Overview
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country located in Northern Europe. It comprises the western and northernmost parts of the Scandinavian Peninsula, along with the remote Arctic island Jan Mayen and the archipelago Svalbard. The country has a population of approximately 5.6 million and covers a total area of 385,207 square kilometres (148,729 square miles). Oslo is the capital and largest city.
Geography and Borders
Norway shares a long eastern border with Sweden and is bordered by Finland and Russia to the northeast. The country has an extensive coastline facing the Skagerrak strait, the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea, and the Barents Sea. Norway also claims several remote territories: Bouvet Island in the Subantarctic is a dependency, while Peter I Island and Queen Maud Land in Antarctica are claimed but not part of the Kingdom.
Etymology
Norway has two official names: Norge in Bokmål and Noreg in Nynorsk. The English name "Norway" comes from the Old English word "Norþweg," recorded around 890 by Ohthere of Hålogaland, meaning "northern way" or "way leading to the north." This referred to how the Anglo-Saxons described the coastline of Atlantic Norway. The traditional view suggests the native name also derives from Old Norse origins, with "Norðr vegr" meaning "the way northwards," referring to the sailing route along the Norwegian coast.
Early History
The earliest traces of human occupation in Norway are found along the coast, with evidence of settlement dating to between 11,000 and 8000 BC, after the ice shelf from the last ice age melted. Stone tools discovered in Finnmark and Rogaland have been dated to 9500 to 6000 BC. Between 3000 and 2500 BC, new settlers from the Corded Ware culture—Indo-European farmers who grew grain and kept livestock—gradually replaced the hunting-fishing populations of the west coast.
Bronze was gradually introduced around 1500 BC, marked by characteristic burial cairns and rock carvings depicting ships. During the first four centuries AD, Norwegians were in contact with Roman-occupied Gaul; approximately 70 Roman bronze cauldrons have been found. Knowledge of runes arrived through contact with countries to the south, with the oldest known Norwegian runic inscription dating to the third century.
Viking Age and Unification
By the 8th century, several small political entities existed in Norway. Archaeologists estimate there were at least nine petty realms in Western Norway during the early Viking Age, with possibly at least 20 across the whole country. Norwegian Viking explorers discovered Iceland by accident in the ninth century while heading for the Faroe Islands, and eventually reached Vinland, known today as Newfoundland in Canada.
According to tradition, Harald Fairhair unified the petty kingdoms into one kingdom in 872 following the Battle of Hafrsfjord in Stavanger, becoming the first king of a united Norway. His realm was primarily a South Norwegian coastal state. Many Norwegians subsequently left to settle in Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and parts of Britain and Ireland.
Christianization
Haakon I the Good was Norway's first Christian king in the mid-10th century, though his attempt to introduce Christianity was initially rejected. Christian traditions gradually replaced Norse traditions in the late 10th and early 11th centuries, largely through the efforts of missionary kings Olaf I Tryggvasson and Olaf II Haraldsson (St. Olaf). Olaf Tryggvasson returned to Norway in 995 and built the first Christian church in Norway at Moster before sailing north to Trondheim, where he was proclaimed King of Norway by the Eyrathing in 995.
High Middle Ages
From the 1040s to 1130, Norway experienced peace. A civil war era then broke out in 1130 due to unclear succession laws. The Archdiocese of Nidaros was established in 1152. The wars ended in 1217 with the appointment of Håkon IV Håkonsson, who introduced clear laws of succession.
Between 1000 and 1300, Norway's population grew from 150,000 to 400,000, resulting in increased land clearing and farm subdivision. By 1300, approximately seventy per cent of the land was owned by the king, the church, or the aristocracy. The 13th century marked Norway's golden age, characterized by peace, increased trade with the British Islands, and rising German influence. Throughout the High Middle Ages, the king established Norway as a sovereign state with a central administration.
Modern History
The unified kingdom of Norway was established in 872 and has existed continuously for 1,153–1,154 years. From 1537 to 1814, Norway was part of Denmark–Norway, and from 1814 to 1905, it was in a personal union with Sweden. Norway remained neutral during the First World War but was invaded and occupied by Nazi Germany from April 1940 until the end of the Second World War.
Government and Politics
Harald V of the House of Glücksburg is the current king of Norway. Jonas Gahr Støre has served as prime minister since 2021. As a unitary state with a constitutional monarchy, Norway divides state power between the parliament, the cabinet, and the judiciary, as determined by the 1814 constitution. The country has administrative and political subdivisions on two levels: counties and municipalities. The Sámi people have a degree of self-determination and influence over traditional territories through the Sámi Parliament and the Finnmark Act.
International Relations
Norway maintains close ties with the European Union and the United States. The country is a founding member of the United Nations, NATO, the European Free Trade Association, the Council of Europe, the Antarctic Treaty, and the Nordic Council. Norway is also a member of the European Economic Area, the World Trade Organization, and the OECD, and participates in the Schengen Area.
Economy and Resources
Norway maintains the Nordic model with universal health care and a comprehensive social security system rooted in egalitarian ideals. The Norwegian state holds large ownership positions in key industrial sectors and has extensive reserves of petroleum, natural gas, minerals, lumber, seafood, and fresh water. The petroleum industry accounts for approximately a quarter of the country's gross domestic product. On a per-capita basis, Norway is the world's largest producer of oil and natural gas outside of the Middle East. The country ranks fourth and eighth highest in PPP-adjusted per-capita GDP according to the World Bank and IMF, respectively, and possesses the world's largest sovereign wealth fund, valued at US$2.1 trillion.
Language
The Norwegian dialects form a continuum of mutual intelligibility with Danish and Swedish dialects.