1.
Norway
–
The Antarctic Peter I Island and the sub-Antarctic Bouvet Island are dependent territories and thus not considered part of the Kingdom. Norway also lays claim to a section of Antarctica known as Queen Maud Land, until 1814, the kingdom included the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Iceland. It also included Isle of Man until 1266, Shetland and Orkney until 1468, Norway has a total area of 385,252 square kilometres and a population of 5,258,317. The country shares a long border with Sweden. Norway is bordered by Finland and Russia to the north-east, Norway has an extensive coastline, facing the North Atlantic Ocean and the Barents Sea. King Harald V of the Dano-German House of Glücksburg is the current King of Norway, erna Solberg became Prime Minister in 2013, replacing Jens Stoltenberg. A constitutional monarchy, Norway divides state power between the Parliament, the Cabinet and the Supreme Court, as determined by the 1814 Constitution, the kingdom is established as a merger of several petty kingdoms. By the traditional count from the year 872, the kingdom has existed continuously for 1,144 years, Norway has both administrative and political subdivisions on two levels, counties and municipalities. The Sámi people have an amount of self-determination and influence over traditional territories through the Sámi Parliament. Norway maintains close ties with the European Union and the United States, the country maintains a combination of market economy and a Nordic welfare model with universal health care and a comprehensive social security system. Norway has extensive reserves of petroleum, natural gas, minerals, lumber, seafood, the petroleum industry accounts for around a quarter of the countrys gross domestic product. On a per-capita basis, Norway is the worlds largest producer of oil, the country has the fourth-highest per capita income in the world on the World Bank and IMF lists. On the CIAs GDP per capita list which includes territories and some regions, from 2001 to 2006, and then again from 2009 to 2017, Norway had the highest Human Development Index ranking in the world. It also has the highest inequality-adjusted ranking, Norway ranks first on the World Happiness Report, the OECD Better Life Index, the Index of Public Integrity and the Democracy Index. Norway has two names, Noreg in Nynorsk and Norge in Bokmål. The name Norway comes from the Old English word Norðrveg mentioned in 880, meaning way or way leading to the north. In contrasting with suðrvegar southern way for Germany, and austrvegr eastern way for the Baltic, the Anglo-Saxon of Britain also referred to the kingdom of Norway in 880 as Norðmanna land. This was the area of Harald Fairhair, the first king of Norway, and because of him
2.
Drammen
–
Drammen is a city in Buskerud, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the eastern, Drammen is the capital of the county of Buskerud. There are more than 63000 inhabitants in the municipality, Drammen and the surrounding communities are growing more than ever before. The city makes good use of the river and inland waterway called Drammensfjord, no city in the country has received as many awards for environmental and urban development as Drammen,6 national and 2 international prizes since 2003. The Old Norse form of the name was Drafn. The fjord is, however, probably named after the river Drammenselva, the coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 17 November 1960, the arms are blue with a gray/silver column on top of a foundation of rocks. A key and a Viking sword are crossed in the forming a x. It is based upon the old seal dating from 1723 for Bragernes, the motto for Bragernes was In Fide Et Justitia Fortitudo, and the items in the seal are referring to this, key = faith, sword = justice, column on rocks = strength. The municipality of Drammen was established on 1 January 1838, the rural municipality of Skoger was merged with the municipality of Drammen on 1 January 1964 and was transferred from Vestfold county to Buskerud county at the same time. The city itself has 66000 inhabitants, making it Norways ninth largest, Drammen is currently divided into eight districts. The largest rock carving at Åskollen depicts a moose, Drammen originally consisted of three small seaports, Bragernes and Strømsø and Tangen. For trade purposes, small seaports were placed under market towns, despite their geographical proximity, Bragernes was placed under Christiania and Strømsø under Tønsberg. For this reason, cooperation between the adjacent seaport towns was almost impossible, in 1662, a merger was proposed to unite Strømsø and Bragernes to form a market town with the name Frederiksstrøm. The proposal was rejected by Frederick III of Denmark, Bragernes received limited market town rights in 1715, and merged with Strømsø to gain status as a single city on 19 June 1811. Its geographical location made the city favorable for seafaring, shipbuilding, log driving, during 19th century, paper and pulp industries were developed. Large parts of the city were ruined in the fire of 12–13 July 1866. The Drammen Line opened in 1872 providing rail service between Drammen and Oslo, in 1909, Drammen got the first trolleybus system in Scandinavia, the Drammen trolleybus
3.
