Jan Myhre

Followers

Following

Public Views

Alex Woolf

University of St Andrews

Armando Marques-Guedes

UNL - New University of Lisbon

Jacques Chiffoleau

EHESS-Ecole des hautes études en sciences sociales

Fjodor Uspenskij

Vinogradov Russian Language Institute

Ekaterini Mitsiou

University of Vienna

Viacheslav Kuleshov

Stockholm University

Torsten dos Santos Arnold

Justus-Liebig-University Giessen

Francesco D'Angelo

Università degli Studi "La Sapienza" di Roma

María Luz Rodrigo-Estevan

University of Zaragoza

Per G. Norseng

Universitetet i Sørøst-Norge / University of South-Eastern Norway

Interests

Uploads

Papers by Jan Myhre

The Cradle of Norwegian Equality and Egalitarianism: Norway in the Nineteenth Century

Egalitarianism in Scandinavia, 2017

The chapter contends that Norwegian social equality and egalitarianism—measurable equality and th... more The chapter contends that Norwegian social equality and egalitarianism—measurable equality and the ideology of equality—find their roots in the nineteenth century. Contemporary egalitarianism began with the liberal Constitution of 1814 with its wide franchise, liberal principles concerning citizens’ rights and the abolition of nobility. The worship of the Norwegian peasant was part of nationalism with a harmonizing content. Equality had several dimensions. There was equality before the law. Freedom of expression and to pursue business was somewhat restricted, but, together with freedom of religion, was liberalized in mid-century. The wide franchise gave to the vote to 40 percent of adult men, giving the peasants and other groups beyond the elite of higher civil servants a say in politics. Freedom was valued higher than equality, but personal freedom was also an equalizer, economically, politically and socially. Compulsory schooling, making the population literate, together with widespread voluntary associations, acted as social levellers. The civil servants were to some degree a legitimate elite, due to building of an infrastructure benefitting all and a relative non-corrupt governance.

Urbanisering i Oslos periferi

Plan, 2009

Ragnar Björk og Alf W. Johansson (red.): Svenska historiker. Från medeltid till våra dagar

Historisk tidsskrift, 2011

... 294) By Arnfinn Kjelland. Jan Brendalsmo, Finn-Einar Eliassen, Terje Gansum (red.): Den urban... more

Med sersjanten i forskningsskapet: forskning med tellekanter

Nytt Norsk Tidsskrift, 2003

Telemarks historie 2: 1814 - 1905

Norge – et stort vrengebilde. Svar til Dag Herbjørnsrud

Historisk tidsskrift, 2007

Thorbjörn Nilsson: Torgslaget 1829. Myter och minnen om ett norsk-svensk drama

Historisk tidsskrift, 2019

Torgslaget er en bok om et lite fenomen, et sammenstøt mellom militaere og borgere noen timer på ... more Torgslaget er en bok om et lite fenomen, et sammenstøt mellom militaere og borgere noen timer på kvelden og natten til 17. mai 1829 på og omkring Stortorget og gatene omkring i den lille hovedstaden Christiania. Ingen døde, noen få ble skadet, men ingen alvorlig. Hvorfor er «slaget» så vidt berømt at alle noenlunde historisk orienterte nordmenn har hørt om det, og det derfor fortjener en egen bok? Mange små sammenstøt mellom befolkning og øvrighet på 1800-tallet har gått mer eller mindre i glemmeboka. Grunnen er selvsagt at Torgslaget har inngått-og inngår-i en større nasjonal kontekst, byggingen av en norsk nasjonal identitet i dette nasjonalismens århundre. «Minnen» om det er mange, likeså de tallrike «myter». Nilsson går grundig gjennom denne nasjonale kontekst. Kong Karl Johan hadde forbudt norsk feiring av 17. mai; det var jo grunnloven av 4. november 1814 som gjaldt. Mange nordmenn ønsket å feire den opprinnelige grunnlovsdagen (og dermed friheten). På toppen av det hele ankom dampskipet «Constitutionen» hovedstaden denne dagen i 1829. En hyllende folkemengde mottok skipet og beveget seg til Stortorget, dels under hurrarop (som ble betraktet som suspekte). Da folk ikke gikk hjem, ble opprørsloven lest, uten resultat, og en gruppe militaere til hest og til fots angrep, under ledelse av kommandanten på Akershus festning, baron Ferdinand Wedel Jarlsberg. Angrepet virket i samtiden ekstra opprørende, blant annet fordi kongens stattholder, den upopulaere von Platen, regjerte i Christiania. I ettertiden er det imidlertid Henrik Wergeland, selv til stede på Stortorget, som har formet oppfatningen (eller myten) om Torgslaget, gjennom egen tekst og tegning, og ikke minst gjennom opphøyelsen av Wergeland som en sentral nasjonal figur, saerlig i annen halvdel av det 19. århundre.

