FX.co ★ Denmark funds research on trolls

Bornholm's fictional trolls will become the main subject of Kofoed Rømer's dissertation. Actually, it is hard to surprise anyone with such scientific research recently; however, the Danish government became interested in this one. The country's authorities not only showed interest in the scientist's project but also granted 2.5 million kroner (USD 428,000 appr.) to Rømer. The officials think this money will be enough to complete the thesis research. The future PhD intends to study in detail the connection between the real underground people of the island and the folklore. There are eight more people studying trolls along with Rømer in the approved list for grands. Peter Munk Christiansen pointed that Denmark’s Council for Independent Research (DFF) has a broad definition of what constitutes a useful study. “At DFF we believe that humanistic research should be funded on equal footing with all other research areas and we actually support that area more than we support societal research. We profess a pluralism and broad coverage – we don't just pursue things that are the most popular right now,” Christiansen said in his interview to the Local Denmark. The main topic of the dissertation will be the story of Krølle Bølle — the main troll of Bronholm that was mentioned for the first time in the book of local author Ludwig Mahler in 1946. Krølle Bølle lives with his family on the top of Langebjerg mountain and comes down every night in quest of adventure. Rømer is going to study the traces of trolls' activity on the territory of the island. “It can be creatures <...>and there can be special places in the nature that have unique vibes,” PhD candidate said.