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News:
- Blog ! . All commentaries will be published here. [24.10.06]
- The
AppleTree.Poem about understanding. [21.09.05]
- To-stemthet.
Poem about togetherness. [15.12.04]
- Transforming
Ethnic Nationalism - the politics of ethno-nationalistic sentiments
in Kosovo published here in full version (205 pages) in PDF
format. [31.05.03]
- Is
Kosovo Modern Enough? Article written for the JAVA Magazine.
[19.04.02]
- Field
Research in Conflict Societies - Methodological Problems. Article
for the Post-Graduate Student's Year Book 2002. [08.04.02]
- The
Potential of the 'Kosovar' Identity in Transforming Ethnic Nationalism
in Kosovo. Paper presented at the Popular Culture Association Conference
in New Mexico, USA. [14.02.02]
- The concept
of Ethnicity,
State and Nationalism applied on Kosovo. Written for JAVA in
Kosovo. [28.01.02]
- Chapter
1 - Introduction of thesis on "Transforming Ethnic Nationalism"
Draft v. 3.1 [22.01.02]
- Transformimi
i Nacionalizmit Etnik-Bashkimit Etnik si dhe Mundësia e Paraqitjes
së Identitetit 'Kosovar' [Transforming Ethni Nationalism
and the Formation and Potential of the 'Kosovar' Identity]. Published
in JAVA Magazine in the Albanian dialect 'Gheg' (as spoken in Kosovo)
[02.01.02]
-The
Norwegian Language Debate. Written for JAVA magazine in Kosovo
that promotes the usage of the Northern Albanian 'Gheg' in Kosovo
as opposed to the official Albanian language in Albania.
- Dynamic
Classification of Ethnic Incorporation. Revitalising Handelmann's
table in order to see changes in ethnic incoporation. [17.12.01]
- Transforming
Ethnic Nationalism Draft paper (v.2.9) Published for Public
Review (17 p). [16.12.01]
- Photos
from six months stay in Kosovo working for the OSCE [16.12.01]
- The
usage of the Albanian Flag in Kosovo - traces of transformation
in ethno-nationalistic sentiments? One of the key points in
my thesis. [April 2001]
- Albansk
Nasjonalisme og ideen om Stor-Albania: en oppklaring av albansk
regional politikk i Serbia, Makedonia og Kosovo [Albanian Nationalism
and the idea about 'Greater Albania': analysing the regional albanian
politics in Serbia, Macedonia and Kosovo].[April
2001]
We
live in a global economy - ATTAC too! Comment about the recent
development of the ATTAC movement. [16.04.01]
- Popular
Patriotic Songs in Kosovo. Some of the most popular modern songs
in Kosovo today translated into english (preliminary translation).
[December 2000]
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The Norwegian Language Debate
Norway had until the 19th century not its own written language. Norway was part of the Danish kingdom for 400 years until 1814, and the Danes made Danish the official written language. In 1814 the elite representing the landlords and trade industry in Norway assembled at Eidsvoll, north of Oslo, and founded a constitution that declared Norway independent.
Still, they used the Danish language, but called it Norwegian. There was no convention for a written language in Norway and the difficulty in making such a convention seemed enormous – in every valley and behind every mountain there was a different dialect. The Danish written language was understood by most literate people, but it was idenitified with Danish culture and its king rather than the people of Norway. Norwegian writers and administrators had often been educated in Denmark and thereby learned to master the written Danish language.
Even though Danish resembled the spoken language in Norway, it was difficult for Norwegians to speak proper Danish, the way of pronunciation was completely different. The emblem of the Norwegian-Danish royal elite was that they mastered the ‘proper' written and oral language, symbolising their high and sophisticated culture as opposed to the general population whose language was impure.
Self-Determination and Independence
The French revolution radically changed the way people perceived the function of a state and the people in which it is supposed to govern. Self-determination and freedom from absolutistic governance were key ideas that spread rapidly all over Europe. It was with this background that the ‘new Norwegian' language gradually got caught up in the wave of national romantic sentiments throughout the 19th century. An unknown student of medicine in Bergen, Laurents Hallager, was in 1802 the first to suggest the idea that Norwegian spoken language was quite different from Danish and Swedish and could develop into a proper written language if only people started to write it. He published a small Norwegian Dictionary or what he called “A Sample of Norwegian Words and Ways of Speaking” that included more than 7000 words and a couple of old village hymns. In the following years it was a lot of discussion about the written language. In the coming period from 1830 there was a steady growth in the economy as Norwegian products became more and more attractive on the European market. The ship fleet doubled many times all the way till 1910 when Norway had one of the world's largest fleet of ships. This brought a steady and sustainable economic growth that secured the establishment of a proper state administration and produced a middle class concerned about Norwegian identity and culture *
Most known for the development of the ‘New Norwegian' language is however Ivar Aasen. He wrote in his declaration of 1836 that “As our forefathers' land has become yet again what it once was, free and independent, it must be in our powers to use an independent and national language, as this is the foremost emblem of a nation”. He said we had to start from before Danish rule and throw away the “Danish clothing, that covers our language as a stiff confirmation dress** around the quick farmer boy”. The new language should be based on the spoken languages in the villages and the farmer became the rescue of the language. Ivar Aasen travelled extensively throughout Norway and mapped usage of words and grammar in the different dialects. In 1850 he published a dictionary for the “Norwegian People's Language”. It was further developed with a “Norwegian Grammar” in 1864 and “Norwegian Dictionary with Explanation in Danish” in 1873 ***.
As writers and artists started to use the new Norwegian language, there was a great revival in literature and art that still stands as a golden era in the history of Norway. Writers such as Aasmund Olavsson Vinje, Henrik Ibsen, Arne Garborg, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Camilla Collett and Henrik Wergeland, who made the Norwegian National Hymn. Artists such as Hans Gude, Tidemand and Edvard Munch produced paintings that represented the new national identity. Hulda Garborg started a movement to cultivate and conserve traditional songs and dances, and contributed to the establishment of folk costumes representing various regions, now still in use as national costumes
The two official Languages
As a parliamentary system was introduced in the 1870ies there was now two official written languages, ‘bokmaal' and ‘nynorsk' (New Norwegian). The first was based on the Danish written language but made more Norwegian-like, while the latter, ‘New Norwegian' was based upon the dialects throughout Norway. These two official written languages still prevails today, but are now brought closer and closer together by conventional changes. Many linguists believe that these two languages will merge together in approximately 30 years.
** The confirmation ritual is a Christian rites de passage most children in Norway at the age of 15-16 years go through, very much similar to the circumcision ritual in Kosovo (sudet).
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