Organised into existence. Scandinavianism and pan-Scandinavian associations within and beyond the region

Abstract

In developing and disseminating Scandinavian culture and identity, associations with pan-Scandinavian purposes and measures played an important role. Associations promoting a transnational cultural community were founded not only within the region but also beyond, among Scandinavians abroad, and may be seen as a means to organise Scandinavia into existence. This chapter examines this associational development driven by pan-Scandinavian ideas during the long nineteenth century. It will especially focus on associations founded abroad, their bonds to Scandinavia as an imagined homeland and the role of this associational life in the broader pan-Scandinavian discourse – not least connected to its culmination around 1905. This is essentially a history of a rise and fall − although also of new beginnings. The disputes concerning the Scandinavian associations abroad after 1905 led to an organisational reconfiguration along new (pan-)national lines, with cultural diplomacy organisations based in Sweden, Norway and later Denmark. The Scandinavian associational practices re-emerged, however, on a Nordic scale in the interwar period, especially within the region, continuing the associational construction of Norden as a transnational region.

Organised into existence. Scandinavianism and pan-Scandinavian associations within and beyond the region