Conservative Party (Norway)
–
The Conservative Party is a conservative and liberal-conservative political party in Norway. It is the party of the Norwegian centre-right, and the leading party in the governing Solberg cabinet. The current party leader is the Prime Minister of Norway Erna Solberg, in national elections in September 2013, voters ended eight years of Labour Party rule. After winning the elections, Solberg said her win was an election victory for the right-wing electoral bloc. The party advocates economic liberalism, reduction of taxes, and individual rights and it has historically been the most outspokenly pro-European Union party in Norway, supporting Norwegian membership during both the 1972 and 1994 referendums. The party generally supports semi-privatization through state-funded private services and tougher law, founded in 1884, the Conservative Party is the second oldest political party in Norway after the Liberal Party. In the interwar era, one of the goals for the party was to achieve a centre-right alliance against the growing labour movement. The Conservative Party of Norway was founded in 1884 after the implementation of parliamentarism in Norway, the jurist Emil Stang was elected the first chairman of the party. Stang underlined important principles for the work in Høyre, the party was to be a social party of reforms that worked within the constitutional frames set by a parliamentary democracy. In the 1981-election, Høyre got 31. 7% and it was the best election since 1924. The result in 1993 was 17% and this election was influenced by the EU membership issue which divided the Liberal Party. The 1997 parliamentary election resulted in the lowest support since 1945, Høyre has since then seen increased popular support, and got 21. 3% in the 1999 local elections and 21. 2% in the 2001 parliamentary election. Throughout the years Høyre has supported a policy that aims to stimulate growth in order to avoid unemployment, in the beginning of the 20th century Høyre took the initiative to construct a modern Norwegian communications network. After the devastating First World War it was important for Høyre to work for the reconstruction of sound, an example of this is the resolution Høyre passed in 1923 introducing old-age insurance. But because of the States finances it was not possible to continue this effort, Høyre was the leading party in opposition in the post-war years in Norway. Høyre fought against the Labour Partys regulating policy, Høyre wanted another future for Norway consisting of private initiative and creative forces. Høyre has been a protagonist in the construction of the system in this country. Additionally Høyre has advocated that the States activity must concentrate on its basic problems, during the post-war years Høyre has consolidated its position as a party with appeal to all parts of the nation
4.
Norwegian krone
–
The krone, plural kroner, is the currency of Norway and its dependent territories. It is subdivided into 100 øre, which exist only electronically since 2012, the name translates into English as crown. The krone was the thirteenth most traded currency in the world by value in April 2010, the krone was introduced in 1875, replacing the Norwegian speciedaler/spesidaler at a rate of 4 kroner =1 speciedaler. In doing so, Norway joined the Scandinavian Monetary Union, which had established in 1873. After its dissolution, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden all decided to keep the names of their respective, within the Scandinavian Monetary Union, the krone was on a gold standard of 2,480 kroner =1 kilogram of pure gold. This gold standard was restored between 1916 and 1920 and again in 1928 and it was suspended permanently in 1931, when a peg to the British pound of 19.9 kroner =1 pound was established. In 1939, Norway pegged the krone temporarily to the U. S. dollar at a rate of 4.4 kroner =1 dollar, nonetheless, Norway would continue to hold the Kingdoms gold reserves. During the German occupation in the Second World War, the krone was initially pegged to the Reichsmark at a rate of 1 krone =0.6 Reichsmark, after the war, a rate of 20 kroner =1 pound was established. The rate to the pound was maintained in 1949, when the pound devalued relative to the U. S. dollar, in 1875, coins were introduced in denominations of 10 and 50 øre and 1 and 10 kroner. These coins also bore the denomination in the currency, as 3,15. Between 1875 and 1878, the new coinage was introduced in full, in denominations of 1,2,5,10,25, and 50 øre and 1,2, and 10 kroner. The 1,2, and 5 øre were struck in bronze, the 10,25, and 50 øre and 1 and 2 kroner, in silver, the last gold coins were issued in 1910, silver was replaced by cupro-nickel from 1920. Between 1917 and 1921, iron replaced bronze. 1917 also saw the last issuance of 2 kroner coins, during the German occupation in the Second World War, zinc was used in place of cupro-nickel in 10,25, and 50 øre coins, and production of the 1 krone piece was suspended. In 1963,5 kroner coins were introduced, production of 1 and 2 øre coins ceased in 1972. The following year, the size of the 5 øre coin was reduced, production of the denomination ceased in 1982, ten-kroner coins were introduced in 1983. In 1992, the last 10 øre coins were minted, between 1994 and 1998, a new coinage was introduced, consisting of 50 øre,1,5,10, and 20 kroner. These are the coins which are currently legal tender, with the exception of the 50-øre coin which was withdrawn on 1 May 2012
5.
