View source for Jørgen Moe

{{Short description|Norwegian folklorist, poet and bishop (1813–1882)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2023}}
{{Infobox Christian leader
|honorific-prefix = Right Reverend
|name             = Jørgen Engebretsen Moe
|honorific-suffix = 
|native_name      = 
|native_name_lang = 
|title            = Bishop of Kristianssand
|image            = Jørgen Moe.jpg
|image_size       = 
|alt              = 
|caption          = ''Jørgen Moe'' by Adolf Closs
|church           = [[Church of Norway]]
|diocese          = [[Diocese of Agder og Telemark|Diocese of Kristianssand]]
|appointed        = 1874
|term             = 1874–1882
|predecessor      = 
|successor        = 
|other_post       = 
<!---------- Orders ---------->
|ordination       = 
|ordinated_by     = 
|consecration     = 
|consecrated_by   = 
<!---------- Personal details ---------->
|birth_name       = 
|birth_date       = {{Birth date|1813|04|22|df=yes}}
|birth_place      = [[Hole, Norway|Hole]], [[Denmark-Norway]]
|death_date       = {{Death date and age|1882|03|27|1813|04|22|df=yes}}
|death_place      = [[Kristiansand]], [[Norway]]
|buried           = [[Vestre Aker Church]]<br />graveyard, [[Oslo|Kristiania]]
|nationality      = [[Norwegians|Norwegian]]
|religion         = [[Christianity|Christian]]
|residence        = 
|parents          = Engebret Olsen Moe and Marthe Jørgensdatter
|spouse           = Johanne Fredrikke Sophie Sørenssen
|children         = [[Moltke Moe]]
|occupation       = [[Priest]]
|profession       = 
|previous_post    = 
|education        = 
|alma_mater       = 
|motto            = 
|signature        = 
|signature_alt    = 
}}

'''Jørgen Engebretsen Moe''' (22 April 1813&ndash;27 March 1882) was a [[Norway|Norwegian]] [[folklorist]], [[bishop]], poet, and author. He is best known for the ''[[Norske Folkeeventyr]]'', a collection of Norwegian [[Scandinavian folklore|folk tales]] which he edited in collaboration with [[Peter Christen Asbjørnsen]].  He also served as the [[Bishop]] of the [[Diocese of Agder og Telemark|Diocese of Kristianssand]] from 1874 until his death in 1882.<ref name="snl">{{cite web|url=https://snl.no/J%C3%B8rgen_Moe|title=Jørgen Moe|website=[[Store norske leksikon]]|first=Øystein|last=Rottem|language=no|access-date=2017-04-25}}</ref>

== Biography ==
Jørgen Engebretsen Moe was born at the farm of Øvre Moe in the municipality of [[Hole, Norway|Hole]] in the traditional district of [[Ringerike (traditional district)|Ringerike]]. He was the son of local farmer and politician [[Engebret Olsen Moe]]. He first met Asbjørnsen while the two were preparing for exams at [[Norderhov|Norderhov Rectory]] and soon found they had a shared interest in [[folklore]].<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.dokpro.uio.no/cgi-bin/stad/matr50|title=Buskerud, Hole herad, Hole sokn| journal=Matrikkelutkastet av 1950|language=no}}</ref>

Starting in 1841, Moe traveled almost every summer through the southern parts of Norway, collecting traditions and stories from the people living in the mountainous areas. In 1845, he was appointed professor of theology in the [[Norwegian Military Academy]]. However, Moe had long intended to take holy orders, and in 1853 he did so. He became a resident chaplain in [[Krødsherad]] at [[Olberg Church]] and [[Holmen Church (Buskerud)|Holmen Church]] in [[Sigdal]], positions that he held for 10 years.<ref name="snl" />

