Jens Arup Seip - Career

Career

He graduated as cand.philol. in 1931. He worked as a research fellow at the University of Oslo from 1936, under the tutorship of Edvard Bull, and became known for the journal article Problemer og metode i norsk middelalderforskning in 1940. He then worked for the National Archival Services of Norway from 1941. The same year his uncle Didrik Arup Seip was removed by the Nazi occupants from his position as rector. Jens Arup Seip completed his thesis Sættargjerden i Tunsberg og kirkens jurisdiksjon in 1942, but did not receive the dr.philos. degree until 1945. He worked as a lecturer in history from 1946, and was also a consultant at the Norwegian Nobel Institute from 1946 to 1958. From 1955 to 1966 he chaired the Norwegian Historical Association.

In 1952 he was promoted to the position of professor. In addition, he drifted from his former specialty in medieval history to political history and the history of ideas. Among his most important publications were Fra embedsmannsstat til ettpartistat (1963) and Utsikt over Norges historie in two volumes (1974 and 1981). He retired from the position as professor in 1975, incidentally the same year that his wife was appointed to the Institute of History. Many of his terms have entered the Norwegian historio-political lexicon.