Peter Hersleb Graah Birkeland (19 January 1807 – 1896) was a Norwegian bishop.

He was born in Borgund

Borgund, Møre og Romsdal

Borgund is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The municipality consisted of the islands of Sula, Humla, Tørla, and Ellingsøya, as well as parts of Oksenøya, Hessa, and Nørvøya, plus many minor islands throughout the area...

 as the son of Lars Birkeland and Johanne Hellem Baade.

In 1836 he married Severine Elise Angell Gram in the Nidaros Cathedral. The couple had nine children, although some died in their youth. Their son Lauritz married Elen Lovise Augusta Kildal, a daughter of Peter Wessel Wind Kildal

Peter Wessel Wind Kildal

Peter Wessel Wind Kildal was a Norwegian businessperson.He opened his first store in Christiania in 1842. He gradually expanded to several fields. At Høyenhall he owned the country's largest fruit plantation, at Hol in Ringsaker he owned a farm, a dairy and a potato flour factory...

, niece of Peter Daniel Baade Wind Kildal and sister of Birger Kildal

Birger Kildal

Birger Kildal was a Norwegian politician for the Liberal Party. He was Minister of Auditing 1884-1886, as well as head of the Ministry of Postal Affairs in 1885...

.

Peter Hersleb Graah Birkeland started his career as a priest in the Church of Norway

Church of Norway

The Church of Norway is the state church of Norway, established after the Lutheran reformation in Denmark-Norway in 1536-1537 broke the ties to the Holy See. The church confesses the Lutheran Christian faith...

. He served in Fosnæs

Fosnes

Fosnes is a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Namdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Dun on the island of Jøa. Other villages include Salsnes and Nufsfjord.-General information:...

, Namdalen

Namdalen

Namdalen is a traditional district in the central part of Norway, consisting of the municipalities Namsos, Grong, Overhalla, Røyrvik, Fosnes, Nærøy, Høylandet, Namdalseid, Flatanger, Lierne, Leka, Namsskogan, and Vikna, all in Nord-Trøndelag county. The district has two towns: Kolvereid and Namsos...

, Hetland

Hetland

Hetland is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway.It was created as Hetland formannskapsdistrikt in 1837. On 1 July 1922, Randaberg was separated from Hetland to create a municipality of its own. The split left Hetland with a population of 10,167...

 and Bergen

Bergen

Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....

. In 1842 he co-founded the Norwegian Missionary Society

Norwegian Missionary Society

The Norwegian Missionary Society is a Norwegian missionary organization.It was started by a group of approx 180 people in the town of Stavanger in Norway in August 1842. The goal was to spread the Christian religion to other peoples, mainly in Africa...

. In 1864 he was appointed Bishop of the Diocese of Bjørgvin

Diocese of Bjørgvin

Bjørgvin Diocese is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers churches located in the counties of Hordaland and Sogn og Fjordane. The cathedral city is Bergen. Bergen Cathedral, formerly the Church of Saint Olaf, serves as the seat of the presiding Bishop...

. He retired in 1880, and died in 1896 in Kristiania

Oslo

Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...

.