Ottar Grepstad

{{short description|Norwegian Nynorsk writer (born 1953)}}

File:Ottar Grepstad 2010.jpg

Ottar Grepstad (born 1 October 1953) is a Norwegian Nynorsk writer.

He was born in Øyer Municipality.{{cite news|title=Storverk om "hjartespråket"|work=Verdens Gang|first=May Grethe|last=Lerum|date=1 February 2006|page=38|language=Norwegian}} In the 1970s he was the leader of the Young Liberals of Norway for a period. From 1984 to 1988 he edited the periodical Syn og Segn.{{cite news|title=Ung tidsskriftredaktør|agency=Norwegian News Agency|date=2 May 1988|language=Norwegian}} He worked in Det Norske Samlaget for many years, and has been manager for Noregs Mållag. In 1999 he became the leader of the Ivar Aasen Centre in Ørsta.{{cite news|title=Ottar Grepstad blir Aasen-direktør|agency=Norwegian News Agency|date=9 February 1999|language=Norwegian}} This centre is owned by Nynorsk kultursentrum; which is led by Grepstad as well.{{cite encyclopedia|year=2007|title=Nynorsk kultursentrum|encyclopedia=Store norske leksikon|editor=Henriksen, Petter|publisher=Kunnskapsforlaget|location=Oslo|url=http://www.snl.no/Nynorsk_kultursentrum|language=Norwegian|accessdate=30 November 2009}} From 1 January 2005 he has been a member of the Arts Council Norway,{{cite news|title=Offisielt fra statsråd|agency=Norwegian News Agency|date=17 December 2004|language=Norwegian}} and from 2006 to 2010 he has been a board member of the Norwegian Language Council.{{Citation needed|date=November 2009}} He left the Arts Council in late 2009.{{cite news|title=Nilssen til Kulturrådet|last=Sørheim|first=Sarah|date=19 December 2009|work=Klassekampen|pages=34–35|language=Norwegian}}

In 1997 he released the book Det litterære skattkammer. Sakprosaens teori og retorikk, which was claimed to be the "world's first theoretical book about prose".{{cite news|title=Landssvikoppgjøret bokvårens heteste tema|agency=Norwegian News Agency|date=6 January 1997|language=Norwegian}} In 1999 he was awarded the Norwegian Language Prize by the Norwegian Language Council.{{cite news|title=Norsk språkpris til Ottar Grepstad|agency=Norwegian News Agency|date=2 February 1999|language=Norwegian}} In 2006 he released Viljen til språk. Ei nynorsk kulturhistorie and in 2010 Avisene som utvida Noreg. Nynorskpressa 1850-2010.

Grepstad resides in Volda Municipality.