Halvard Grude Forfang

Who was Halvard Grude Forfang?

Halvard Grude Forfang was a Norwegian educator.

He was born in Bærum as a son of chemical engineer Einar Forfang and Agnes Grude. He was a nephew of Karen Grude Koht. His home environment was marked by the norskdom movement; his family was a member of Noregs Mållag.

He finished his secondary education at Stabekk in 1934, and took the cand.philol. degree at the University of Oslo in 1941. After a few years as a teacher, he led the Nansen Academy from 1946 to 1971. He was responsible with rebuilding the school, which was closed during the German occupation of Norway. After stepping down as rector he continued as a teacher, finally retiring in 1981. His books include a two-volumes history on the Nansen Academy, released in 1977 and 1982, and a 1945 biography about Ivar Kleiven, which was originally his master's thesis. He died in July 1987 in Lillehammer.