# Torolv Solheim > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Torolv_Solheim > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Torolv_Solheim.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torolv_Solheim > Source revision: 1341445105 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) **Torolv Solheim** (7 November 1907 – 23 May 1995) was a Norwegian lecturer, historian, author, social economist and politician. Originally a member of the [Communist Party of Norway](/source/Communist_Party_of_Norway), he later joined the [Norwegian Labour Party](/source/Norwegian_Labour_Party) and was amongst the founders of the [Socialist People's Party](/source/Socialist_People's_Party_(Norway)) in 1961, serving as its chairman from 1969 to 1971. He subsequently became a member of the [Socialist Left Party](/source/Socialist_Left_Party_(Norway)). From 1954 to 1968, he edited the influential cultural and political magazine *Fossegrimen*, which became a significant platform for left-wing intellectual discourse in post-war Norway.[1][2] ## Education and early career Solheim attended Firda gymnasium, graduating in 1929, before reading economics at the [University of Oslo](/source/University_of_Oslo), where he obtained his degree in 1933. He later completed his actuarial examination in 1939.[1] During his university years, he was actively involved in left-wing politics, co-founding the Communist Student Group in 1932 alongside [Viggo Hansteen](/source/Viggo_Hansteen) and [Jacob Friis](/source/Jacob_Friis).[1] ## Political career ### Early political involvement Solheim's political activism began during his student years when he established the Communist Student Group and served as editor of the group's magazine "Kringsjaa" from 1938 to 1939.[1] He became a member of the [Communist Party of Norway](/source/Communist_Party_of_Norway) in 1940, but following disagreements with party leader [Peder Furubotn](/source/Peder_Furubotn) after the war, he joined the [Norwegian Labour Party](/source/Norwegian_Labour_Party) in 1945, remaining a member until 1952.[1] ### Opposition politics and party formation During the 1950s, Solheim grew increasingly critical of the Labour Party's foreign and domestic policies, particularly what he perceived as the party's subservience to the [United States](/source/United_States) and [McCarthyism](/source/McCarthyism).[1] This opposition led him to become one of the founding members of the [Socialist People's Party](/source/Socialist_People's_Party_(Norway)) in 1961. He served as chairman of the party's Telemark county organisation and represented the party on [Porsgrunn](/source/Porsgrunn) city council from 1963 to 1971.[1] At the party's congress in 1969, Solheim was elected chairman, a position he held until [Finn Gustavsen](/source/Finn_Gustavsen) succeeded him in 1971.[1] When the Socialist People's Party merged into the [Socialist Left Party](/source/Socialist_Left_Party_(Norway)) in 1975, Solheim joined the new organisation but left in 1985 over political disagreements.[1] ## Resistance activities during World War II During the Second World War, Solheim played an active role in the Norwegian resistance movement. In 1942, he helped establish the illegal newspaper "Alt for Norge", which became one of the most significant Communist-affiliated underground publications of the occupation period.[1][3] During the winter of 1943–44, Solheim operated from the Communist Party's central hideout in [Valdres](/source/Valdres), where he wrote articles for various illegal newspapers. Following his disagreement with [Peder Furubotn](/source/Peder_Furubotn), he returned to western Norway in late winter 1944, where he became a leading figure in the "Western Freedom Council", described as the only regional freedom council to achieve significant success. During this period, he also edited the underground newspaper "Gjallarhorn".[1] ## Professional career After the war, Solheim held various positions in both the private and public sectors. From 1949 to 1952, he served as director of Fiskarlaget shipyard AS Stongfjordanlegget.[1] He subsequently operated a sawmill near [Risør](/source/Ris%C3%B8r) before transitioning to education in 1959. He worked as a lecturer, first in [Brevik](/source/Brevik,_Norway), then at Porsgrunn gymnasium until his retirement in 1974.[1] ## *Fossegrimen* magazine Solheim's most significant cultural contribution was his editorship of *Fossegrimen*, a magazine he founded in 1954 and ran independently until 1968. The publication was built upon language-political, socialist and national foundations, positioning itself in opposition to the Labour Party's policies, particularly in foreign affairs, whilst also challenging left-wing socialist circles in [Oslo](/source/Oslo).[1][2] *Fossegrimen* served as an important platform for Norwegian writers and intellectuals. Regular contributors included the prominent author [Georg Johannesen](/source/Georg_Johannesen), novelist [Axel Jensen](/source/Axel_Jensen) and poets [Einar Økland](/source/Einar_%C3%98kland) and [Tor Obrestad](/source/Tor_Obrestad).[1] ## Publications Solheim was a prolific author whose works reflected his political convictions and cultural interests: - *Samtidsprofilar* (Contemporary Profiles, 1964) – a collection of his articles from *Fossegrimen* - *Vestavær* (Western Weather, 1967) – further articles from *Fossegrimen* - *I solnedgangstider* (In Sunset Times, 1976) – wartime memoirs covering the period 1940–45 - *En strilekrønike* (A Strile Chronicle, 1978) – concerning the Strile people of western Norway - *Epistlar. Frå det skjulte Norge* (Epistles: From Hidden Norway, 1987) - *Det norske lynnet. Humor frå Edda til gate og grend* (The Norwegian Temperament: Humour from Edda to Street and Village, [Samlaget](/source/Samlaget), 1997) ## Legacy Torolv Solheim was described by [Georg Johannesen](/source/Georg_Johannesen) as simultaneously a "beekeeper, poet, partisan, heretic and fisherman".[1] His combination of political activism, cultural engagement, and literary output established him as a significant figure in post-war Norwegian intellectual life. Through *Fossegrimen*, he provided a platform for alternative voices during a period of political conformity in Norway, whilst his own writings captured the tensions between traditional Norwegian culture and modern political realities. ## References 1. Seierstad, Dag. ["Torolv Solheim"](http://www.snl.no/.nbl_biografi/Torolv_Solheim/utdypning) (in Norwegian). *[Norsk biografisk leksikon](/source/Norsk_biografisk_leksikon)*. [Helle, Knut](/source/Knut_Helle) (ed.). Oslo: Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 3 March 2010. 1. Henriksen, Petter (ed.). ["Torolv Solheim"](http://www.snl.no/Torolv_Solheim) (in Norwegian). *[Store norske leksikon](/source/Store_norske_leksikon)*. Oslo: Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 3 March 2010. 1. Færøy, Frode (18 October 2022). ["What's the truth about the Communist resistance in Norway during the second world war?"](https://www.sciencenorway.no/history-second-world-war-war/whats-the-truth-about-the-communist-resistance-in-norway-during-the-second-world-war/2091110). *Science Norway*. Retrieved 29 August 2025. --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Torolv Solheim](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torolv_Solheim) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torolv_Solheim?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.