Oslo
–
Oslo is the capital and the most populous city in Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality, founded in the year 1040, and established as a kaupstad or trading place in 1048 by Harald Hardrada, the city was elevated to a bishopric in 1070 and a capital under Haakon V of Norway around 1300. Personal unions with Denmark from 1397 to 1523 and again from 1536 to 1814, after being destroyed by a fire in 1624, the city was moved closer to Akershus Fortress during the reign of Christian IV of Denmark and renamed Christiania in his honour. It was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838, following a spelling reform, it was known as Kristiania from 1877 to 1925, at which time its original Norwegian name was restored. Oslo is the economic and governmental centre of Norway, the city is also a hub of Norwegian trade, banking, industry and shipping. It is an important centre for industries and maritime trade in Europe. The city is home to companies within the maritime sector, some of which are among the worlds largest shipping companies, shipbrokers. Oslo is a city of the Council of Europe and the European Commission intercultural cities programme. Oslo is considered a city and ranked Beta World City in studies carried out by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group. It was ranked one in terms of quality of life among European large cities in the European Cities of the Future 2012 report by fDi magazine. A survey conducted by ECA International in 2011 placed Oslo as the second most expensive city in the world for living expenses after Tokyo. In 2013 Oslo tied with the Australian city of Melbourne as the fourth most expensive city in the world, as of January 1,2016, the municipality of Oslo has a population of 658,390, while the population of the citys urban area was 942,084. The metropolitan area had an population of 1.71 million. The population was during the early 2000 increasing at record rates and this growth stems for the most part from international immigration and related high birth rates, but also from intra-national migration. The immigrant population in the city is growing faster than the Norwegian population. As of January 1,2016, the municipality of Oslo has a population of 658,390, the urban area extends beyond the boundaries of the municipality into the surrounding county of Akershus, the total population of this agglomeration is 942,084. To the north and east, wide forested hills rise above the city giving the location the shape of a giant amphitheatre. The urban municipality of Oslo and county of Oslo are two parts of the entity, making Oslo the only city in Norway where two administrative levels are integrated
6.
Sogn og Fjordane
–
Sogn og Fjordane is a county in western Norway, bordering Møre og Romsdal, Oppland, Buskerud, and Hordaland. The county administration is in the village of Hermansverk in Leikanger municipality, the largest town in the county is Førde. Although Sogn og Fjordane has some industry, predominantly hydroelectricity and aluminium, Sogn og Fjordane is also home to the Urnes Stave Church and the Nærøyfjord, which are both listed by UNESCO as world heritage sites. The Sogn og Fjordane University College has campuses in Sogndal, Sandane, the name Sogn og Fjordane was created in 1919, a literal translation is, Sogn and the fjords. The first element is the name of the region of Sogn, the last element is the plural definite form of fjord, which refers to the two regions in the county called Nordfjord and Sunnfjord in the northern and central parts of the county. Prior to 1919, the name of the county was Nordre Bergenhus amt which meant northern Bergenhus amt, the coat of arms of Sogn og Fjordane was granted on 23 September 1983. The arms show the layout of the county, three large blue fjords protruding into the white colored land. The three fjords represent the three regions of the county, Nordfjord, Sunnfjord, and Sogn, nearly all villages and towns are situated along one of these fjords and the name of the county is based on the fjords. The county is divided into three traditional districts. These are Sogn, Sunnfjord, and Nordfjord, Sogn surrounds Sognefjorden from Solund on the offshore island of Sula in the North Sea to the village of Skjolden in Luster along Lustrafjorden, a branch of the Sognefjord. The total length is 204 kilometres, the middle district of Sunnfjord actually has two main fjords, Førdefjorden and Dalsfjorden. Sogn og Fjordane is the county in Norway in which all municipalities have declared Nynorsk to be their official written form of the Norwegian language. The county currently consists of the two counties, Firdafylke and Sygnafylke. These both were formed in the Middle Ages under the Gulating government and they were merged with Hordafylke and Sunnmørafylke to form the Bergenhus len in the late Middle Ages. The Bergenhus len was one of four len in Norway and it was administered from the Bergenhus Fortress in the city of Bergen. On 19 February 1662, a decree changed the name to Bergenhus amt. The Sunnmøre region was moved to Romsdalen amt in 1689, later, in 1763, the amt was divided in half creating, Nordre Bergenhus and Søndre Bergenhus. Later, on 1 January 1919, Nordre Bergenhus amt was renamed Sogn og Fjordane fylke during a period of time when many location names in Norway were changed, a county is the chief local administrative area in Norway
7.
