Maurits Christopher Hansen (5 July 1794 – 16 March 1842) was a Norwegian writer. He was born in

Modum Modum is a municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Vikersund. The municipality of Modum was established on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The area has a long tradition of ...

as a son of Carl Hansen (1757–1826) and Abigael Wulfsberg (1758–1823). In October 1816 he married teacher Helvig Leschly (1789–1874). He was a father-in-law of

Eilert Sundt Eilert Lund Sundt (8 August 1817 – 13 June 1875) was a Norwegian theologist and sociologist, known for his work on morality, marriage and other subjects among the working class. He was an early pioneer of the field of sociology in Norway. Ear ...

, and thus grandfather of Einar Sundt. He is recognized for his contribution to a diversity of genres and the introduction of the novel in Norway. He was a major contributor to the Norwegian

Romantic Movement Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. The purpose of the movement was to advocate for the importance of subjec ...

. He also wrote one of the world's first

crime novel Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, crime novel, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives or fiction that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a profession ...

s with "Mordet på Maskinbygger Roolfsen" ("The Murder of Engine Maker Roolfsen") in 1839, two years before

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic who is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales involving mystery and the macabre. He is widely re ...

's short story "

The Murders in the Rue Morgue "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" is a short story by Edgar Allan Poe published in ''Graham's Magazine'' in 1841. It has been described as the first modern detective fiction, detective story; Poe referred to it as one of his "tales of wikt:ratio ...

" in 1841. After attending

Oslo Cathedral School Schola Osloensis, known in Norwegian language, Norwegian as Oslo Katedralskole (''Oslo Cathedral School'') and more commonly as "Katta",

from 1809 and completing his

examen artium Examen artium was the name of the academic certification conferred in Denmark and Norway, qualifying the student for admission to university studies. Examen artium was originally introduced as the entrance exam of the University of Copenhagen in 1 ...

in 1814, he worked as a teacher in

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...

from 1820 and in

Kongsberg Kongsberg () is a historical mining town and municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. The city is located on the river Numedalslågen at the entrance to the valley of Numedal. Kongsberg has been a centre of silver mining, arms production and fo ...

from 1826. He was a fellow of the

Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters The Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters (, DKNVS) is a Norway, Norwegian learned society based in Trondheim. It was founded in 1760 and is Norway's oldest scientific and scholarly institution. The society's Protector is King Harald V of ...

in Trondheim, but was not appointed when he applied for a position as lecturer of philosophy at the

Royal Frederick University The University of Oslo (; ) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the oldest university in Norway. Originally named the Royal Frederick University, the university was established in 1811 as the de facto Norwegian conti ...

around 1839.Biographies
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References

External links

Digitized books by Hansen
in the

National Library of Norway The National Library of Norway () was established in 1989. Its principal task is "to preserve the past for the future". The library is located both in Oslo and in Mo i Rana. The building in Oslo was restored and reopened in 2005. Prior to the e ...

1794 births 1842 deaths People from Modum Norwegian male novelists Norwegian crime fiction writers Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters People educated at Oslo Cathedral School {{Norway-novelist-stub