Elise Barring Berggren
About
I am a historian within Norwegian-Jewish Studies and am currently a postdoctoral fellow in the project Negotiating Community: Norwegian-Jewish Life and the Wider Society. In my ongoing research, I examine the physical and psychological health of Norwegian Holocaust survivors.
I earned my doctorate in history at NTNU in 2025, and have a BA in international studies and an MA in history from the University of Oslo. Previously, I have been a visiting scholar at Harvard and a guest researcher at the Oslo Jewish Museum. For my work, I have been awarded the “Prize for Outstanding Contributions by Young Researchers in the Humanities 2024” by the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters.
My work centers on examining unresearched areas in Norwegian-Jewish history using innovative mixed-methods approaches and extensive source materials. I am particularly interested in Jewish agency and experiences, and focus especially on the immediate post-Holocaust period. In my PhD thesis is on post-Holocaust restitution in Norway, I researched the experiences of every single Norwegian Holocaust survivor and victim, using combinations of methods and digital humanities to shed light also on topics and people otherwise lost to time. Previously, I have also researched Jewish flight during the Holocaust, the methods and sources of Norwegian Holocaust research, and the role of Norwegian prison camps in the Holocaust.
Hugely passionate about my subject, I regularly disseminate my field. I have taught in a number of university courses, hold regular lectures for the larger public, and have also worked in the museum sector. A book I co-wrote as a BA and MA student initiated one of the largest historical debates in Norwegian history.
Research
Health After the Holocaust: Physical and Psychological Aftereffects in the Post-Holocaust Period in Norway
Publications
In Search of Lost Homes: Post-Holocaust Restitution in Norway
Grini fangeleir og Holocaust i Norge: Grinis funksjon i forfølgelsene av norske jøder 1941–1945
Exclusion by Ignorance: Lawmakers' Lack of Attention to Norwegian-Jewish Needs in Restitution Legislation 1945–1947.
Rapport frå ein gjennomgang av "Hva visste hjemmefronten?"
2025
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Berggren, Elise Barring;
Fritsche, Maria;
Simonsen, Kjetil Braut;
Frøland, Hans Otto.
(2025)
In Search of Lost Homes: Post-Holocaust Restitution in Norway.
NTNU Norges teknisk-naturvitenskapelige universitet
NTNU Norges teknisk-naturvitenskapelige universitet
Doctoral dissertation
2023
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Berggren, Elise Barring.
(2023)
Grini fangeleir og Holocaust i Norge: Grinis funksjon i forfølgelsene av norske jøder 1941–1945.
Historisk tidsskrift
Academic article
2021
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Berggren, Elise Barring.
(2021)
Exclusion by Ignorance: Lawmakers' Lack of Attention to Norwegian-Jewish Needs in Restitution Legislation 1945–1947.
Universitetet i Oslo
Universitetet i Oslo
Masters thesis
2020
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Berggren, Elise Barring;
Bruland, Bjarte;
Tangestuen, Mats.
(2020)
Rapport frå ein gjennomgang av "Hva visste hjemmefronten?".
Dreyer Forlag A/S
Dreyer Forlag A/S
Non-fiction book
Journal publications
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Berggren, Elise Barring.
(2023)
Grini fangeleir og Holocaust i Norge: Grinis funksjon i forfølgelsene av norske jøder 1941–1945.
Historisk tidsskrift
Academic article
Books
-
Berggren, Elise Barring;
Bruland, Bjarte;
Tangestuen, Mats.
(2020)
Rapport frå ein gjennomgang av "Hva visste hjemmefronten?".
Dreyer Forlag A/S
Dreyer Forlag A/S
Non-fiction book
Report
-
Berggren, Elise Barring;
Fritsche, Maria;
Simonsen, Kjetil Braut;
Frøland, Hans Otto.
(2025)
In Search of Lost Homes: Post-Holocaust Restitution in Norway.
NTNU Norges teknisk-naturvitenskapelige universitet
NTNU Norges teknisk-naturvitenskapelige universitet
Doctoral dissertation
-
Berggren, Elise Barring.
(2021)
Exclusion by Ignorance: Lawmakers' Lack of Attention to Norwegian-Jewish Needs in Restitution Legislation 1945–1947.
Universitetet i Oslo
Universitetet i Oslo
Masters thesis
Teaching
I teach on several topics, including modern history, the Holocaust, Norwegian-Jewish history, antisemitism, methods, use of sources and research ethics, both on BA and MA level.
