Norway Geography: A Comprehensive Overview of the Scandinavian Nation

Geography of Norway Browse the article Geography of Norway

Introduction to Geography of Norway

Norway, or Kingdom of Norway (Norwegian: Norge ), a nation of northwestern Europe. It forms the western part of the Scandinavian Peninsula, bounded on three sides by the waters of the Barents, Norwegian, and North seas and the Skagerrak, a strait between Norway and Denmark. The country adjoins Sweden for most of its length, and curves eastward at its northern tip to touch Finland and Russia. Norway includes thousands of offshore islands. Other Norwegian island possessions are Svalbard and Jan Mayen in the Arctic Ocean and Bouvet in the South Atlantic.

Northern Norway is part of the area known as the “Land of the Midnight Sun,” because of the period of continuous daylight beyond the Arctic Circle during summer.

Facts in brief about NorwayCapital: Oslo.Official language: Norwegian (Bokmal and Nynorsk).Official name: Kongeriket Norge (Kingdom of Norway).Area: 148,726 mi2 (385,199 km2), including Svalbard and Jan Mayen. Greatest distances—northeast-southwest, 1,089 mi (1,752 km); northwest-southeast, 267 mi (430 km). Coastline—1,647 mi (2,650 km).Elevation: Highest—Galdhoppigen, 8,100 ft (2,469 m) above sea level. Lowest—sea level along the coast.Population: Current estimate—4,671,000; density, 31 per mi2 (12 per km2); distribution, 78 percent urban, 22 percent rural. 2002 census—4,520,947.Chief products: Agriculture—barley, hay, livestock, milk, oats, potatoes, wheat. Fishing—cod, haddock, herring, mackerel. Forestry—timber. Manufacturing—aluminum, furniture, processed foods, refined petroleum products, ships, wood pulp and paper. Mining—coal, iron ore, limestone, nickel, petroleum and natural gas, pyrites, zinc.National anthem: "Ja, vi elsker dette landet" ("Yes, We Love This Land").Flag and coat of arms: Norway's flag, adopted in 1898, has a blue cross outlined with white on a red background. The civil flag is rectangular. The state flag has a swallowtail (forked tail). Norway's coat of arms dates from the 1280's, when the ax and crown of Saint Olav were added to the lion.National holiday: Constitution Day, May 17.Money: Basic unit—Norwegian krone. One hundred ore equal one krone.

Physical Geography

Norway is a country on the northwest edge of Europe.Land

Norway occupies the most elevated part of the Scandinavian Peninsula, which, in general, rises abruptly from the sea in the west and the north and slopes gradually downward toward the southeast. All of the area was glaciated during the last ice age.

Norway's landforms consist mainly eroded, rounded mountains and plateaus and innumerable valleys. Many of the mountains reach elevations of 4,000 to 6000 feet (1,220 to 1,830 m); Galdhöpiggen, the highest, rises 8,166 feet (2,489 m) above sea level. Some of the mountainous areas are capped by snow fields and glaciers. Probably the most spectactular landforms are the great fjords on the jagged west and north coasts. Some of these rather narrow, clifflined arms of the sea extend great distances inland.

Water

Lakes and streams are abundant in virtually all parts of Norway. Few of the lakes are of impressive size; the largest, Lake Mjösa, covers roughly 140 square miles (360 k2 The longest river, the Glomma, is about 370 miles (600 km) in length. Many of Norway's swiftly flowing rivers are invaluable sources of waterpower for Norway's manufacturing industries.

Climate

Norway lies at about the same latitude as Alaska and northern Russia, but its climate is far less severe. The warming effects of the Norwegian Current, a branch of the North Atlantic Current, are felt throughout the land, strongly along the southwest coast and less so inland, toward the north, and in the mountains. Winters are long and fairly cold, summers brief and cool. Average January and July temperatures at Oslo, for example, are about 23° and 63° F. (-5° and 17° C). The southwestern coast is slightly warmer, the north coast somewhat colder. Most of the fjords are ice-free all year.

Precipitation is heaviest along the west coast and on windward mountain slopes, reaching 40 to 80 inches (1,000 to 2,000 mm) or more a year. Annual amounts decrease toward the east. Most of Norway has much cloudy weather and abundant snow.

Vegetation

Forests cover about 25 per cent of the land, growing mainly in the central and southern sections. Elsewhere, tundra and bare rocky land prevail. The forests consist largely of conifers, such as spruce, pine, and fir. Deciduous trees—oak, ash, maple, elm, and birch—grow mixed with conifers in some low-lying areas. Stunted birch trees are found in the far north on the edge of the tundra and beyond the limit of the conifers on the mountains. Vegetation in the tundra and above the timberline consists of low shrubs, mosses, and lichens.

