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Ole and Lena (also Sven and Ole) are central characters in jokes by Scandinavian Americans, particularly in the Upper Midwest region of the United States. These include the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, South Dakota and North Dakota, where Scandinavian immigrant traditions are common.
Ole and Lena jokes can be long and drawn-out stories, or as short as two or three sentences. Lena is typically portrayed as the smarter of the two, often explaining where Ole went wrong in his misadventures. Another common character is Sven, who usually shows up in jokes along with Ole, making Sven and Ole jokes, though all three may appear together. Sven isn't as bright as Ole and Lena, but he means well. Ole and Lena are typically Norwegian, and Sven and his wife are Swedish. In Michigan's U.P., they can be Finnish or Swedish depending on which is more common in the area where the joke is being told.
One would not find Ole and Lena jokes in Sweden or Norway. Rather they are an outgrowth of an immigrant experience. Language mistakes are a frequent source of Ole and Lena joke material. Turning the misunderstandings and mistakes into jokes enabled people to jest about their American immigrant experience. The popularity of the jokes was greatly enhanced by the numerous Ole and Lena joke books authored by Red Stangland. [1]
One reason that the Ole and Lena jokes have endured and thrive is that they are quaint and well-meaning. Ole, Lena, Sven and others still speak with the marring accent and fractured English of the immigrant who just arrived. Humor of this sort is intended to maintain a sense of perspective. The core of this folk humor is probably the strongly egalitarian sense that permeates the cultural code in the Nordic countries. [2]
Many of the jokes are bawdy:
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