Hordaland
–
Hordaland is a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark, and Rogaland counties. Hordaland is the third largest county after Akershus and Oslo by population, the county government is the Hordaland County Municipality which is located in Bergen. Before 1972, the city of Bergen was its own separate county apart from Hordaland, Hordaland is the old name of the region which was revived in 1919. The first element is the genitive case of hǫrðar, the name of an old Germanic tribe. The last element is land which means land or region in the Norwegian language, until 1919 the name of the county was Søndre Bergenhus amt which meant southern Bergenhus amt. The flag of Hordaland shows two golden axes and a crown in red, the flag is a banner of the coat of arms derived from the old seal of the guild of St. Olav from Onarheim in Tysnes municipality. This seal was used by the delegates of Sunnhordland in 1344 on the document to install king Haakon V of Norway and it was thus the oldest symbol used for the region and adapted as the arms and flag in 1961. The symbols refer to the saint of the guild, Saint Olav, King of Norway. The coat-of-arms were officially granted on 1 December 1961 and they were designed by Magnus Hardeland, but the general design had been originally used in the Sunnhordland region during the 14th century. In the early 20th century, leaders of the county using the old arms as a symbol for the county once again. The arms are on a red background and consist of two golden axes that are crossed with a crown above them. Hordaland county has been around for more than one thousand years, since the 7th century, the area was made up of many petty kingdoms under the Gulating and was known as Hordafylke since around the year 900. In the early 16th century, Norway was divided into four len, the Bergenhus len was headquartered in Bergen and encompassed much of western and northern Norway. In 1662, the lens were replaced by amts, Bergenhus amt originally consisted of the present-day areas of Hordaland, Sogn og Fjordane, and Sunnmøre and the far northern Nordlandene amt was subordinate to Bergenhus. In the 1680s, Nordlandene and Sunnmøre were split from Bergenhus, in 1763, the amt was divided into northern and southern parts, Nordre Bergenhus amt and Søndre Bergenhus amt. When the amt was split, the present day municipality of Gulen was split with the southern part ending up in Søndre Bergenhus amt, in 1773, the border was re-drawn so that all of Gulen was located in the northern part. Søndre Bergenhus amt was renamed Hordaland fylke in 1919, the city of Bergen was classified as a city-county from 1831–1972. During that time in 1915, the municipality of Årstad was annexed into Bergen, in 1972, the neighboring municipalities of Arna, Fana, Laksevåg and Åsane were annexed into the city of Bergen
8.