Economy

From the end of World War II until the late 1980's, Norway enjoyed steady economic growth. Shipping, fishing, forestry, agriculture, and manufacturing grew substantially during this period. Since the 1970's, when large-scale production of oil and natural gas began, the growth of the economy has gradually become tied to the production and export of these fuels. Declines in the oil and gas industries in the late 1980's resulted in a slight decline in the nation's gross domestic product. However, Norway maintains one of the highest per-capita incomes in the world.

Industrial growth before the 1970's was made possible mainly by large governmental expenditures on industrial-development programs and on an abundance of hydroelectric power. Among European countries, Norway ranks second only to Russia in the production of hydroelectric power.

Almost all of Norway's industrial facilities are privately owned and operated. Most transportation systems and public utilities are owned and operated by the government.

Tourism is a large and growing industry. Many Norwegians are employed in the service industries and by government.

Economic production in NorwayEconomic activities% of GDP producedNumber of workers% of all workersCommunity, government, & personal services 29869,00038Mining 1932,0001Finance, insurance, real estate, & business services 13272,00012Trade, restaurants, & hotels 11407,00018Manufacturing 10278,00012Transportation & communication 9149,0007Construction 5159,0007Utilities 317,0001Agriculture, forestry, & fishing 183,0004Total 1002,266,000100Manufacturing

forms an important part of the economy. A relatively wide range of consumer goods, such as processed foods (particularly fish), textiles and clothing, and household items, are produced for domestic use and export. Numerous industries produce largely for export. Among their products are pulp and paper; metals, especially aluminum, steel, and ferroalloys; fertilizers and other chemicals; machinery; and ships. Huge offshore oil-drilling platforms for use in the North Sea are made for petroleum companies.

Increasingly, Norway has turned to the production of technologically advanced products. Manufacturing is concentrated in and around Oslo, Bergen, and Stavanger. Some of the large chemical and metallurgical operations that require enormous amounts of electricity, such as a nitrogen fixation and aluminum refining, are located elsewhere, near the sites of hydroelectric power.

Agriculture

Less than 3 per cent of Norway's land is suitable for cultivation. The most productive areas are the valleys north of Oslo and the lowlands around Trond-heim. Farms are generally small, family owned, and affiliated with cooperatives. Crop yields are moderately high due to increasing use of fertilizer and machinery. Livestock—chiefly sheep and beef and dairy cattle—and fodder, especially hay, account for much of the nation's agricultural production. Food crops consist mainly of barley, oats, potatoes, and hardy fruits and vegetables. Much food is imported.

Norwegian farmers traditionally supplement their incomes with secondary occupations, mainly in fishing, forestry, and farming.

Fishing

Norway has long been one of the world's leading fishing and fish-exporting nations. Coastal fishing in small boats accounts for much of the catch. Since World War II, fishing distant waters in large vessels has increased substantially. Whaling, once important, ceased in the late 1980's because of international opposition to whaling and the dwindling number of whales.

Forestry is one of Norway's oldest industries, dating back many centuries. Pine, spruce, and birch are the most valuable woods. Logging operations are modern and highly mechanized. Rivers and coastal waters are still used for moving logs to the mills. Cutting of forests is strictly supervised by the government.

Mining

Until the 1970's Norway's mineral production consisted chiefly of iron ore, pyrite, and coal (on Svalbard). Of these, iron ore, mined in the far north, led in value and volume. Petroleum and natural gas are now the leaders. Both are produced in the North Sea and are largely exported by pipelines beneath the North Sea. Development is controlled by the government.

Trade. Norway's prosperity depends heavily on foreign trade. Since the development of North Sea oil and gas, exports have usually exceeded imports in value. Revenues from shipping and tourism also contribute to Norway's favorable balance of payments. The Norwegian merchant marine is one of the world's largest and most modern. The fleet, operating largely between foreign ports, has long been one of the nation's leading earners of foreign exchange. Principal trading partners are Germany, Sweden, and Great Britain.

Transportation

Road and railway systems in Norway are relatively well developed, considering the difficult terrain. Most of the roads and railways are in the south. Only one railway and one major highway extend northward beyond Trondheim. Roughly 60 per cent of the railway mileage is electrified. The nation is served by several international airlines, including Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS), jointly operated by Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. Major airports are at Oslo, Bergen, and Stavanger. Extensive coastal shipping supplements Norway's land transportation. The principal ports, which handle international as well as domestic traffic, are Oslo, Kristiansand, Stavanger, Bergen, Trondheim, Narvik, and Tromsö.

The People

The only significant minority group consists of the Sami (Lapps), who inhabit the extreme north. The greater part of the population lives along the southern and western coasts. Slightly more than one-fourth of the people live in sparsely populated areas.

