«Han har da ei Lærebygning» Aasmund Olavsson Vinje sitt syn på Knud Knudsen i Dølen

Abstract

Knud Knudsen (1812–1895) and Aasmund O. Vinje (1818–1870) were two prominent Norwegian figures in the nineteenth century. Although they are both frequently mentioned in various books and texts about Norwegian language history, there are no studies focusing on a comparison of the two of them. They had strong opinions on various topics and often participated in public debates. In addition to this, they are intertwined with the early development of what later became the two Norwegian written languages: bokmål and nynorsk. Vinje is usually associated with what later became nynorsk, while Knudsen is a part of the history of bokmål. This dichotomy, however, obscures some of the details in the relationship between these two very complex men. The aim of this article is to share some nuances in the relationship between the two of them and to discuss their differences and similarities.