Professional Genealogist, Sarah Thorson Little will lead everyone in the use of the Norwegian Digitalarkivet Archives website.  Sarah will instruct step-by-step procedures to search parish church records for baptisms, marriages and deaths; plus census and emigration records; Locating the family farm, Bygdebøker,  Bygdelags, translation tools, patronymics and an overview of Norwegian-American sources will also be covered.

Norwegian Genealogy Workshop

Saturday, March 24, 2012 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM

Bothell Sons of Norway Lodge 2-106,
23905 Bothell-Everett Highway, Bothell, WA. 98041

Pre-registration is required by Saturday, March 10, 2012.   Information contact Bothell Lodge Cultural Director Selma Snaring 425-385-2144; coordinator Gary Ramstad, 206-365-6913, ramslfp@hotmail.com. 

 

The workshop cost is $20.00.  Bring a sack lunch and a laptop computer (if you have one).  Applications are on www.bothellsonsofnorway.org. 

 

Please mail the registration form with your $20.00 check payable to Bothell Sons of Norway Lodge 2-106 before March 10, 2012  to Gary Ramstad, 5115 NE 188^th St., Lake Forest Park, WA 98155.

Suddenly Sami - playing Sunday, January 8 at noon
For much of the twentieth century, it was important for many U.S. immigrants and those with Native American background to "lose" their roots, and mold their cultural identity towards that of the dominant culture.  In much the same way, filmmaker Ellen-Astri Lundby's mother tried to "lose" her Sami heritage.  Watch the film to see how the filmmaker travels to northern Norway to explore her Sami heritage.

King of Devil's Island (Kongen av Bastøy) - playing Sunday, January 8 at 7 p.m.
The life of teenage boys living in a prison colony for young boys run by a sadistic regime on an island in Norway in the early 1900s was unbearable.  Based on a true story, this film explores the story of a young boy who dared to rise up against conditions.

Learn more and order tickets at the film festival site:  http://www.siff.net/cinema/seriesDetail.aspx?FID=265.

Norwegians have been celebrating 2011, the 100th anniversary of the Fram expedition to the South Pole with several modern-day expeditions to the bottom of the globe.  On Friday a new, temporary exhibit opened at the Nordic Heritage Museum in Ballard, titled Cold Recall: Reflections of Polar Explorer.  If you, like many people we know, are fascinated by the story of the Roald Amundsen and his crew of the Fram, who were the first to reach the South Pole on December 14, 1911, visiting this exhibit should be on your to do list.  According to the Nordic Heritage Museum website, the exhibition "showcases images from the hand-colored lantern slides that Roald Amundsen used in public lectures about his expedition to the South Pole. Texts from Amundsen’s own manuscripts from these lectures offer a compelling first-person account of this exciting journey.".  The exhibition was produced by the Fram Museum in Oslo.

The exhibit will be on display through February 5, 2012, but if you can make it, celebrate the 100th anniversary on December 14 together with others at a reception and lecture being held at the museum from 6-8 p.m.  According to the Nordic Heritage Museum website, to register for the December 14 event, please call 206.789.5707 ext. 10 or email rsvp@nordicmuseum.org.

Here at NorskSeattle.com, we have happy memories of spending time at the Nordic Heritage Museum's Yulefest every year as a child, selling Hardanger embroidery with mom and enjoying tasty rullepølse sandwiches.  I don't know that anyone has sold Hardanger embroidery there since mom's time, but you can still find beautiful rosemaled pieces, Scandinavian knit sweaters, and other Scandinavian crafts, along with rullepølse sandwiches, pea soup, and the very popular æbelskiver.  This year's Yulefest is approaching!  Mark your calendars for November 19-20, dig out your Norwegian sweater, and head to Ballard that weekend.  Three tips:

• Bring your children or grandchildren for an opportunity to sit on santa's lap...the line (if any) is short!
  
• Enjoy your open-faced sandwiches while listening to a Scandinavian polka
• The æbelskiver can be found on the ground floor - at the end of the hallway, then turn right. If the æbelskiver line is short, count your blessings and get your æbelskiver while you can - don't wait!
  

The tradition of eating lutefisk during the Christmas holiday season came to the U.S. during the 1800s, when it was quite common in Norway.  Like many traditions from "the Old Country", the tradition is maintained here in the U.S. with great vigor, while the tradition has been replaced by more modern options for most Norwegians today.  That is not to say that the tradition has disappeared - in fact, many upscale restaurants in Oslo feature the lye-soaked cod as a special part of their holiday menu.  Here in the Puget Sound area, lutefisk is available widely between October and February, but you'll need to plan ahead, as you'll be hard pressed to find a restaurant serving lutefisk every night.  What you can find are lutefisk dinners hosted by churches, Sons of Norway lodges, or Lions clubs.  These meals offer hearty helpings of lutefisk along with melted butter or white cream to provide the fish with a little taste, often served along with meatballs, potatoes, coleslaw, lefse, or other sides.  Meals are usually served family style, where your group will be seated alongside other groups at one long table, and the dishes are passed along and you can help yourself to your fill of the food available.  The volunteers who prepare these meals do so with love for the tradition, and for the organization supported by the proceeds from the dinner. 

If you have yet to try lutefisk, consider doing so this season, and support the folks who help carry on this tradition.  Upcoming lutefisk dinners include lutefisk at the Poulsbo First Lutheran Church on October 15, and the Stanwood High School (hosted by the Lions Club) on October 30.  Check out our events calendar for more details, and enjoy!

Geitungen is comprised of three award-winning musicians: Vidar Skrede, Christer Rossebø and Håvard Ims. On a huge assortment of instruments (fiddle, melodeon, mandolin, Norwegian hardanger fiddle, mandola and guitars) these three immensely talented musicians fill a room with a sound that dispenses with the mundane boundaries of time and space and situates the audience in a place of pure joy.

Reserve online at http://www.seafolklore.org/reserve.html, or by calling 206/528-8523.

General Admission: $15
$2 off for SFS & PNA members and seniors, kids half price

See also: http://www.geitungen.no/

Classes abound this fall at local Norwegian institutions.  Check out our events calendar to learn more about upcoming rosemaling, woodcarving, lefse, and krumkake classes coming up in September and October.  These classes are low-cost, and open to the public (including beginners)! 

If you know of other opportunities to learn Norwegian crafts or cooking in the western Washington area, let us know!  We would be happy to help spread the word regarding other opportunities to learn!  We would especially love to hear of regular, public Hardanger embroidery lessons going on in the area.  Just contact admin@norskseattle.com with details.

Photos courtesy of Theodore Charles for the Norwegian American Foundation









One day after throngs filled the streets of cities and towns across Norway honoring the victims of the Oslo bombing and Utøya shootings of 7/22/2011, members of the Puget Sound community gathered at the Nordic Heritage Museum in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood to hold their own vigil.  The event, organized by Seattle honorary Norwegian consul, drew a crowd of over 500, filling the museum's auditorium, and spilling outdoors, where attendees followed along with the program via speakers set up outside.  The crowd and the several local television stations and newspapers represented were testament to the impact of the bombing and shootings, even half a world away.  Those who gathered ranged in age from ten to 90 years old, and represented the Norwegian-American community from across the Puget Sound region, transplanted Norwegians, and other community members.  Each had the opportunity to write down their expressions of sorrow and support for the Norwegian people on pages provided, which will be bound and sent to Norway.  For many, however, there just weren't words to express their shock, sorrow, and concern for family and friends in Norway, who suddenly felt so far away.