The late Professor Christopher Hale, who passed away in July 2019, was born in 1942 in Michigan. He was educated at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, where he received a BA in 1964. He then went on to pursue graduate studies at the University of Chicago, where he received his MA in 1967 and his PhD in 1972 in Germanic Languages (specializing primarily in Norwegian and Icelandic philology). He came to the University of Alberta in 1970 as Assistant Professor in Scandinavian Studies in the Department of Germanic Languages, where he taught a variety of courses in Scandinavian language, literature, and culture. Chris retired from the University of Alberta in 2012, and had a post-retirement appointment until 2014.

Chris’s academic research centered on Norwegian language and Scandinavian philology, literature, and culture. His publications ranged from Norwegian and Icelandic naming traditions to Scandinavian immigration to Canada to the works of Aksel Sandelmose. He was a founding member and first president of the Association for the Advancement of Scandinavian Studies in Canada (est. 1982), and was a long-standing member of the Canadian Institute for Nordic Studies.

Chris’s tireless efforts to promote Scandinavian language and culture in Canada were recognized formally in 2008, when the King of Norway named Chris an Officer of the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit for his contributions to the advancement of knowledge about Norwegian language and culture in Canada.

Above all, Chris loved teaching, and was beloved by his students. The announcement of his passing was met with an outpouring of messages the many undergraduate and graduate students Chris taught during the course of his long career, which emphasize the deep impact Chris made on their experience at the University of Alberta.

In memory of Chris, and in recognition of his many contributions to the society, a conference paper that corresponds with Chris’ research interests will be selected annually by the Program Committee and introduced during the conference as the Honorary Chris Hale Paper, beginning in 2020.

Joan Una Magee passed away on August 6, 2018 at the age of 90 years.  Joan was one of the distinguished group that founded the AASSC and maintained her passion for the organization throughout her academic career.  She was awarded Life Time Membership by the AASSC in 2005.  Joan earned Master of Library Science Degree and worked as Children’s Librarian at Willistead Public Library and later as Head of the Reference Department at the University of Windsor Library. She also taught Scandinavian Studies at the University of Windsor and engaged and supported many students and faculty colleagues into the significance of Scandinavian and Netherlandic Studies in their careers.

Joan has written several books relating to emigration to Canada. (Including those by Dundurn Press: Industry in the Wilderness, A Scandinavian Heritage, The Loyalist Mosaic, The Belgians in Ontario.)  In 1992 she was awarded the Commemorative Medal for the 125^th Anniversary of Canadian Confederation and in 1993 she was appointed Knight in the Order of Orange-Nassau by the Netherlands.

Beloved by the AASSC, we are saddened by her loss, but maintain our work on the shoulders of her enthusiasm and dedication.   

(written by Susan Gold Smith)

The AASSC / AAÉSC Annual General Meeting (AGM) will take place on Wednesday, June 5, 2019, 12:00p - 2:00p, in CHOI 120. The agenda and the minutes from last year's AGM can be accessed below. All members are welcome to attend. 

AGM Agenda - 2019.pdf

AASSC AGM Minutes Regina 2018.pdf

I would like to draw your attention to a public roundtable and networking reception at this year’s Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver on 4 June 2019. This should be of interest to members of your faculty, especially students who may be considering a career in translation.

Chairs on Chairs: A Guide to Scandinavian Literary Translators’ Networks will feature representatives from DELT, SELTA and STiNA discussing the role played by translator networks in promoting Scandinavian literary culture in English, and more generally the current state of Scandinavian literature in translation. This roundtable session will be directly followed by a networking reception. Both elements are open to the public and you are very welcome!

The event is kindly supported by the Association for the Advancement of Scandinavian Studies in Canada (AASSC), the Danish Arts Foundation and the Swedish Arts Council.

Full details, including timings, venue and participants, are available here: https://danishtranslation.org/news/delt-vancouver

The program for the thirty-eighth annual meeting of the Association for the Advancement of Scandinavian Studies in Canada (AASSC), which will be held at the University of British Columbia from Monday, June 3– Thursday, June 6, 2019 in conjunction with the meetings of the Canadian Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences / Fédération Canadienne des Sciences Humaines, is now available and can be downloaded here:

2019 AASSC Final Program.pdf

AASSC Slate for the 2019 election (2019-2021)

The following AASSC members have agreed to let their names stand for the indicated Executive Board positions:

President – Natalie Van Deusen (University of Alberta)

Vice-President and Programming Chair – Christopher Crocker (University of Iceland)

Treasurer - John T. Nilson (Regina, Saskatchewan – retired)

Secretary – Matthew Etherington (Trinity Western University)

AASSC Webmaster and Newsletter Editor – Laurie Prange (Capilano University)

Members at Large (2 positions) – Christine Ekholst (Uppsala University) and Amy Poole (Federated Women's Institutes of Ontario)

Continuing Executive Board positions:

Editor, Scandinavian-Canadian Studies – Helga Thorson (University of Victoria)

Past President – Ingrid Urberg (University of Alberta, Augustana Campus)

Please note: Nominations will also be accepted from the floor during our Annual General Meeting on Wednesday, June 5, 2019 at the University of British Columbia-Vancouver.

Respectfully submitted,

Ingrid Urberg, Chair, Susan Gold/Smith and Birgitta Wallace – 2019 AASSC Nominating Committee

Register now for the upcoming AASSC conference in Vancouver, BC. 

Details about the AASSC banquet will be forthcoming closer to the conference date.