known as runic rows, runic alphabets or futharks (also, see '' futhark'' vs ''runic alphabet''), native to the Germanic peoples. Runes were primarily used to represent a sound value (a ...

inscriptions found in Scandinavia were written in a Semitic language. These publications have made him a controversial figure among both non-linguists and mainstream linguists since the early 1990s, with critics accusing him of producing

pseudoscience Pseudoscience consists of statements, beliefs, or practices that claim to be both scientific and factual but are incompatible with the scientific method. Pseudoscience is often characterized by contradictory, exaggerated or unfalsifiable cl ...

. His autobiography, ''Et forskerliv i Janteland'' ("A Researchers Life in the Country of Jante"), was published in 2004. Aartun was the grandfather of singer-songwriter

Susanne Sundfør Susanne Aartun Sundfør ( (local Haugesund dialect; Help:IPA/Norwegian, ʉˈsɑ̀nːə ˈɔ̀ʈːʉːn ˈsʉ̀nføːrin Urban East ("standard") Norwegian); born 19 March 1986) is a Norwegians, Norwegian singer-songwriter and record producer. ...

. She dedicated her sixth studio album '' Blómi'' to Aartun, incorporating excerpts of his works in the lyrics. Kjell Aartun died on 28 May 2023, at the age of 97.

Selected publications

*''Die Partikeln des Ugaritischen'', 2 vol.,

, Butzon & Bercker, 1974/1978 *''Die Minoische Schrift'', 2 vol.,

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden (; ) is the capital of the German state of Hesse, and the second-largest Hessian city after Frankfurt am Main. With around 283,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 24th-largest city. Wiesbaden form ...

, 1992/1997 *''Runer i kulturhistorisk sammenheng: En fruktharhetskultisk tradisjon'',

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) 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 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

, Pax Forlag, 1994 *''Et forskerliv i Janteland'', Oslo, Kolofon, 2004

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aartun, Kjell 1925 births 2023 deaths Linguists from Norway Academic staff of Lund University Members of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters People from Finnøy Recipients of the King's Medal of Merit in gold Norwegian expatriates in Germany Norwegian expatriates in Israel Norwegian expatriates in Sweden