Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 14.djvu/752

NORWAY. 640 NORWEGIAN LITERATURE. For tlic ethnology, consult: Schradcr, Prehis- toric Aiiti<juili€S of the Aryan lluee, trans, from the German; I'cnka, Die Hcrkunjt dcr Arier (Vienna, 1880) ; Topinard, Arbo «nd Faye, ".Sur la couleur dcs eux et des chevoux "en Norv&ge," Heme d'Anthropoloijie, 3d series, vol. iv. (Paris, 18!)!)); Barth, Vruiiia anliqua, etc. (Cliristiania, 18i)6) ; S. O. Muller, ^ordische Altertiinishiinde (Slrassburg, 1897); Undsct, ".us dcr jiingercn Eisenzeit in Norwegen, 800- 1000 A.u." in Archil- fiir Anthropoloijie, vol. xx. ( IJrunswick, 18!)1); and for the history: Dun- liaiii. lliatory of Denmark, Sicedrn, and Norway (London. lS,S0-40) ; Overland, lllii.itrcret orges Jlisliirie (Cliristiania, 188o-!14); Kcary. Xoricay and the Xoracyians (New York, 18!)2) ; Laing (trans.). The Sagas of the Kings of Xoncay (London, 188!)) ; Fabricius. Minder fra Nordens flislorie (Odcnse. 1898) ; Munch, Det Xorske Folks Historic (Christiania. 18.52-0.3) ; Nielsen, Sorijes Uistorie efler ISl.'i (ib., 1882) ; GefTroy, llistoire des Hats scandinarcs (Paris, 18.51); I.e Bas. Suede et yorvi^ge (ib., 1841): Carlyle, The lUirly Kings of Soriray (London. 187.T) : Boycscn. The siory of Soruiiy (ib., 1880) ; Ott<!. Seandinarian History (ib., 1875) ; Siirensen, orw(iy (Xew York, lilOl). NORWEGIAN LANGUAGE. The language uliicli, together with Icelandic and Farocsc, forms the West Norse division of the Scandinavian group. Like the other members of this group division, the Norwegian is more homogeneous than either Danish or Swedish. Chiefly as a re- sult of i)h(inetic changes its inflections are less original than those of Icelandic, although it retains the three genders. Its conunon Siandi- Uaviiin characteristics are the sullixcd definite article, the nie<lio-passive. and the neuter-ending •t. Norwegian was divided at an early period into two nuiin dialect-groups, the Kastcrn, in- cluding the (Judbrandsdal and the Drontheim, which resembles (he J^wedisli, and the Western, represented by Hardanger, Voss, Sogn, and Sa'tersdal. which approaches the Icelandic. A subdivision of the West Norwegian, spoken along the coast, resembles the Danish. The early period of the language is similar tn that of Icelandic (q.v.). During the period from 1.3.50 to 1.5.30 Norwegian was strongly inlluenccd first by the Swedish and later by the Danish. As a result of the rnioii of Calmar (1.3!)7). by which Norwegian independence was lost, Danish was substituted for the native language for purposes of literature and public business, al- though the Norwegian survived in the country districts in various dialects, and was used for social intercourse and the composition of fidk tales and ballads. The moiU'rn standard lan- guage shiiws many divergencies both in forms, in vocabularj'. and in syntax from the Danish of Denmark, and is generally distinguished from it as Dano-Norwegian. By the Norwegians them- selves the dialects and the standard language are alike calleil Nor.se, but this usage is not recogni/.cfl by scholars. During the last fifty years efforts have beon made to empliasizo the Norwcgijin character of the language by .idapt- ing it-i orthography to local pronunciation, and by introducing fiirnis from the native speech. Dano-Norwcgian has been descrilK'd ns Danish with a Swedish pronunciation. . peculiar language movement in Norway is attracting attention throughout Scan<linavia. It is no less than the creation and spread of a new form of Scandinavian speecli, called by its originator, Ivar Aasen (q.v.), Landsmaal (na- tional tongue). It is a written language, not used for social intercourse, and is based upon the existing dialects of Norway. .t first this artificial language was used exclusividy in poe- try, but in 18,58 the first newspaper in the Landsmaal appeared, and since then it has spread rapidly. In 1808 a society for the propagation ^ of the new idea was established, branches of V which now exist all over Norway. A number J of .lets have been passed by the Parliament in favor of the Landsmaal, among which may lie 1 mentioned that foumling a chair in that "sub- ject at the University of Christiania. At pres- ent all acts of Parliament are published both in Dano-Norwegian and the Landsmaal. The principal literary supporter of the movement is the novelist Arne Garborg. Consult: Sargent, Grammar of the Dano-Soricrgian Language (O-X- ford, 18!)2) : Gioth, Danish and Dano-Xoru^gian Grammar (Boston, 1804) ; Poestion, Lchrbuch dcr norufgisehrn Sprache (2d ed.. Vienna, 1!)00) ; Noreen, Altisliindisehe iind altnorucgischc Gram- matik (2d ed., Halle, 18!)2) : Aasen. '.Vor.s/.- Gram- . matik (Christiania, 18fi4), and Xorsk Ordhog, with a supplement by Ross (ib.. 1872-90) ; .Lar- jl sen, Oversigt orer de norske Bygdemaal (ib., 1 1898) ; Larsen, Dictionary of the DanoSorwe- 1 gian and Fnglish Languages (3d ed., Cojienbagcn, I 1897) : Biynildsen, Dictionary of the English 1)1 and Dano-Xoruegian Languages (ib., 1900 — ) ; | Falk and Torp, Etymologisk Ordbog orer dot I norske og det danske Sprog (Christiania, I 1901—). T NORWEGIAN LITERATURE. Norwegian , literature is commonly considered to have begun , with the separation of Norway from Denmark i and the adoption of the Norwegian Constitution » in 1814. The histoiy of literature in Norway, - however, reaches back a thousand j'cars before ' this time to Bragi (c.800).the first .skald who is ' historically known to have composed poetry in the Old Norse language. His princijiat poem is . the Hagnarsdrapa. which owes its )u-cservalion, ' ill common with much of the skaldic p04>try of j old Norway, to the Icelander Snorri Sturluson, ;^ who incorporated it in his Snorru Eddn. There are a number of other poets in this and the succeeding period in Norway. After Bragi, the next in importance is Thjodolf of Hvin (c.855-9.30) , whose principal poem is the llaust- liing. also contained in the f>norra Edda. Besides this poetry by known authors, most of the anony- mous poems of the Elder Edda. composed, it is thiiULdil. between 87."; and 102.5. are doubtless j ultimately of Norwegian origin. To the Old I Norse prose literature of the thirteenth century » Norway also made important contributions. .t l the head of these works stands the Thidrckssagn, I the story of Dietrich of Bern, written about 12.50 ,f by an unknown author, and extremely valuable ■J as a storehouse of Germanic legend. The Karia- S magnussaga, the story of Charlemagne, from j this same century, and the narrative of Barlaam A and .Tosaphat, liarlaamfsaga ok Jo.taphals. are ij also by Norwegian authors. There are in addi- *] tion to fhese several old law codi's of value as i historical material, and the unique dialogue be- | tween father and son. the Konungsskuggsja, or jj f!preulum regale, written in the reign of Svcrre -^ ( 1 184-1202) , and possibly by the King himself 1