Johannes Heggland
Encyclopedia
Johannes Heggland was a Norwegian
novel writer, short story writer, children's writer, playwright, farmer and politician from Tysnes
.
, Hordaland
, Norway. Heggland grew up as the youngest of 11 children in a family with a living oral tradition. His home region of Sunnhordland is a traditional district, consisting of the southern, coastal regions of the county of Hordaland, near the mouth of the Hardangerfjord.
He participated in local politics for nearly 30 years. Heggland was mayor in Tysnes
from 1956 to 1959, and again from 1968 to 1971. He was chairman of Norwegian Authors' Union
from 1982 to 1985 and member of the Nordic Council
's literary prize committee from 1983 to 1986. He was also a member of the Norwegian Language Council
and board member for Riksteatret
.
Heggland made his literary debut in 1941 with Folk under fjell, and later wrote more than sixty books. Nearly half of his books are based on extensive historical studies, from the Bronze Age
to the present time, with emphasis on the time around the Black Death
.
Mostraspelet, a play in 3 acts with music by Kjell Habbestad, had its world premiere in 1984. Set on the island of Moster
in Sunnhordland during the years 995, 997 and 1024, the play deals with the introduction of Christianity in Norway by King Olaf Tryggvason. Between 1995-1996, he wrote a series of plays based upon the reign of King Håkon I of Norway. The plays have been performed annual as part of the Håkonarspelet summer festival.
His prose is in the broad epic tradition with a Sunnhordland
dialect and great insight into Norwegian rural society. Heggland insisted all along on the epic realism and traditionalism, he stood outside modernism, social realism and metaphysical literature.
Heggland received a number of literary awards for his writing, including the Nynorsk Literature Prize
in 1988. He was proclaimed a Knight, First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav for his cultural work.
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
novel writer, short story writer, children's writer, playwright, farmer and politician from Tysnes
Tysnes
Tysnes is a municipality in the county of Hordaland, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnhordland. The administrative centre is the village of Uggdal....
.
Biography
Johannes Andreas Martin Heggland was born in TysnesTysnes
Tysnes is a municipality in the county of Hordaland, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnhordland. The administrative centre is the village of Uggdal....
, Hordaland
Hordaland
is a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark and Rogaland. Hordaland is the third largest county after Akershus and Oslo by population. The county administration is located in Bergen...
, Norway. Heggland grew up as the youngest of 11 children in a family with a living oral tradition. His home region of Sunnhordland is a traditional district, consisting of the southern, coastal regions of the county of Hordaland, near the mouth of the Hardangerfjord.
He participated in local politics for nearly 30 years. Heggland was mayor in Tysnes
Tysnes
Tysnes is a municipality in the county of Hordaland, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnhordland. The administrative centre is the village of Uggdal....
from 1956 to 1959, and again from 1968 to 1971. He was chairman of Norwegian Authors' Union
Norwegian Authors' Union
The Norwegian Authors' Union is an association of Norwegian authors. It was established in 1893 to promote Norwegian literature and protect Norwegian authors' professional and economic interests. DnF also works in solidarity with persecuted writers internationally.As of 2004 the association had...
from 1982 to 1985 and member of the Nordic Council
Nordic Council
The Nordic Council is a geo-political, inter-parliamentary forum for co-operation between the Nordic countries. It was established following World War II and its first concrete result was the introduction in 1952 of a common labour market and free movement across borders without passports for the...
's literary prize committee from 1983 to 1986. He was also a member of the Norwegian Language Council
Norwegian Language Council
The Norwegian Language Council was the regulation authority for the Norwegian language. It has been superseded by The Language Council of Norway .The council had 38 members, and created lists of acceptable word forms...
and board member for Riksteatret
Riksteatret
Riksteatret is a Norwegian touring theatre. It was established by law in 1948. Its first performance was in Kirkenes in 1949, with Sigurd Christiansen's play En reise i natten. The theatre plays on about 200 different stages throughout the country. Its first theatre director was Fritz von der...
.
Heggland made his literary debut in 1941 with Folk under fjell, and later wrote more than sixty books. Nearly half of his books are based on extensive historical studies, from the Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
to the present time, with emphasis on the time around the Black Death
Black Death
The Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Of several competing theories, the dominant explanation for the Black Death is the plague theory, which attributes the outbreak to the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Thought to have...
.
Mostraspelet, a play in 3 acts with music by Kjell Habbestad, had its world premiere in 1984. Set on the island of Moster
Moster
Moster is a former municipality in Hordaland county, Norway.It was created by the split of Finnås on July 1, 1916, which created the new municipalities Moster, Bømlo and Bremnes. At that time Moster had a population of 1.316....
in Sunnhordland during the years 995, 997 and 1024, the play deals with the introduction of Christianity in Norway by King Olaf Tryggvason. Between 1995-1996, he wrote a series of plays based upon the reign of King Håkon I of Norway. The plays have been performed annual as part of the Håkonarspelet summer festival.
His prose is in the broad epic tradition with a Sunnhordland
Sunnhordland
Sunnhordland is a traditional district in the western part of Norway, consisting of the southern, coastal regions of the county of Hordaland, from the mouth of the Hardangerfjord and outwards to the Atlantic Ocean...
dialect and great insight into Norwegian rural society. Heggland insisted all along on the epic realism and traditionalism, he stood outside modernism, social realism and metaphysical literature.
Heggland received a number of literary awards for his writing, including the Nynorsk Literature Prize
Nynorsk Literature Prize
The Nynorsk Literature Prize is awarded annually by Noregs Mållag, Det Norske Teatret and Det Norske Samlaget for the best book in either Nynorsk or dialect...
in 1988. He was proclaimed a Knight, First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav for his cultural work.
Awards
- Emmaus Award (2001)
- Doblougprisen Prize for Literature (1990)
- Melsom Prize (1972)
- Alfred Andersson-Rysst Fund (1965)
- Gyldendal's EndowmentGyldendal's EndowmentGyldendal's Endowment was a literature prize which was awarded in the period 1934–1995 by the Norwegian publisher Gyldendal Norsk Forlag. The prize was awarded to significant authors, regardless of which publisher the author was associated with...
(1961) - Ministry of Culture's award of children's literature (1962, 1963, 1964, 1970, 1972)
Novels
- Folk under fjell (1941)
- Guds åkerland (1943
- Menneskebrunnen (1949)
- Gard (1951)
- Kvinnfolkgarden (1955)
- Dagen før domedag (1961)
- Gabriel (1969)
- Rusdøler (1971)
- Brødet frå havet, four volumes (1981–84)
- Seglet og vinden, three volumes (1985–87)
- Det saltlause saltet (1999)
Plays
- Kongen med gullhjelmen (1996)
- Håkon Adelsteinsfostre (1996)
- Håkon Adelsteinfostre i Gula (1996)
- Håkonarvarde (1995)