2026/05/25 by Leif Hammer · 1 voice
Social Sciences · #Globalization and political ideologies #Historical Legal Studies and Society #European Cultural and National Identity
paper · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197908402.003.0012
openalex publication_date 2026/05/25 · openalex created_date 2026/06/19 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/15
Abstract This book review discusses Mikkel Munthe Jensen’s Patriotism and Reform in Nordic Universities during the Long Eighteenth Century (2023), an important contribution to the history of Nordic academia showcasing how patriotism reshaped Nordic universities in the Enlightenment. Extensively researched, the book showcases how universities in Denmark-Norway and Sweden became key state institutions while negotiating their long-standing cosmopolitan ideals. The book also grapples with the broader context of the Enlightenment, the Republic of Letters, utility, and learned identity, revealing a complex relationship between state service and academic autonomy. This review highlights the importance of Jensen’s contribution in recovering the eighteenth century as a dynamic period of reforms in Nordic academia, while also questioning the occasional generalisations and linear portrayals of university-state relations. Overall, the book is an ambitious and accessible comparative study indispensable for those interested in Nordic universities in the eighteenth century.