Telemark
–
Telemark is a county in Norway, bordering Vestfold, Buskerud, Hordaland, Rogaland and Aust-Agder. The county administration is in Skien, until 1919 the county was known as Bratsberg amt. The county is located in southeastern Norway, extending from Hardangervidda to the Skagerrak coast, the coastline extends from Langesundsfjorden to Gjernestangen at the border with Aust-Agder. Telemark has a broken and heterogeneous landscape, including many hills. The international road E18 goes through the parts of Telemark, namely Grenland. E134, another important motorway and the fastest route between Oslo and Bergen, goes through the municipalities of Vinje, Tokke, Kviteseid, Seljord, Hjartdal, rV36, stretching from Porsgrunn to Seljord, links the E18 and E134 motorways. Telemark is well served by railways, the Sørlandet Line runs through the traditional districts of Vestmar and Midt-Telemark, serving the municipalities of Drangedal, Nome, Bø and Sauherad. Grenland is primarily served by the Vestfold Line, but also has connections through the Bratsberg Line which runs between Skien and Notodden, geiteryggen Airport in Skien offers flights to Bergen and Stavanger. From Langesund, Fjordline operates ferry services to Sweden and Denmark, the main bus lines in the county are operated by Telemark Bilruter, serving western and middle parts of the county, and Nettbuss which serves the middle, eastern and southern parts of the county. Drangedal Bilruter serves the Vestmar region, the largest population centres are Skien, Porsgrunn, Notodden, Rjukan and Kragerø. Other important places are Bø, Seljord, Fyresdal and Vinje, the Norse form of the name was Þelamǫrk. The first element is the genitive case of þelir, the name of an old Germanic tribe. The last element is mǫrk woodland, borderland, march, the term originally was applied to Upper Telemark. Until 1919, the county was called Bratsberg amt, the amt was named after the farm Bratsberg, since this was the seat of the amtmann. The first element is the case of brattr m steep mountain. Telemark lent its name to Telemark skiing, a style invented by Sondre Norheim, the coat-of-arms is from modern times. It shows an old type of axe, significant for the county. The film The Heroes of Telemark is loosely based on the Norwegian heavy water sabotage, born in Vestfjørddalen Theodor Kittelsen, artist born in Kragerø Vidkun Quisling, politician, collaborationist leader during World War II
9.
Oslofjord
–
The Oslofjord is an inlet in the south-east of Norway, stretching from an imaginary line between the Torbjørnskjær and Færder lighthouses and down to Langesund in the south to Oslo in the north. It is part of the Skagerrak strait, connecting the North Sea and the Kattegat sea area, the Oslofjord is not a fjord in the geological sense - in Norwegian the term fjord can refer to a wide range of waterways. The bay is divided into the inner and outer Oslofjord at the point of the 17 by 1 kilometre Drøbak Sound, in the period 1624-1925 the name of the fjord was Kristianiafjorden - since this was the name of the capital in this period. The old Norse name of the fjord was Fold, giving names to the counties of Vestfold and Østfold -, each of the islands in the innermost part of the fjord has its own identity and distinguishing history. Among them are Hovedøya, Lindøya, Nakholmen, Bleikøya, Gressholmen and these islands can be reached with the Oslo-boats from Vippetangen. Hovedøya contains monastery ruins, Gressholmen for its rabbits, Nakholmen, Bleikøya, Lindøya for their cabins at the water’s edge. The inner part of the Oslofjord has steep and forest covered hill slopes down towards the fjord, the Oslofjord has Norway’s highest all year temperature,7.5 degrees Celsius. February is the coldest month in the fjord with -1.3 degrees Celsius, the islands in the middle of the fjord are among Norway’s warmest with high summer temperatures and moderate winters. Oslofjord’s relatively high temperatures enable various flora to flourish, the oldest settlements in the area surrounding the Oslofjord date from the Stone Age and the Bronze Age. It was here on the eastern and western shores that three of the best preserved Viking ships were unearthed, in historical times, this bay was known by the current name of the region, Viken. Oslofjord has been an important body of water due to its proximity to Oslo. During WWII, there were German installations at several points on its coastline, one installation in Hovedøya held 1,100 Wehrmacht soldiers and later women deemed Nazi collaborators at the National Internment Camp for Women in Hovedøya. Norwegian painter Edvard Munch had a cottage and studio in Åsgårdstrand on the fjord, the fjord was the scene of a key event in the German invasion of Norway in April 1940, the Battle of Drøbak Sound. The invasion included a landing of 1,000 troops transported by ship to Oslo. Colonel Eriksen, Commander of the Oscarsborg fortress near Drøbak, mainly maintained for historical purposes, the fortresss resistance blocked the route to Oslo, thus delaying the rest of the group long enough for the royal family, government, parliament, and national treasury to be evacuated. The entire population situated around the Oslofjord including Oslo is about 1.96 million, more than 40% of Norway’s population resides under 45 minutes of driving from the Oslofjord. The Oslofjord has Norway’s busiest traffic of ferries and cargo boats, even though the Oslofjord contains hundreds of populated islands, most of the population of the fjord resides on the mainland. In the summer there are boats of all sizes on the fjord, and it is possible to go kayaking, canoeing, fishing, the Oslofjord is one of the nine venues of the Class 1 World Powerboat Championship
10.
