A rather tenacious myth says that Norway was among the poorest and in many ways backward countries in Europe around 1900. That was certainly not the case. In pure economic terms Norway was placed in the middle among West-European countries. But in other aspects - democracy, administration and culture - Norway was more advanced. The Swedish historian Bo Stråth states, with special regards to Norway: "No countries in Europe were more modern than the Nordic countries around 1900". How came this situation about?
The Norwegian progress in the century between 1814 and 1914 lay the foundation of what has been named the "Norwegian (Nordic) model". It consist of relative social equality, publicly financed education, a stable economy through extensive governmental intervention, a relatively efficient and non-corrupt administration, a high degree a female participation in the work force and - not least - very strong collective movements (civil society). The foundations og the triangular co-operation in industrial relations (trekantsamarbeidet) was laid through social trust, also towards the government. We may add a high degree of legal freedom. It must be added: Norways's relative riches and generally advanced society is relative to other countries at the same time.
The presentation builds upon:
- Jan Eivind Myhre, Den norske modellen blir til. Norge 1814-1914 (Dreyer 2022)
- Jan Eivind Myhre (ed.), Myten om det fattige norge. En misforståelse og dens historie (Scandinavian Academic Press, Spartacus, 2021).
This Friday colloquium will be hybrid. Attendees can therefore participate either in-person or via Zoom. Please join via Zoom at
https://uio.zoom.us/j/69001043754?pwd=cEJpbVE5ci9PdWNtRld2TDNNcGtKdz09
Meeting ID:690 0104 3754
Passcode: PeiseStua3
Attendees will be muted during the colloquium, but will have the opportunity to ask questions at the end by clicking on the "raise hand” button (or send a request via chat).