Jenny Lindefjeld

BIOGRAPHY

Jenny Lindefjeld was born in Eiken, Agder, Norway, on 17 April 1905. Her parents were Ommund Olsen Nøkland (1870–1935) and Anna Simensdatter Nøkland (1875–1934). She had seven siblings, including Anna (1902–1985), Mari (1908–1996), Ola Andreas (1911–1996), Anna Gurine (born 1914), Ola Johan (1917–1991), and Sigmund (1919–2007). Tragically, on 25 November 1915, her eldest brother, Olaf Johan, drowned in a lake at the age of 18. In his memory, her parents named a later-born son after him.

She enjoyed going to school, even though it only lasted for seven years of primary education. At home in Nøkland, her family had a small plot of land, some pasture, four or five cows, and a horse. Although the fields were small, there was always enough food. All the children, both older and younger, were expected to help with the work. At the age of 16 or 17, it was time for her to leave home and begin working in service. Her father took her part of the way to Kvinesdal by horse and cart. Along the route, they were met by Guttorm Lindefjeld. He and his brother Anders—her future husband—owned the farm where she would work. In exchange for her labor, she received room and board, along with a small monthly wage.

In 1923, she married Anders Lindefjeld and moved to his family farm at Lindefjell in Kvinesdal. They had seven children: Otto (born in 1924), Oscar (1928), Constance (1931), Agnes (1932), Martine (1934), Arthur (1936), and Mary (1940). After they had been married for some time, her husband returned to America to work as a floorlayer and earn money. The plan was for her to join him once the necessary permits were approved. After a long wait, the permit finally arrived, and she traveled to America. They settled in Washington Heights, New York, where she worked as a cook for a group of laborers. After spending a few years in America, the Great Depression hit, and work became scarce. As a result, they returned home to Lindefjell.

Life at Lindefjell during the Second World War was relatively manageable, though there were occasional unsettling encounters with German soldiers—such as when two appeared unexpectedly while she was working in the cellar. At one point, a German bicycle troop camped near the farm, interacting kindly with the children and even offering them sweets. The German soldiers were generally friendly toward local children, sometimes giving them rides to school, which was several kilometers away.

In 2005, when she turned 100, journalist Rune Øidne Reinertsen documented her life story. The project was commissioned by Dinamo Forlag for a book featuring interviews with centenarians.

At the age of 109, she was hospitalized in Flekkefjord for a few days due to a lung infection, but she made a full recovery. At the age of 110, she had 18 grandchildren, 48 great-grandchildren, and 31 great-great-grandchildren.

Jenny Lindefjeld passed away in Kvinesdal, Agder, Norway, on 28 June 2015, at the age of 110 years, 72 days.

RECOGNITION

At the time of her passing, she was the second-oldest living person in Norway, after Elisabeth Ekenæs.

Lindefjeld’s age was validated by the European Supercentenarian Organisation (ESO) on 8 March 2020.

ATTRIBUTION

* Jenny Severine Lindefjell (Nøkland) (1905 – 2015) – Geni

* “Jenny Lindefjeld 110 år” – fvn.no, 15 April 2015

GALLERY

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