Hardangervidda
–
Hardangervidda is a mountain plateau in central southern Norway, covering parts of the counties of Buskerud, Hordaland and Telemark. It is the largest plateau of its kind in Europe, with a cold alpine climate. Much of the plateau is protected as part of Hardangervidda National Park, Hardangervidda is a popular tourist and leisure destination, and it is ideal for many outdoor activities. The region is divided administratively between the counties of Buskerud, Hordaland, and Telemark, the plateau is the largest peneplain in Europe, covering an area of about 6,500 km2 at an average elevation of 1,100 m. The highest point on the plateau is the Sandfloegga, which reaches a height of 1,721 m, the landscape of the Hardangervidda is characterised by barren, treeless moorland interrupted by numerous pools, lakes, rivers and streams. There are significant differences between the west side, which is dominated by rocky terrain and expanses of rock, and the east side. The climate also varies between the two sides, it is considerably wetter on the west side than on the east, with over 1,000 mm per year recorded in some parts, the prominent peak of Hårteigen 1,690 m is visible across much of the plateau. Much of the Hardangerviddas geology is extremely ancient, the rolling fells of the Hardangervidda are the remnants of mountains that were worn down by the action of glaciers during the Ice Ages. The bedrock is mainly of Precambrian and Cambro-Silurian origin, the whole of the Hardangervidda is above the tree line. Its alpine climate enables the presence of species of arctic animals. Its wild reindeer herds are among the largest in the world, with some 15,000 animals recorded in 1996, on August 26,2016,323 were killed by lightning, prompting a Norwegian Environment Agency discussion on whether to leave so many corpses in the open. Ciclosporin, an immunosuppressant drug widely used in organ transplantation to prevent rejection, was initially isolated from the fungus Tolypocladium inflatum, found in a soil sample obtained in 1969 from Hardangervidda. With the predicted warming, Hardangervidda could again be largely wooded, the Hardangervidda has been occupied for thousands of years, several hundred nomadic stone age settlements have been found in the area, most likely related to the migration of the reindeer. Ancient trails cross the plateau, linking western and eastern Norway, one example is the Nordmannsslepa linking Eidfjord and Veggli in the Numedal valley with Hol and Uvdal. It is still a key route between Oslo and Bergen. The Bergensbanen railway line and the main Highway 7 cross the plateau, in 1981, much of the Hardangervidda was designated a national park, Norways largest at 3,422 km2. The parks boundaries stretch from Numedal and Uvdal in the east and Røvelseggi, the Norwegian Mountain Touring Association maintains a comprehensive network of huts and paths across the plateau. It is a destination for hiking, climbing and fishing
listen)) is a county in Norway, bordering Akershus, Oslo, Oppland, Sogn og Fjordane, Hordaland, Telemark and Vestfold. The county extends from the Oslofjord and Drammensfjorden in the southeast to Hardangervidda mountain range in the northwest. The county administration is located in Drammen.[1] Together with Akershus and Østfold, Buskerud will form the new, larger county Viken, from 1 January 2020.[2]
Poland
Turkey
Lithuania
Iraq
Afghanistan
Somalia
Sweden
India
Pakistan
Denmark
Kosovo
Germany
Iran
Eritrea
Bosnia-Herzegovina
Vietnam
Thailand
Syria
Russia
Philippines
Drammen
Ringerike
Kongsberg
Lier
Nedre Eiker
Røyken
Øvre Eiker
Modum
Hurum
Hole
Ål
Gol
Hol
Sigdal
Nes
Flesberg
Nore og Uvdal
Krødsherad
Hemsedal
Rollag
Flå
Buskerud
