Laurence M. Larson


Laurence Marcellus Larson was a Norwegian born, American educator, historian, writer and translator. His notable works included his translation from Old Norse of Konungs skuggsjá.

Biography

Laurence Larson was born at Bergen in Hordaland, Norway. He was the son of Christian Spjutoy Larson and Ellen Mathilde Larson. He emigrated to the United States with his family in May 1870. He studied at Drake University and the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Larson was appointed to the UW faculty as a Scandinavian languages and history professor on April 17, 1906, but resigned later that year, on June 27. He joined the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1907 and was appointed chair of the history department in 1923, joining another renowned scholar of Scandinavanian studies at Illinois, George T. Flom. Larson continued teaching at UIUC until his September 1937 retirement.
Larson was named a trustee of the Illinois State Historical Library in 1923. He was elected to the presidency of the American Historical Association in 1938, but died of acute bronchitis in Urbana, Illinois, aged 69, before completing his term.

Selected works