Scandinavian Studies

This course deals with reception and heritage, and the ways in which ideas of the historical past are constructed and changed to fit into new contexts. The focal point of the lectures and readings is the Nordic world, particularly the so-called Viking Age. The Viking Age is a pertinent case because of the multiple ramifications of that period across time and space. The course presents different theories and perspectives of relevance for reception and heritage (e.g., theories about memory, media, adaptation and heritage tourism; antiquarianism, medievalism, etc.). The course engages with (in principle) all kinds of reception, such as literary, religious, political and cultural, in Scandinavia, Europe and the wider world, and with textual, visual and material representations from the Middle Ages to our contemporary times. Among the topics to be discussed are, firstly, the stereotypes and images of the Viking Age and the appropriation of Norse stories and legends that circulate in popular culture and contemporary media; and secondly, the relevance and function of the Viking Age as a central component in the cultural memory of groups of people. It asks questions such as: When, and where, did the idea of the Viking Age and the Vikings take form? Why is there such a widespread interest in the Viking Age, for instance, in North America? For whom, when and in which contexts has the Viking Age functioned as an identity forming factor? How are medieval Icelandic sagas and Old Norse myths adapted in, for example, literature, film and music? Is Viking heritage tourism a national or an international phenomenon? To what extent is the Viking Age an integral phenomenon that connects cultures, and to what extent does its uses create boundaries?

This course provides an overview of societal, cultural, and literary developments in the North Atlantic island of Iceland, from its settlement in the late 9th Century through the end of its Commonwealth Period in the later part of the 13th Century. The main focus of the course is the rich literary heritage of medieval Iceland. Students engage with a representative selection of texts, covering a range of genres and topics. By undertaking guided readings and analysis against a background of pertinent historical, and cultural developments, the course reviews the value of these texts as literary artefacts and historical source materials.

Many countries rely heavily on voluntary organisations during crises, and their efforts are often crucial in reducing the social impact of a crisis. The course focuses on the phenomenon of volunteerism and discusses the role of volunteerism and voluntary organisations linked to crisis and war in Swedish society as political and empirical phenomena. The course inventories and discusses volunteerism and voluntary organisations and their formal and informal relationship to public organisations and authorities.

The Scandinavian countries (Sweden, Norway, Denmark) are often seen as global models of welfare, good governance, and high quality of life, successfully combining social protection with entrepreneurial success. Historically associated with consensus politics, trust, and moral leadership - through figures such as Olof Palme or Norway's peace diplomacy - the region has long defied conventional wisdom about global pressures for deregulation, showing how social protection can coexist with global competitiveness. Recent narratives of decline, however, point to rising crime, economic stagnation, and populism. This course revisits the evolving politics of the "Nordic model," exploring its institutions, challenges, and relevance for Europe through history, politics, economics, and sociology.

The course focuses on the Scandinavian colonial expansion from 1600 to the early 20th century. Based on a number of case studies (e.g. resource colonialism in Sápmi and Greenland, plantations in the Danish West Indies, trade and consumption of colonial products), the course examines colonial discourses and practice and notice relationships between colonialism and resources/environment, economics, power, resistance and science and colonial inheritance. The course also explores the different cultural processes, such as creolisation, othering and ambivalence that takes place in colonial environments and manifests itself in material culture. The course introduces theoretical procedures for historical-archaeological studies of colonialism and presents different sources, methods and perspectives and central research questions.

This course provides basic knowledge of the culture of the Viking Age, such as it is presented in contemporary sources and in interpretations and applications from the past two centuries with a special focus on how this culture has gained considerable importance then and in modern times, in the Viking homelands, and the surrounding world. The course provides skills in interpreting, understanding and discussing certain contemporary sources both written (Old Norse literature, rune inscriptions, chronicles) and archaeological, and to analyze the nature of Viking culture's depiction in high and popular culture in fiction, film, media, monuments and cultural-political contexts with a certain emphasis on its relationship with the romantic tradition. The course highlights how the modern spread of Viking culture has been marked by academic and political disagreements.