Our humble beginnings
Today, we have forgotten that the humans were also once a wild animal. Every single being was firmly connected to Mother Earth herself. Food, shelter, and clothing all came from what she had to offer.
Through 12 millennia, ever since the first people appeared in the territory that we today call Norway, every generation added to the treasure trove of knowledge.
The first Norwegians started with their two bare hands, in a climate that was far from welcoming. And from such humble beginnings, grew a culture of hunters, gatherers, and farmers.
It was a world where nature and the seasons dictated the flow of the working year. The one key focus was to ensure that there was enough food stored in the storehouse and in the barn, for the long and frosty winter.
This was the kind of society that the many emigrants who left Norway in the 1800s and early 1900s were born into. This was also the culture that – after the end of World War II – faded at an unprecedented speed.
The individual’s ancient knowledge of how to survive on what the land can offer, the wisdom it took thousands of years to accumulate, has almost disappeared, in the course of a few generations.
Storytellers around the fire
In a winter-cold country like Norway, the fire is a symbol of life and shelter. When daylight faded, the group gathered around the warm and protective flames. Throughout history, this was also the domain of the storyteller.
In the old world, the tribe did not send their children off to strangers to learn about life and their heritage. Parents, grandparents, and older siblings taught the young everything they needed to know – either by using the spoken word – or by showing them through actions; around the fire or in everyday life.
From a young age, the children learnt how to survive – and they learnt about the people who once walked the same paths as they did. Every generation passed on the knowledge from the generation before, adjusting and adding to it as their own experiences dictated.
Mobilising the last army of storytellers
It can be argued that the last generations of the old Norwegian farming society were born before the Second World War. As these generations grew older, they realised that the story of their forebears had to be told, unless it was to be completely forgotten. Not the history of kings and queens, but the history of everyday life.
In every corner of Norway, volunteers raised their hands and sharpened their pens. These women and men became the ancient Norwegian tribe’s last army of storytellers.
Throughout the 1900s, local historians gathered information, both from oral and written sources. So much of what they found would have been gone forever, had their endeavour been attempted today. With every passing generation, the voices of first-hand witnesses fall silent, and sadly, their testimonies are lost for all time.
The efforts of this Norwegian army of storytellers resulted in hundreds of books and thousands of photographs: local history books documenting family history and everyday history related to food, customs, tasks, tools, and much more.
The old Norway and unearthing its treasures
Today, these dust-covered local history books fill the shelves of the National Library of Norway and other archives. A lot of them are available online, although often sadly restricted to Norwegian residents only – and of course, they are written in the Norwegian language.
Anyone interested in Norwegian everyday history should know that there is a wealth of material out there, waiting to be unlocked and shared.
And to all of you descendants of Norwegian emigrants: know that the ownership of this heritage treasure trove – is equally yours.
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