Download

Social History in Norway in the 1970s and Beyond: Evolution and Professionalisation

Contemporary European History, 2018

The rise of the new social history ('sosialhistorie' in Norwegian) in Norway from around 1970 was... more The rise of the new social history ('sosialhistorie' in Norwegian) in Norway from around 1970 was more of an evolution than a revolution. The social aspect of Norwegian history writing had been important for decades, a trait which also may explain its success. What was unusual, however, was the conscious application of new terms, theories and methods, partly borrowed from the social sciences, and the introduction of 'social history' as a rallying point. This article tries to show that processes of professionalisationcharacterised by specialisation and with increasing emphasis on originalitywere an important element of this new social history. In a lecture in 1964 the prominent Norwegian historian Andreas Holmsen (1906-89) commented on the state of the country's historiography. Holmsen was a historian of the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, known for his structural approach to economic and settlement history, not unlike what was published in the Annales at the time. In the lecture he compared his way of doing history with that of another prominent historian, his contemporary and adversary Jens Arup Seip (1905-92). Seip was trained as a historian of the Middle Ages, but later turned to studying the nineteenth century. Previously sympathetic to the social sciences, he had turned against it (at least as an inspiration to history), and now favoured studying political history and the struggle for power. 1 In the 1960s Holmsen thought Seip to be by far the most influential of the two, or indeed compared to anyone, in the Norwegian history discipline. Political history was dominant. Seip had won, Holmsen wrote, and he had lost. 2 Only a few years later, the tables had turned. From the early 1970s, social historyalso known as the 'new social history' or simply the 'new history'was on nearly everybody's lips. 3 Books, articles, PhD theses and master's dissertations poured out, many declaring explicitly their genre as 'social history', which was the preferred term in Norway. 4 Interestingly, the chronological centre of attention was the century of Seip's research, the nineteenth, with its far-reaching social changes. Perhaps equally interesting was Seip's own reaction. He found much of the new work on

Download

Everyday life

The Cambridge History of Scandinavia, 2016

Vicini e lontani: svedesi nelle citta norvegesi (1814-1914)

Quaderni Storici, 2001

Nordic urban history and urban historians in the last decade

Urban History, 1988

To people from the Continent, like the German essayist Hans Magnus Enzensberger, Norwegians seem ... more To people from the Continent, like the German essayist Hans Magnus Enzensberger, Norwegians seem to be something of an urban puzzle. While crowding in towns and cities — about three-quarters of the population now live in urban settlements — the minds and lifestyles of Norwegians, their concept of the good life, are stubbornly rural. More or less the same applies to the Finns. The Danes, on the other hand, are conceived as quite the opposite, a fundamentally urban nation. The Swedes fall somewhere in between.Differences in urban attitudes, as well as other diversities between the Nordic countries, are cherished among the inhabitants themselves, although most people are well aware that the culturally unifying elements are strong, too. The variations are real, however, and different urban experiences may partly account for them. Take the case of nineteenth-century urbanization, with examples extracted from the 1977 Trondheim Nordic history conference report on urbanization.

Download

Finding the middle‐class. Norway in a comparative perspective,c.1870–1940∗

Scandinavian Journal of History, 1994

Etta des lieux de la recherche historique sur la formation de la classe moyenne en tant qu'en... more Etta des lieux de la recherche historique sur la formation de la classe moyenne en tant qu'entite distincte ayant des traits specifiques en Norvege au 19 e et 20 e siecles. L'A. passe en revue les outils conceptuels et souligne les difficultes rencontrees par les historiens pour delimiter la classe moyenne. L'A. evalue notamment certains indicateurs sociaux : mobilite sociale, distance sociale et lieu de residence semi-rural (banlieue), modes de vie, structure familiale, limitation des naissances, education des enfants et reproduction sociale, organisations professionnelles, organisations sociales/associations, valeurs culturelles (contre cultures) et politiques (democratie, nationalisme et internationalisme)

From The History of Society to Social History? The Development of Social History in Norway

Jahrbuch für Wirtschaftsgeschichte / Economic History Yearbook, 1996

Of all social history theses, working-class studies, women's history and historical demography (m... more Of all social history theses, working-class studies, women's history and historical demography (mobility and family history) loomed particularly large. "Theses" refers to the cand. philol. (hovedfag) degree. The theses may be placed somewhere between an American M.A. and a Ph.D. In length they are between 100 and 400 pages.

Download

Wanted and unwanted suburbs: Annexations and urban identity. the case of Christiania (Oslo) in the nineteenth century

Scandinavian Economic History Review, 1996

Abstract The elevation of Christiania (Oslo) to the status of capital in 1814 gave impetus to a p... more Abstract The elevation of Christiania (Oslo) to the status of capital in 1814 gave impetus to a phenomenal urban growth during the rest of the century, from a population of 13,000 to one of 250,000. The appearance of a succession of new suburbs confronted Oslo’s inhabitants, the authorities of the city and the adjoining »kommune«, and the national authorities too with a number of challenges: political, legal, administrative and intellectual. Were the suburbs truly urban, and did they fully belong to the city? What would be the economic costs or benefits of including the suburbs, both for the city and the surrounding municipality? What would be the social and political effects? An additional complication was that there was no single decisive legal boundary between the town and the country, but several. Six such limits are identified in the paper. The argument is focused on the struggle concerning the two suburban annexations of 1859 and 1878. In the course of the struggle, Oslo city council movedfrom a pos...

The Cradle of Norwegian Equality and Egalitarianism: Norway in the Nineteenth Century

Egalitarianism in Scandinavia, 2017