 Visit NorwayFacts about Norway
System of government: Constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy
Head of government: Prime Minister Erna Solberg
Area: 385,155 square kilometres
Population: 5,137,679 inhabitants (as of 1 July 2014)
Capital city:
Oslo
Languages: Norwegian bokmål, Norwegian nynorsk and
Sami
Religion:
Church of Norway (Protestant Christianity)
Currency: Norwegian kroner (NOK) 1 krone = 100 øre
Time zone: Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) +1 hour
National day:
17 May
Fjords
Norway is famous for its fjords, two of which, the Geirangerfjord and
the Nærøyfjord, feature on the UNESCO World Heritage list. The
Sognefjord, the longest of them all, and the Hardangerfjord, famed for
its cherry and apple trees, are among the most visited. Read more about
the Norwegian fjords.
Northern lights
The Northern lights are a common natural phenomenon in Northern
Norway, and are most commonly observed above the Arctic Circle between
late autumn and early spring. Read more about the northern lights.
Midnight sun
The sun does not set in summer over the Arctic Circle, meaning
visitors to Northern Norway enjoy 24 hours of daylight this time of
year. Read more about the midnight sun.
Weather
The weather in Norway is much milder than one would expect. Because
of the Gulf Stream and warm air currents caused by the coriolis effect,
temperatures along the coast of Norway are 5-8°C higher than at
comparable latitudes elsewhere. Read more about season, weather and climate in Norway or check out the weather for your area.
Vikings
The Vikings have a bad reputation as raiders, but they were also
traders, explorers and settlers, and the legacy from the Viking Age (AD
800-1050) lives on. Read more about the Vikings.
The Sami people
The Sami are the indigenous people of Norway. Known for their
colourful clothes and the huge herds of reindeer they look after, the
Sami have been living in northern Scandinavia for over 10,000 years, and
today they have their own parliament in Karasjok. Read more about the Sami.
Winter sports
Norway’s success in the Winter Olympics is unrivalled, and the
country has a total of 329 medals (118 gold, 111 silver and 100 bronze)
to its tally. The best ever games for Norway were the Lillehammer
winter games in 1994, when Norway, which was competing on home turf,
topped the medal table, having won 26 medals, of which 10 gold. Read
more about the history of skiing and
winter in Norway.
Famous Norwegians
These include explorers Roald Amundsen, Fridtjof Nansen and Thor
Heyerdahl, composer Edvard Grieg, violin virtuoso Ole Bull, artist
Edvard Munch, playwright Henrik Ibsen, novelist Knut Hamsun, and
politician Gro Harlem Brundtland, among many others. Read more about polar explorers.
The Royal Family
King Harald V, the King of Norway, and Queen Sonja have two children:
a son, Crown Prince Haakon, who is married to Crown Princess
Mette-Marit, with whom he has two children and a daughter, Princess
Martha Louise, who is married to Ari Mikael Behn.
Trolls
Trolls are an important part of Norwegian folklore. They vary in size
and appearance, but are invariably ugly and messy creatures, and always
mischievous (if not downright nasty). They usually live in caves or
deep in the forest, and only emerge from their hiding places after
sunset - legend has it that they turn to stone upon contact with the
sun. Several places in Western and Northern Norway have been named after
them, such as Trollheimen, Trollstigen, Trollhatten and Trollveggen.
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