At his first parish he found inspiration for many of his most famous poems, like ''den gamle Mester'' (The Old Master) and ''Sæterjentens Søndag'' (Sunday at the Mountain Pastures). In 1863, he moved to [[Drammen]] and became parish priest of [[Bragernes Church]], then in 1870 he moved again to [[Vestre Aker]], close to [[Oslo|Christiania]] (now Oslo). In 1874, he became bishop in the [[Diocese of Agder og Telemark|Diocese of Kristianssand]] based at the [[Kristiansand Cathedral]], a position he held from 1874 until his death in 1882. He was a much beloved bishop, and his teaching had a great impact on his contemporaries.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gonorway.no/norway/articles/2704|title=Jørgen Engebretsen Moe|publisher=GoNorway.no|access-date=26 September 2010|archive-date=29 February 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120229131332/http://www.gonorway.no/norway/articles/2704|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.agderkultur.no/Kristiansand%20domkirke/Side1.htm|title=Domkirkens historie før 1880|publisher=R. Stav Johanssen Printing A/S Kristiansand|author=Arthur Thorbjørnsen|date=2007|access-date=2016-06-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110211162053/http://www.agderkultur.no/Kristiansand%20domkirke/Side1.htm|archive-date=11 February 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Moe has a special claim on critical attention in regard to his [[lyric poetry|lyrical poems]], of which a small collection appeared in 1850. Moe felt strongly that writing should be "objective," in the sense that it removed the [[Id, ego and super-ego#Ego|ego]] from the narrative. Still, he strove to build and maintain a literary aesthetic in his work. He wrote little original verse, but in his slender volume are to be found many pieces of exquisite delicacy and freshness. Moe also published a delightful collection of prose stories for children, ''I Brønden og i Tjernet'' (In the Well and in the Tarn), 1851; and  ''En liden Julegave'' (A Little Christmas Present), 1860. Asbjørnsen and Moe had the advantage of an admirable style of narrative prose. It was usual that the vigor came from Asbjørnsen and the charm from Moe, but it seems that from the long habit of writing in unison they had come to adopt almost precisely identical modes of literary expression.<ref>[http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~norway/NorgeFolktales.htm ''The Norwegian Folk Tales and their Illustrators'' (Norway List)]</ref>

Moe was appointed Knight of the [[Order of St. Olav]] in 1873 and was made commander of the 1st cross class in 1881. During January 1882, he resigned his [[diocese]] due to failing health, and died the following March. His son, [[Moltke Moe]], continued his father's work in folklore and fairy tales and became the first professor of the subject at [[Christiania University]].<ref>[http://www.norsknettskole.no/fag/ressurser/itstud/fuv/atlebolsen/jorgen.htm ''Jørgen Moe'' (Norsk Litteraturhistorie)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724182026/http://www.norsknettskole.no/fag/ressurser/itstud/fuv/atlebolsen/jorgen.htm |date=24 July 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=  http://www.pookpress.co.uk/project/asbjornsen-and-moe-biography/|title= Asbjørnsen and Moe|publisher=   Pook Press|access-date= 1 June 2016}}</ref>

== Impact on Norwegian culture ==
Together with Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, the impact of Jørgen Moe on [[culture of Norway|Norwegian culture]] was enormous. To [[Norwegians]], the names [[Asbjørnsen and Moe]] have become synonymous with traditional folk tales, the way the name [[Brothers Grimm]] is associated with [[German literature|German tales]]. Not only did they collect and secure parts of the wealth of Norwegian fairy tales and edit them for common readers, but in doing this, they also contributed to the development of the [[Norwegian language]].

Even if other countries have a rich folk literature, Norwegians will normally claim that theirs, through the work of Asbjørnsen and Moe, is one of the most original and rich. Their work constitutes a very important part of Norwegian identity.  ''Askeladden'' (Ash Boy), a character whose creativity and resourcefulness always wins him the Princess and half the Kingdom, is seen as something typically Norwegian. Some of Moe's works of poetry are still cherished, not least because of the tunes set to them. His achievements in the Church are now mostly forgotten, except locally.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kuleuven.be/cetra/papers/Papers1999/Rudvin%201999.pdf|title=Norske Folkeeventyr. A Polysystemic Approach to Folk Literature in Nineteenth-Century Norway|first=Mette|last=Rudvin|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928072127/http://www.kuleuven.be/cetra/papers/Papers1999/Rudvin%201999.pdf|archive-date=28 September 2011}}</ref>

