[1] He was born in Krisitania (now Oslo, Norway) a son of geologist Olaf Holtedahl (1885–1975) and Tora Gurstad (1889–1980).
[1] [2] In 1936, Holtedahl began studying chemistry and zoology at the University of Oslo.
His doctor thesis treated the geomorphology and sediments on the continental shelf off the coast of Møre.
In 1952, Hans Holtedahl was honored by the Norwegian Geological Society with the Reusch Medal.
[4] [1] During his studies in Edinburgh, he met the philology student Wendy Moira Lowe (1923–1978), who he married in 1946 and with whom he had three children.