Karl Evang (19 October 1902 – 3 January 1981) was a Norwegian physician and civil servant.
He was born inKristiania as a son of assisting secretary Jens Ingolf Evang (1873–1914) and Anna Beate Wexelsen (1875–1954). He was a brother ofVilhelm Evang, and a relative ofVilhelm Andreas Wexelsen,Per Kvist andGunnar Jahn.[1] His sister Anne Beate married another civil servant,Karl Ludvig Bugge.[2] Karl Evang met physician Gerda S. Landmark Moe (1905–1985) in 1926, and married her in 1929.[1]
He enrolled in medicine studies at theRoyal Frederick University in 1924, and became a member of the revolutionary groupMot Dag in 1926 which had a strong[citation needed] standing among students.Mot Dag was affiliated with theCommunist Party of Norway at the time, but soon became independent. Evang was also active in theNorwegian Support Committee for Spain andClarté. He was elected chairman of theNorwegian Students' Society in 1931, while serving a prison sentence forconscientious objection. He joined theNorwegian Labour Party afterMot Dag's demise in 1933.[1]
In the 1930s he became a noted public debater. He issued the 1934 bookRasepolitikk og reaksjon, and wrote with the purpose of medicinal and hygienic enlightenment in the publicationsPopulært Tidsskrift for Seksuell Oplysning (which he edited) andArbeidermagasinet.[1] He was also a popular radio speaker and lecturer.[3] In 1938 he was appointed to the vacant position as director of theNorwegian Directorate for Health. WhenWorld War IIcame to Norway, Evang followed thecabinet Nygaardsvold first to Northern Norway, then to exile in the United Kingdom. Evang was given the rank of lieutenant colonel. He spent the war years organizing a health administration for Norwegians abroad, spending time in the USA as well.[1][4] After the war he co-founded theWorld Health Organization; he was also board chairman for some time.[5] His position was strengthened after the war, and Evang signalizedtechnocratic ambitions. Similarly, the health conditions in Norway improved in the post-war years.Poliomyelitis was eradicated andtuberculosis diminished. However, several welfare programs were implemented long after Evang's initiatives. He also had political ambitions (Minister of Social Affairs, probably alsoPrime Minister) that were never fulfilled.[1]
In 1972 he had to retire due to the age limit of 70. He spent one year as a guest professor at theUniversity of Tromsø. He also became more radical politically. He had been an opponent of Norwegian participation in the Korean War and NATO, co-founded the newspaperOrientering andopposed Norwegian EEC membership in 1972. In 1973 he joined theSocialist Electoral League.[1] He released the bookHelse og Samfunn, an overview of the contemporary health sector. Other releases include selected articles fromPopulært Tidsskrift for Seksuell Oplysning, which were released in book form in 1947 and 1951.[5]
He suffered from astroke, and subsequentaphasia from 1976 to his death in January 1981 in Oslo.[1]
| Civic offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Director of theNorwegian Directorate for Health 1938–1972 | Succeeded by |
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| National | |
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| Other | |
