Crossing North is a podcast hosted and produced by folklorist Colin Gioia Connors and funded by the Department of Scandinavian Studies. Each episode follows a single story with a Scandinavian angle, and many with a Pacific Northwest twist.
After a successful first 2018-19 season of six episodes with topics ranging from the Singing Revolution in the Baltics to what American education systems might stand to learn from Finland, Crossing North was greenlit for second season, which began this October. Season 2 launched with a double feature, “The Nordic Languages of Middle Earth” parts 1 and 2, in which linguist Dr. Matthew Boutilier takes a close look at how Scandinavian myth, folklore, and language influenced J.R.R. Tolkien and his Lord of the Rings trilogy, as well as Peter Jackson and the creative team behind the early 2000s film adaptations. The most recent episode is an interview with internationally acclaimed artist Mari Boine, who visited the Department of Scandinavian Studies in October as part of her 2019 tour, and had a guest appearance in two of the Department’s large lecture courses: Introduction to Scandinavian Culture and Introduction to Folklore. Mari spoke at length about her experiences as an indigenous Sámi person making music for local and global audiences. The final episode of 2019 is set for release in mid-December.
Stay tuned for the rest of Season 2 in 2020! Listen for a breakdown of some of the new ways that Frozen 2 engages with Scandinavian cultural traditions, the experiences of African-Americans abroad in Denmark in the early twentieth century, interviews with multiple Scandinavian authors, and a look at local Swedish music traditions and ongoing cultural programming here in Seattle, all coming in the new year.
Listen online at scandinavian.washington.edu/crossing-north-podcast, or subscribe through Stitcher, Spotify, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.