Language and Religion

Norway has two official languages. One is the traditional literary and commercial language called riksmål, or bokmål, which developed during the era of Danish, domination and which is based grammatically on Danish, although pronounced differently. The other is Neo-Norwegian, created out of Norwegian dialects by Ivar Aasen in the mid-19th century. Agreement has not been reached on whether a common language amalgamating the two should be permitted to develop naturally or arbitrarily devised. Many dialects are still used in rural areas. The Sami maintain their own language, a Finno-Ugric tongue. English is widely spoken in the cities.

The official church of Norway is the Evangelical-Lutheran, to which about 96 per cent of the population belongs. Of the remaining denominations, the largest are the United Methodist Church and the Roman Catholic Church.

Education

Schooling is free and compulsory from ages 7 to 16. Elementary education is divided into a lower stage (barneskolen), which lasts six years, and an upper stage (ungdomsskolen), which lasts three years. Beyond the ungdomsskoen are the gymnas, secondary schools that provide a course lasting one to three years. A student who completes three years may enter a university or other institution of higher learning. There is virtually no illiteracy.

The University of Oslo (originally Royal Frederick University) was founded in 1811. Other schools include the universities of Bergen, Tromsö, and Trondheim, and the Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration at Bergen, the Veterinary College of Norway at Oslo, and the Oslo, School of Architecture.

Culture

In the Viking era Norwegian accomplishments in art and literature matched in vigor the feats of conquest and exploration. The period of Danish rule, from the 14th to the 19th century, was one of cultural stagnation. With the reconstitution of kingdom of Norway under the Swedish monarchy (1814) came a resurgence of art, letters, and science.

Surviving examples of medieval culture include the artifacts found in Viking burial mounds, and the early churches. The mounds have produced Viking ships, carved dragon's-head prows, and elaborately carved furniture. Fine gold spurs and arms inlaid with silver have been found also. Most distinctive architecturally are the stave (wooden) churches, built in the 11th and 12th centuries. Rising in steep-roofed tiers to a pinnacle, their gables ornamented with dragon's heads, they are uniquely Norwegian in appearance.

The revival of the arts in the 19th century was led by the poet Henrik Wergeland. Artists of major importance rose to prominence during the century—Ibsen in drama Grieg in music, Munch in painting, and Vigeland in sculpture. Scientists included Niels Henrik Abel, mathematician; Armauer Hansen, discoverer of the leprosy bacillus; and Michael Sars, biologist. Norwegians who have won Nobel Prizes include Sigrid Undset and Fridtjof Nansen.

The Bergen International Festival of Music, Drama, and Folklore, held each year during May and June, is a major international event.

Sports and Recreation

Skiing may be considered the national sport of Norway, with ice skating next in popularity. Holmenkollen Ski Week, held in Oslo each March, is an international meet. The Winter Festival—with fairs, processions, and concerts—is held in connection with it.

Although summer is short, Norway's extensive coastline offers abundant opportunity for water sports. Sailing is traditional, and is a favorite activity. The Hankö International Regattas, an annual yachting event, take place on the Oslo fjord in July. The International Sea Fishing Festival at Stavanger is in August. Rifle-shooting, track and field, and gymnastics are widespread organized sports. Soccer is the most popular spectator game.

Many festivals are held in Norway. The Sun Pageant, greeting the return of the sun, takes place at Rjukan on March 9. In June Tromsö celebrates 24-hour sunshine with Polar Day. On Midsummer Eve, June 23, there are folk dancing and bonfires at Oslo and Lillehammer, and processions and ritual dances at Voss.

Government

Norway is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy. It is governed under its 1814 constitution; two-thirds of the original articles have been amended. Executive powers are vested in the king, but are exercised by the cabinet. The king has the nominal authority to veto legislation, but he no longer exercises it.

Legislative powers are vested in the Storting, or parliament. It has 157 members elected for four-year terms under proportional representation. At its first session following an election, the Storting divides itself into two chambers called the Lagting and the Odelsting. Certain questions are considered by the two houses separately, others in joint session. The Sameting, a Sami national assembly composed of 39 members, serves as an advisory body to the Storting.

Executive powers rest with the council of state, or cabinet, headed by a prime minister. The cabinet, whose members come from the majority party, or coalition of parties, in the Storting, must resign whenever it fails to win a vote of confidence. The king cannot dissolve the Storting or call for new elections.

Norway has three levels of courts, the highest being the Supreme Court of courts, the highest being the Supreme Court of 18 justices. In every criminal case there are three judges and a jury of 10.

Norway's 19 counties (including Oslo) are headed by governors appointed by the central government. The counties are subdivided into urban and rural districts, which are governed by elected councils.