William Nygaard | |
|---|---|
 William Nygaard in 2009. | |
| Born | 16 March 1943 Oslo, Norway |
| Nationality | Norwegian |
| Education | Degree in economics |
| Occupation | Chief publisher (CEO) of Aschehoug publishing house |
| Children | 2 |
William Nygaard (born 16 March 1943) is a Norwegian retired businessman and publisher, who was the CEO of publishing company Aschehoug and the chairman of the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation.
From 1974 to 2010, he was the chief publisher of Aschehoug, Norway's second largest publishing house, [1] which is owned by the Nygaard family. When he took this job he followed the footsteps of his father Mads Wiel Nygaard and grandfather William Martin Nygaard who was leading the company in earlier years, [2] and the tradition continues since he left the job to his son, Mads Nygaard. [3] William Nygaard was chairman of the Norwegian Publishers Association from 1987 to 1990. [4] From 2010 to 2014, he was employed as a director of NRK (the state owned TV of Norway). [5]
On 12 April 1989, Aschehoug and William Nygaard were responsible for publishing the Norwegian edition of Salman Rushdie's novel The Satanic Verses . [6] This was two months after Ayatollah Khomeini issued the following fatwa against Salman Rushdie and his publishers:
Owing to the fatwa, direct threats were made against William Nygaard and translator Kari Risvik, and in the resulting controversy, Nygaard was given police protection for a period.
On the morning of 11 October 1993, Nygaard was shot three times outside his home in Dagaliveien in Oslo. [8] Most people — including Nygaard [9] — link the incident to the fatwa. After several months of hospitalization, mostly at Sunnaas Hospital, Nygaard slowly recovered. [9] In early October 2018, almost a quarter century after the attempted assassination, charges were made against the alleged perpetrators. Their names and nationalities were not publicized at the time. [10] In November 2021 the two were identified as the Lebanese man Khaled Moussawi and an unnamed former Iranian diplomat. [11]
Both before and after the attack, William Nygaard has been an outspoken defender of free speech, and is a board member of the Norwegian division of International PEN. [12] [13] He is a member of the Norwegian Academy for Language and Literature. [14]
He has been a member of the board of Norway's National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design. [15] In 2010 he was elected chairman of the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. [16]
He has two children. [17]
Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie is an Indian-born British and American novelist. His work often combines magic realism with historical fiction and primarily deals with connections, disruptions, and migrations between Eastern and Western civilizations, typically set on the Indian subcontinent. Rushdie's second novel, Midnight's Children (1981), won the Booker Prize in 1981 and was deemed to be "the best novel of all winners" on two occasions, marking the 25th and the 40th anniversary of the prize.
Valgerd Svarstad Haugland is a Norwegian teacher, politician and civil servant.
The Satanic Verses is the fourth novel from the Indian-British writer Salman Rushdie. First published in September 1988, the book was inspired by the life of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. As with his previous books, Rushdie used magical realism and relied on contemporary events and people to create his characters. The title refers to the Satanic Verses, a group of Quranic verses about three pagan Meccan goddesses: Allāt, Al-Uzza, and Manāt. The part of the story that deals with the satanic verses was based on accounts from the historians al-Waqidi and al-Tabari.
Lars Roar Langslet was the Norwegian Minister of Education and Church Affairs in 1981, and Minister of Culture and Science from 1982 until 1986 for the Conservative Party.
Fritt Ord is a Norwegian private foundation, whose aim is to support freedom of expression and a free press. It was established on 7 June 1974 by Narvesen Kioskkompani's leaders Jens Henrik Nordlie and Finn Skedsmo as well as the lawyer Jens Christian Hauge.
H. Aschehoug & Co. , commonly known as Aschehoug,(pronounced[ˈɑ̂skəhæʉ]) is one of the largest independent publishing companies in Norway, founded in 1872. Headquartered in Oslo, the publishing house has 480 employees. The Aschehoug group also comprises other publishing houses owned partially or wholly by Aschehoug. Aschehoug can be directly translated to "ash hill."
In August 2006, author Jostein Gaarder sparked a controversy in Norway after publishing an op-ed "God's chosen people" in the Aftenposten, one of the country's major newspapers, in which he produced scathing criticism of Israel which at the time was engaged in the 2006 Lebanon War. He called for, among other things, for the world to stop recognizing the State of Israel, just like it, according to him, had not recognized the Taliban regime in Afghanistan or the Apartheid regime in South Africa. The name of the op-ed alludes to the concept of "chosenness" in Judaism.
Niels Christian Geelmuyden is a Norwegian journalist and writer, mostly known for his interviews and essays.
The Great Norwegian Encyclopedia is a Norwegian-language online encyclopedia. It is also known as the Norsk biografisk leksikon.
Kunnskapsforlaget is a Norwegian publishing company based in Oslo.
The Satanic Verses controversy, also known as the Rushdie Affair, was a controversy sparked by the 1988 publication of Salman Rushdie's novel The Satanic Verses. It centered on the novel's references to the Satanic Verses, and came to include a larger debate about censorship and religious violence. It included numerous killings, attempted killings, and bombings by perpetrators who supported Islam.
NRK P2 is one of three main, nationwide radio channels produced by the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK). Its current format – focusing on news and current affairs, debate, analysis, culture, science, and society – is the result of the NRK radio channel reform initiated in 1993 by radio director Tor Fuglevik.
Stein Mehren was a Norwegian poet, essayist and playwright. He made his literary debut as poet with Gjennom stillheten en natt (1960). He wrote more than fifty books, mainly poetry.
Geir Kjetsaa was a Norwegian professor in Russian literary history at the University of Oslo, translator of Russian literature, and author of several biographies of classical Russian writers.
Kristian Ottosen was a Norwegian non-fiction writer and public servant.
Kjetil Bang-Hansen is a Norwegian actor, dancer, stage producer and theatre director.
Audhild Gregoriusdotter Rotevatn is a Norwegian journalist, television host, and radio presenter, who has worked for the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation and the now defunct Kanal 24. She is known for her unusual name and consistent use of Nynorsk.
"Vi vil oss et land" is a famous phrase in the context of Norwegian nationalism, derived from a poem by Per Sivle. It has been evoked by many different groups, including during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany, when an arrest order was issued on the deceased Sivle.
Per Edgar Kokkvold is a Norwegian journalist, former editor and secretary-general of the Norwegian Press Association, and current chair of the Norwegian Broadcasting Council.
Mariwan Halabjaee or Mariwan Halabjayi is an Iraqi Kurdish writer, public speaker, and human rights activist. He is the author of sixteen books and producer of over ninety documentaries, covering topics on theology, psychology, and human rights. He is the author of the book Sex, Sharia and Women in the History of Islam. The book gained international fame when published in 2005, and has since been reprinted eleven times and translated into Arabic, Persian, and Pashto for millions of readers. It is about how Islam and Sharia are allegedly used to oppress Muslim women. "I wanted to prove how oppressed women are in Islam and that they have no rights," said Halabjaee. Halabjaee asserted the book was, "based on Islamic sources such as the Holy Quran, Muslim and Bukhari books and many more." Due to his controversial work, he is often referred to as "the Salman Rushdie of Iraqi Kurdistan".
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