- HIST3205 Genocide, War and Society, 2023–2025: Lecturer
- HIST3105 Research Methods in History, 2022: Lecturer
- KRIG3100 Historican Research Methods, 2024: Lecturer
- KRIG3020 War in the Modern World, 2024–2025: Lecturer
- HIST2012 Politics, society and culture in Europe after 1945, 2025: Lecturer
- HIST2007 Nationalism, Imperialism and Democratization after 1750, 2022–2025: Lecturer
- HIST1500 Modern History after ca 1750, 2023–2025: Seminar leader and supervisor seminar papers
- HIST1505 Introduction to Historical Theory and Methods, 2022: Seminar leader and examiner
- HI104 History After 1930: Introduction to Norwegian and International History, 2024: Examiner
- The summer school in Prague in 2022 and 2023: Lecturer
Outreach
Tiden etter Holocaust: Staten og de overlevende
På sporet av tapte hjem: Etter Holocaust
Da staten ranet jødene
Grini: Fangeleirens rolle i Holocaust
Skadene ved passivitet: Lovgivernes manglende hensyn til jødiske behov i restitusjonslovgivningen 1945–1947
I kjølvannet av Holocaust: Restitusjonen
2025
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Academic lectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2025) In Search of Lost Homes: Post-Holocaust Restitution in Norway 1945–1950s. The Max and Hilde Kochmann Summer School , Sussex 2025-06-28 - 2025-07-01
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LectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2025) Tiden etter Holocaust: Staten og de overlevende. Tiden etter Holocaust: Staten og de overlevende , Oslo 2025-03-09 - 2025-03-10
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Interview
2024
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LectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2024) Norsk-jødisk historie og forskningsdesign. Minervas ugle , Trondheim 2024-11-21 - 2024-11-21
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Academic lectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2024) In search of lost Homes: Post-Holocaust Restitution in Norway 1945–1955. BHI Fellow Talk , Harvard, USA 2024-10-16 - 2024-10-16
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Academic lectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2024) På sporet av tapte hjem: Restitusjonen av norsk-jødisk eiendom etter Holocaust, 1945–1955. Intern Kunnskapskalender , Falstadsenteret 2024-01-16 - 2024-01-16
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Academic lectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2024) Post-Holocaust Restitution of Businesses: The Unique Opportunities of the Norwegian Case. The BHC 2024 annual meeting , Providence, USA 2024-03-14 - 2024-03-16
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Academic lectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2024) På sporet av tapte hjem: Restitusjonen av norsk-jødisk eiendom etter Holocaust, 1945–1955. Høytidsdagen , Trondheim 2024-03-01 - 2024-03-01
2023
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LectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2023) Den norsk-jødiske minoriteten: Før og etter Holocaust. Sommerskole om tsjekkisk og norsk historie i det 20. århundret , Praha 2023-06-29 - 2023-06-29
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Interview
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LectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2023) På sporet av tapte hjem: Etter Holocaust. Dypdykk i 2. verdenskrig , Litteraturhuset i Oslo 2023-10-26 - 2023-10-26
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Academic lectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2023) A Mosaic of Individual Stories: The Post-Holocaust Restitution of Norwegian-Jewish Property 1945–1955. "Jewish Cultural Heritage: Practices, Perspectives, Challenges" , Warszawa 2023-10-19 - 2023-10-20
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LectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2023) På sporet av tapte hjem: Restitusjonen av norsk-jødisk eiendom 1945–1955. Norske Historiedager , Sogndal 2023-09-08 - 2023-09-10
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InterviewBerggren, Elise Barring. (2023) Nazistene tok alt: Kleskjeden hans er bygd opp fra ingenting. NRK NRK [Journal] 2023-09-13
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Academic lectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2023) På sporet av tapte hjem: Restitusjonen av norsk-jødisk eiendom 1945–1950-tallet. Krigshistorisk forum , Tromsø 2023-03-30 - 2023-03-30
2022
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LectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2022) Holocaust i Norge: Et totalt angrep på en liten minoritet. Sommerskole om tsjekkisk og norsk historie i det 20. århundret , Praha 2022-06-23 - 2022-06-23
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LectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2022) Grini: Fangeleirens rolle i Holocaust. Foredrag , Oslo 2022-06-01 - 2022-06-01
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InterviewBerggren, Elise Barring. (2022) Dagens: 80 år siden deportasjonen. NRK radio NRK radio [Radio] 2022-11-25
2021
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LectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2021) Skadene ved passivitet: Lovgivernes manglende hensyn til jødiske behov i restitusjonsoppgjøret 1945–1947. Foredrag , Oslo 2021-06-16 - 2021-06-16
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LectureBerggren, Elise Barring. (2021) I kjølvannet av Holocaust: Restitusjonen. Foredrag , Oslo 2021-02-24 - 2021-02-24