Rallar

”We blast through the tunnels with the happiest of songs all summer long; here it is changing, though life offers us a struggle for our daily bread” This is a verse taken from one of the countless rhyming Rallar songs. Rallar is a Swedish word for construction workers who travelled around looking for work. In Norway they used the equivalent word “slusk”, which originally was a derogatory nickname for sloppy, disrespectful rough people or tramps but which later become synonymous with taking pride in your work. At the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries large scale development took place in Norway. Industry was advancing and cities were growing with a greater need for better infrastructure and communications. The manpower required to achieve this was greater than that which Norway had available, therefore many Swedes came to the area to work on the construction and also a number of Italians. Working conditions were often miserable, work days long and safety terrible. But regardless of this the workers were proud of the work they performed and had a great unity. Singing at work raised morale, something we are familiar with from English sea shanties for example.