These Norwegian connections were particularly important in the early years of the college when some classes were taught in Norwegian and much of the area’s population was of Norwegian descent.
Two statues on Concordia’s campus, the Hans Nielsen Hauge and Ivar Aasen monuments, stand as reminders of the college’s Norwegian heritage.
Not only has the Norwegian heritage of the institution been cultivated throughout its 125 years, but also its ties to the Lutheran church. Concordia’s religious heritage has connections to Hans Nilsen Hauge, a Norwegian layman preacher, reformer and social activist. Hauge inspired a religious revival in Norway, although he was not a pastor. As a lay preacher, he traveled about Norway influencing the country’s lower classes. One reason he was so popular among the common people was his skill with industry and the resulting practices he taught them. While the Church of Norway did eventually adopt some of his ideas, Hauge was feared by the government and imprisoned for his work. Many of Concordia’s founders drew upon Hauge’s ideals, and established a setting where students and staff could come together to achieve common goals.
Ivar Aasen, born in 1813, played a similar role in impacting Norwegian culture. He developed a language, named Nynorsk or New Norwegian, based on the dialects of the common people. Aasen believed the written language should be based on the spoken language of the people rather than the existing language the Danes had used during their rule of Norway. To create this language, Aasen traveled throughout Norway documenting the various dialects of each region. He wrote “The Dictionary of Norwegian Dialects” in the mid-1800s and lived to see his language recognized and widely utilized.
Both of these monuments were made possible by a Norwegian immigrant who attended Concordia. Peter Reite came to Concordia in 1910 after emigrating from Norway. Eager to celebrate Norwegian heritage, Reite solicited funds to place a monument of Hans Nielsen Hauge on Concordia’s campus in 1912. After succeeding in this goal, he formed a new committee for the Ivar Aasen monument the following year. Dedication ceremonies occurred for both monuments and were widely attended. The unveiling of the Hauge monument was witnessed by an estimated 15,000 people including two delegates from Norway: Rev. Hans Nielsen Hauge, grandson of the religious reformer, and Bishop Peter W. K. Boeckmann.
Text taken from “History and Heritage: Celebrating 125 Years of Concordia College.” The exhibition is open through June 10, 2017, at the Historical & Cultural Society of Clay County.