==Ringerikes Museum==
Ringerikes Museum is the regional museum for the municipalities of [[Hole, Norway|Hole]] and [[Ringerike (municipality)|Ringerike]] in [[Buskerud]] county. Ringerikes Museum is located in [[Hønefoss]] at the site of the former [[Norderhov]] rectory where Asbjørnsen and Moe first met. It is now the local museum for the Ringerike region and contains a collection of Asbjørnsen and Moe memorabilia. The museum is also noted for its collection of the private belongings of Jørgen Moe. In the 1930s, Marie Moe, Jørgen Moe's daughter, provided a gift consisting of several hundred objects from Jorgen Moe's private home.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ringerikes.museum.no/misc/exhibitions/jorgen_m.html|title=Jørgen Moe minnet|publisher=Ringerikes Museum|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724181855/http://www.ringerikes.museum.no/misc/exhibitions/jorgen_m.html|archive-date=24 July 2011}}</ref>

==Major works==
*''Samling af Sange, Folkeviser og Stev i norske Allmuedialekter'', 1840; enlarged edition, 1869, with melodies by Lindeman
*''Norske folkeeventyr'', 1841–1852 (with Asbjørnsen); expanded version 1882; English version by George Webbe Dasent, 1859
*''Digte'', 1849 (poems)
*''I Brønden og i Kjærnet'', 1851 (juvenile stories and sermons based on folk poems)
*''At hænge på juletreet'', 1855
*''En liten julegave'', 1860
*''Samlede skrifter'', 1877 (collected works, excepting the folk stories)

==Media gallery==
<gallery>
Portrett av Jørgen Moe (1813-1882), ca 1865 (6943180639).jpg|Photographed by [[Marie Thomsen]] (c.1865)
Christian Skredsvik -Jørgen Moe (1896).jpg|''Jørgen Moe'' <br /> painted by [[Christian Skredsvig]] (1896)
Norske Folkeeventyr.djvu|''Norske Folkeeventyr'' <br />Asbjørnsen and Moe (1874)
Barne-eventyr.djvu|''Barne-eventyr'' <br />Asbjørnsen and Moe (1915)
</gallery>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
*{{cite Americana|wstitle=Moe, Jörgen Ingebretsen}}
*{{cite book|last=Hodne|first=Ørnulf|title=Jørgen Moe og folkeeventyrene: En studie i nasjonalromantisk folkloristikk|publisher=Universitetsforlaget|year=1979|language=no}}
*{{cite book|last=Halvorsen|first=J. B.|title=Norsk Forfatter-Lexikon|volume=IV|location=Christiania|year=1896|language=no}}
*{{Cite NIE|wstitle=Moe, Jörgen|year=1905 |short=x}}

==External links==
{{Portal|Children's literature}}
{{wikisource|works=or}}
{{EB1911 poster|Asbjörnsen, Peter Christen|Jørgen Moe}}
*{{Gutenberg author | id=34178}}
*{{Internet Archive author |sname=Jørgen Engebretsen Moe |sopt=w}}
*{{Librivox author |id=1495}}
*[http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/authors/asbjornsen_moe.html  ''Norske Folkeeventyr: Popular Tales From the Norse'' (translated by George Webbe Dasent, Edinburgh: David Douglass, 1888)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180327014114/http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/authors/asbjornsen_moe.html |date=27 March 2018 }}
*[http://www.nb.no/nbsok/search?action=search&mediatype=bøker&format=Digitalt%20tilgjengelig&searchString=creator:%22moe,jørgen%22 Digitized books and manuscripts by Moe] in the [[National Library of Norway]]
* {{LCAuth|n50000153|Jørgen Engebretsen Moe|56|ue}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-rel}}
{{s-bef| before = [[Jacob von der Lippe]]}}
{{s-ttl| title  = Bishop of [[Diocese of Agder og Telemark|Christianssand]] | years=1874–1882}}
{{s-aft| after  = [[Johan Jørgen Tandberg]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moe, Jorgen}}
[[Category:1813 births]]
[[Category:1882 deaths]]
[[Category:Norwegian writers]]
[[Category:Collectors of fairy tales]]
[[Category:Norwegian folklorists]]
[[Category:19th-century Norwegian poets]]
[[Category:Norwegian male poets]]
[[Category:People from Hole, Norway]]
[[Category:Academic staff of the Norwegian Military Academy]]
[[Category:Bishops of Agder og Telemark]]
[[Category:19th-century Norwegian Lutheran bishops]]
[[Category:19th-century Norwegian male writers]]
[[Category:Recipients of the St. Olav's Medal]]
[[Category:Asbjørnsen and Moe| ]]