Per Gynt

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Norwegian fairy tale

title: "Per Gynt" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["norwegian-fairy-tales", "norwegian-folklore", "scandinavian-folklore"] description: "Norwegian fairy tale" topic_path: "geography/norway" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Per_Gynt" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Norwegian fairy tale ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Arbo-Per_Gynt.jpg" caption="Norske Huldre-Eventyr og Folkesagn]]'' (1845)."] ::

Per Gynt (, ) is a Norwegian fairy-tale which originated in the traditional region of Gudbrandsdal.

The story of Per Gynt is set in the historic district of Gudbrandsdal in Norway. Per Gynt's home in the folklore is traditionally claimed to have been the Nordre Hågå farm in Sødorp parish of what is now Nord-Fron Municipality in Innlandet county.

The tales encompass the themes of identity, relationships, and personal stories from a lonely hunter. The folk tale tells of the eponymous Per Gynt and his various exploits. He rescues three dairy-maids from trolls and shoots the Bøyg, a troll which takes the form of a gigantic serpent and stands as a hindrance to travellers.

The fairy-tale was recorded by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen in Norwegian Folktales (Norske Huldre-Eventyr og Folkesagn) which was first published in 1845. Asbjørnsen included the stories about Per Gynt into the section "Reindeer Hunting at Rondane" (Rensdyrjakt ved Rondane).

The folktale served as inspiration for Henrik Ibsen's play Peer Gynt which was published in 1867. Ibsen added considerable material, such as Per Gynt travelling to Africa, crossing the Sahara and meeting with a Bedouin princess – 19th-century themes far beyond the scope of the original fairy-tale. The play appeared on stage in 1876, accompanied by incidental music by composer Edvard Grieg, who later prepared the Peer Gynt Suites.

References

Other sources

  • Meyer, Michael (1974) Ibsen: A Biograph (Abridged edition. Pelican Biographies ser. Harmondsworth: Penguin)
  • Sverre Mørkhagen (1997) Peer Gynt – historie, sagn og «forbandet Digt» (Oslo: J.W. Cappelens forlag.)

References

  1. {{Cite SNL. Peer_Gynt. Peer Gynt. 2025-08-09. Rottem. Øystein. 2024-11-26
  2. Boktrykkeri, Grøndahl. (1953). "Den Norske turistforenings årbok".
  3. "Hage nordre, Nord-Fron herad, Oppland". Matrikkelutkastet av 1950.
  4. "Per Gynt-gården". pilegrimsleden.
  5. "Sødorp". Store norske leksikon.
  6. "Rensdyrjakt ved Rondane". Norske Folke Eventyr.
  7. "bøyg". Bokmålsordboka.
  8. "Asbjørnsen's "Høifjeldsbilleder"". per2peer.
  9. "Peter Christen Asbjørnsen (1812–1885)". per2peer.
  10. "Grieg's Peer Gynt Suite". favorite-classical-composers.
  11. Erik Bjerck Hagen. "Peer Gynt". Store norske leksikon.
  12. "Peer Gynt, A synopsis of the play by Henrik Ibsen". TheatreHistory.com.
  13. "Peer Gynt – history and synopsis". Det Norske Ibsen Kompaniet.

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norwegian-fairy-talesnorwegian-folklorescandinavian-folklore