Meaning of Fattighjon?

[James Higgins]

I'm not sure I understand what this is.  
Fattig-poor + hjon-?
 
MVH
Jim

[Judy Olson Baouab]

Definition from SweGGate's extensive glossaries.
 
fattighjon O Poor person, pauper. fattig = poor, cf. hjon  
 
Also from SweGGate:
 
http://www.rootsweb.com/~swewgw/Fact/Cult/facCulSoc01.htm
 
Home page for SweGGate:
 
http://www.rootsweb.com/~swewgw/sweggate.htm
 
Glossaries can be found by clicking on Dictionaries & Encyclopedias on the home page. The first page reached is a glossary page and the top of that page has links to more glossary pages.
 
Judy

[James Higgins]

Tusen tack Judy!
 
 Had to organize my search a little better, but I figured it out. It's still hard to realize how poor some were that they actually called them that. Not sure that would fly nowdays.
MVH
Jim

[Ingela Martenius]

You have to realize that it was a kindness to call someone poor (or mad) in those days. This meant that the person so designated didn't have to pay taxes. The vicar didn't have any derogatory intentions.
 
Up until after WW II Sweden was one of the poorest countries in Europe. But - everyone was poor. The nobility was the very poorest in Europe. So even though we were poor, no one was as desperately poor as they were in countries where there was (is!) a great difference between the richest and the poorest. Of course the richest people here enjoyed a very different lifestyle from the poorest people - but the richest in Sweden were as far removed from the richest in Europe as they were themselves removed from the poorest here. (No, not my own observation but a straight quote from course 101 in Economic History at Göteborg university.)
 
Ingela

[James Higgins]

Hmmm! That certainly makes me think about things. I've always liked the idea that your really 'only as strong as the weakest among us'.
 
In regards to this is there something like 'janteloven' in Sweden? I understand that this has a profound effect in Norwegian culture, even here in the US where there are alot of Norsk descendants.I have never heard of anything similar in Swedish culture other than the typical deferential reserve that a lot of scandinavians display. Just curious.
MVH
Jim

[Ulla Fredriksson]

James! Janteloven is Norwegian/Danish, in Swedish it is 'Jantelagen'.  
 
Here is a link to Wikipedia about The Jante Law in englishwith some quite interesting interpretations: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jante_Law

[James Higgins]

Tack Ulla,
 
 This is an education for me no doubt. I have only seen this referenced before, didn't know that it was so articulated. I especially appreciated the interpetations.
 
MVH
Jim