Syvert Omundsen Eeg was born in Søgne in Vest-Agder, Norway. He worked as both a farmer and a shipmaster. He signed up as a seaman in Kristiansand in 1796. He sailed aboard the "Strandmaagen" and the brig "Anne Marie". Later he was skipper of the galleons "Emanuel" and "Peter". He was held captive in England as a result of the British embargo of Norway during the Napoleonic wars.