William Nygaard

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William Nygaard (born March 16, 1943) is a Norwegian publisher who graduated with a degree in economics in 1967. He has two children.^[1]

Contents 1 Business career 2 Assassination attempt 3 Other positions 4 Notes

[edit] Business career

Since 1974 he has been the chief publisher (CEO) of Aschehoug publishing house, following the footsteps of his father Mads Wiel Nygaard and grandfather William Martin Nygaard who was leading the company in earlier years.^[2] William Nygaard was chairman of the Norwegian Publishers Association (Den norske Forleggerforening in Norwegian) from 1987 to 1990.^[3]

[edit] Assassination attempt

On April 12, 1989 Aschehoug and William Nygaard was responsible for publishing the Norwegian edition of Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses.^[4] This was two months after Ayatollah Khomeini issued the following fatwa against Salman Rushdie and his publishers:

I inform all zealous Muslims of the world that the author of the book entitled The Satanic Verses — which has been compiled, printed and published in opposition to Islam, the Prophet, and the Qur'an — and all those involved in its publication who were aware of its content, are sentenced to death. I call on all zealous Muslims to execute them quickly, wherever they may be found, so that no one else will dare to insult the Muslim sanctities. God Willing, whoever is killed on this path is a martyr.^[5]

Owing to the fatwa, direct threats against William Nygaard and translator Kari Risvik, and the resulting controversy, Nygaard was given police protection for a period.

Nevertheless, on the morning of October 11, 1993 he was shot three times and left for dead outside his home in Dagaliveien in Oslo.^[6] The ammunition used was of the type Federal Hydrashock, constructed to expand when hitting tissue, indicating that the shooter intended to kill.^[7] Although the crime has never been solved, most people — including Nygaard^[8] — link the incident to the fatwa. After several months of hospitalization, most of the time at Sunnaas hospital, Nygaard slowly recovered.^[8]

[edit] Other positions

Both before and after the attack, William Nygaard has been an outspoken defender of free speech, and is a board member of the Norwegian PEN, the Norwegian division of International PEN.^[9]

As of 2006, he is a member of the board of Norway's National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design.^[10]

[edit] Notes

1. ^ A page about a video interview with Nygaard (in Norwegian)
2. ^ The history of Aschehoug publishing house (in Norwegian)
3. ^ Newspaper article from Aftenposten (in Norwegian)
4. ^ A timeline of the events of the Satanic Verses controversy (in Norwegian)
5. ^ Notes for Salman Rushdie: The Satanic Verses, including the text of the fatwa
6. ^ Interview with Helga Waagaard who was first to find Nygaard and call for an ambulanse (in Norwegian)
7. ^ Web page describing a documentary about the shooting (in Norwegian)
8. ^ ^{a b} Interview with William Nygaard 10 years after the assasination attempt (in Norwegian)
9. ^ Listing of the board of the Norwegian PEN
10. ^ Listing of the board of the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design