Hauge was born and grew up on the island of Kyrkjøy in the
Sjernarøyane islands in
Finnøy Municipality in
Rogaland County, Norway. He was the son of Kolbein Andersson Hauge (1889–1972) and Marianne Rasmusdotter Auglænd (1893–1967). His brother
Kolbjørn Hauge (1926-2007) was a schoolteacher and author. He completed primary school at Bryne in
Time Municipality and graduated
artium at
Vossavangen in
Hordaland during 1935. He obtained his teaching degree at
Oslo in 1939. He worked as a teacher at
Karmøy in
Rogaland and at
Stavern in
Vestfold until 1945. From 1952-53, he was the Rector of the Ryfylke Folkehøgskule at
Sand in
Hedmark. From 1953-1983, he was a journalist at
Stavanger Aftenblad. Hauge debuted with the historical novel
Septemberfrost in 1941. Hauge is best known for describing the life and adventures of
Cleng Peerson, a pioneer Norwegian immigrant to the
United States in the 1820s. His trilogy included:
Hundevakt (1961; "Midwatch”),
Landkjenning (1964; "Land Sighting"), and
Ankerfeste (1965; “Anchoring”). This collected work was published as
Cleng Peerson in Norway during 1968. An English-language version was translated by Eric J. Friis and published under the same title during 1975. This publication was released as one of the official publications of the Norwegian Immigration Sesquicentennial in 1975. Hauge received numerous literary awards during his career. In 1955, Hauge won the
Gyldendal's Endowment, a literature prize which was awarded by the
Norwegian publisher
Gyldendal Norsk Forlag. In recognition of his work he was also awarded the
Norwegian Critics Prize for Literature in 1965. Hauge was made a Knight 1st Class the
Order of St. Olav in 1976. He received an honorary doctorate at
Luther College at
Decorah, Iowa in 1982. A memorial to Hauge has been erected on the island of Kyrkjøy at
Sjernarøy Church (
Sjernarøy kirke). The memorial is a bust made by artist
Svein Magnus Håvarstein (1942–2013). Sjernarøy Church is an historic wooden church which dates to 1636. Composer Hallvard Johnsen (1916-2003) wrote an opera based upon Alfred Hauge's
Legenden om Svein og Maria. The opera was first performed on 3 September 1973 by the
Norwegian National Opera and Ballet (
Den Norske Opera & Ballet) in Oslo. ==Selected works==