Editing Fridtjof Nansen (section)

== Family background and childhood ==
[[File:Nansen-aged4.jpg|thumb|upright|alt=an unsmiling fair-haired child stands upright, his left hand resting on a stool, in front of an ornate fireplace.|Nansen in 1865 (age 4)]]
The Nansen family originated from [[Denmark]]. [[Hans Nansen]] (1598–1667), a trader, was an early explorer of the [[White Sea]] region of the Arctic Ocean. In later life he settled in Copenhagen, becoming the city's ''[[burgomaster|borgmester]]'' in 1654. Later generations of the family lived in Copenhagen until the mid-18th century, when Ancher Antoni Nansen moved to Norway (then in [[Denmark–Norway|a union with Denmark]]). His son, Hans Leierdahl Nansen (1764–1821), was a magistrate first in the [[Trondheim]] district, later in [[Jæren]]. After Norway's separation from Denmark in 1814, he entered national political life as the representative for [[Stavanger]] in the first [[Parliament of Norway|Storting]], and became a strong advocate of union with Sweden. After suffering a paralytic stroke in 1821 Hans Leierdahl Nansen died, leaving a four-year-old son, Baldur Fridtjof Nansen, the explorer's father.<ref>Brøgger and Rolfsen, pp. 1–7, 10–15</ref> 

Baldur was a lawyer without ambitions for public life, who became Reporter to the [[Supreme Court of Norway]]. He married twice, the second time to Adelaide Johanne Thekla Isidore Bølling Wedel-Jarlsberg from [[Bærum]], a niece of [[Johan Caspar Herman Wedel-Jarlsberg|Herman Wedel-Jarlsberg]] who had helped frame the [[Constitution of Norway|Norwegian constitution of 1814]] and was later the Swedish king's Norwegian [[Governor-general of Norway|Viceroy]].<ref>Brøgger and Rolfsen, pp. 8–9</ref> Baldur and Adelaide settled at Store Frøen, an estate at Aker, a few kilometres north of Norway's capital city, [[Oslo|Christiania]] (since renamed Oslo). The couple had three children; the first died in infancy, the second, born 10 October 1861, was Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen.<ref name="Reynolds11">Reynolds, pp. 11–14</ref><ref name="Huntford7">Huntford, pp. 7–12</ref>

Store Frøen's rural surroundings shaped the nature of Nansen's childhood. In the short summers the main activities were swimming and fishing, while in the autumn the chief pastime was hunting for game in the forests. The long winter months were devoted mainly to skiing, which Nansen began to practice at the age of two, on improvised skis.<ref name="Huntford7" /> At the age of 10 he defied his parents and attempted the ski jump at the nearby [[Husebyrennet|Huseby]] installation. This exploit had near-disastrous consequences, as on landing the skis dug deep into the snow, pitching the boy forward: "I, head first, described a fine arc in the air ... [W]hen I came down again I bored into the snow up to my waist. The boys thought I had broken my neck, but as soon as they saw there was life in me ... a shout of mocking laughter went up."<ref name="Reynolds11" /> Nansen's enthusiasm for skiing was undiminished, though as he records, his efforts were overshadowed by those of the skiers from the mountainous region of [[Telemark]], where a [[Telemark skiing|new style of skiing]] was being developed. "I saw this was the only way", wrote Nansen later.<ref>Scott, pp. 9–10</ref>

At school, Nansen worked adequately without showing any particular aptitude.<ref name="Huntford7" /> Studies took second place to sports, or to expeditions into the forests where he would live "like [[Robinson Crusoe]]" for weeks at a time.<ref>Scott, pp. 11–12</ref> Through such experiences Nansen developed a marked degree of self-reliance. He became an accomplished skier and a highly proficient [[Ice skating|skater]]. Life was disrupted when, in the summer of 1877, Adelaide Nansen died suddenly. Distressed, Baldur Nansen sold the Store Frøen property and moved with his two sons to Christiania.<ref>Huntford, pp. 16–17</ref> Nansen's sporting prowess continued to develop; at 18 he broke the world one-mile (1.6&nbsp;km) skating record, and in the following year won the national cross-country skiing championship, a feat he would repeat on 11 subsequent occasions.<ref name="Ryne">{{cite web | last = Ryne | first = Linn | title = Fridtjof Nansen: Man of many facets | url = http://www.mnc.net/norway/Nansen.htm | publisher = Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs | access-date =25 August 2010 }}</ref>