1.
Counties of Norway
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Norway is divided into 19 administrative regions, called counties, until 1918, they were known as amter. The counties form the first-level subdivisions of Norway and are divided into 428 municipalities. Svalbard and Jan Mayen are outside the county division and ruled directly on national level, the capital Oslo is considered both a county and a municipality. In 2017 the government decided to abolish the current counties and to them with fewer, larger administrative regions. Below is a list of the Norwegian counties as they have been since 1919, note that the counties are administered both by appointees of the national government and to a lesser extent by their own elected bodies. The county numbers are from the numbering system ISO 3166-2, NO. The number 13 was dropped from the system when the city of Bergen was merged into Hordaland in 1972, from the consolidation to a single kingdom, Norway was divided into a number of geographic regions that had its own legislative assembly or Thing, such as Gulating and Frostating. The second-order subdivision of these regions was into fylker, such as Egdafylke and Hordafylke, in 1914, the historical term fylke was brought into use again to replace the term amt introduced during the union with Denmark. Current day counties often, but not necessarily, correspond to the historical areas. Finnmark, the Faroe Islands, the Orkney Islands, Shetland, the Hebrides, Isle of Man, Iceland and Greenland were Norwegian skattland, from the end of the 12th century, Norway was divided into several syssel. The head of the various syssel was the syslemann, who represented the king locally, the following shows a reconstruction of the different syssel in Norway c. 1300, including sub-syssel where these seem established, from 1308, the term len in Norway signified an administrative region roughly equivalent to todays counties. The historic len was an important administrative entity during the period of Dano-Norwegian unification after their amalgamation as one state, which lasted for the period 1536–1814. At the beginning of the 16th century the political divisions were variable, up to 1660 the four principal len were headquartered at the major fortresses Bohus Fortress, Akershus Fortress, Bergenhus Fortress and the fortified city of Trondheim. The sub-regions corresponded to the districts for the Lutheran church in Norway. Båhus len Akershus len Trondheim len Bergenhus len These four principal len were in the 1530s divided into approximately 30 smaller regions. From that point forward through the beginning of the 17th century the number of subsidiary len was reduced, from 1660 Norway had nine principal len comprising 17 subsidiary len, Len written as län continues to be used as the administrative equivalent of county in Sweden to this day. Each len was governed by a lenman, with the royal decree of February 19,1662, each len was designated an amt and the lenmann was titled amtmann, from German Amt, reflecting the bias of the Danish court of that period
2.
Rondane National Park
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Rondane National Park is the oldest national park in Norway, established on 21 December 1962. The park contains ten peaks above 2,000 metres, with the highest being Rondeslottet at an altitude of 2,178 m, the park is an important habitat for herds of wild reindeer. The park was extended in 2003, and now covers an area of 963 km2 in the counties Oppland, Rondane lies just to the east of Gudbrandsdal and two other mountain areas, Dovre and Jotunheimen are nearby. Rondane is a high mountain area, with large plateaus. The highest point is Rondeslottet at an altitude of 2,178 m, the lowest point is just below the tree line, which is approximately 1,000 to 1,100 m above sea level. The climate is mild but relatively arid, apart from the White Birch trees of the lower areas, the soil and rocks are covered by heather and lichen, since they lack nutrients. The largest mountains are almost entirely barren, above 1,500 m nothing, the central massif is also cut by botns, flat, dead stone valleys below the steep mountain walls of the peaks. Generally, Rondane does not receive enough precipitation to generate persistent glaciers, the centre of the Park is the Rondvatnet lake, from which all the peaks beyond 2,000 m of altitude can be reached in less than one days walk. In this central region and north of it, the altitude is high compared with the flatter plateaus of the south. Rondane has ten peaks over 2,000 m, Rondeslottet, Storronden, Høgronden, Midtronden western summit, Vinjeronden, Midtronden eastern summit, Trolltinden, Storsmeden, Digerronden, and Veslesmeden. In many parts of the park, there are spread-out holes created by small remains of ice age glaciers, the history of life in the area of the park begins at the end of the latest ice age. Large climate changes allowed reindeer to spread widely across Scandinavia, only to be forced back to a smaller area — including the Rondane mountain area — only some hundreds of years later. Archaeologists have found that the forest quickly grew at high altitudes, on the mountain plateaux, there is evidence that nomadic hunter-gatherers lived off reindeer. Large traps used to catch reindeer can be found at Gravhø and these are constructed from stone to make holes or large fenced-in areas into which reindeer could be tricked or led. In conjunction with large traps, there are also small arched stone walls which are believed to have been used as hiding places for archers waiting for prey. Various dating methods have suggested that the earliest traps may be as old as 3500 years, most of the findings, including remains of houses, date back to the years between 500 and 700 AD. It is thus known with confidence that the traps and accompanying walls were used from the 6th century until the onset of the Black Death in the 14th century. After nearly a decade of planning, Rondane was established as the first Norwegian National Park on 21 December 1962 and it was first established as a nature protection area, but was later named a national park
3.
Norway
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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
4.
Eastern Norway
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Eastern Norway is the geographical region of the south-eastern part of Norway. It consists of the counties Telemark, Vestfold, Østfold, Akershus, Oslo, Buskerud, Oppland, eastern Norway is by far the most populous region of Norway. It contains the capital, Oslo, which is Norways most populous city. In Norwegian, the region is called Østlandet and Austlandet in contrast to Vestlandet, as of 2010, the region had 2,454,700 inhabitants. In 2014, Norways population was 5,156,450, the region is bounded by mountains in the north and west, the Swedish border to the east and by Viken and Skagerrak to the south. The border towards Sørlandet is less obvious, the mountains reach a height of 2469 metres in the Jotunheimen mountain range, the highest point in the Nordic countries. Other prominent mountain ranges include part of the Dovrefjell in the far north of the region, the high plateau of Hardangervidda extends into Western Norway. Valleys cut deep into the mountains, from east to west the valleys are Østerdal, Gudbrandsdal, Valdres, Hallingdal, Numedal. Østerdalen is surrounded by mostly flat areas of forests. The population density in the flatlands is the highest in the nation, numerous islands shelter the coasts, creating a paradise for swimmers and boaters in the summer. The Norwegian dialects spoken in the south-east share a common intonation, the dialects of the interior mountainous areas are all distinct. The dialects of the areas are more similar to the written language. The eastern forests of Finnskogen were the home of an ethnic minority and their language and culture was preserved into the 20th century, but now only folk tunes and food specialities remain. The southernmost group of Norways Sami population is to be found in the north-eastern corner, the culture of mountain valleys is preserved to a greater degree than the more urbanized metropolitan areas. The area is distinguished with traditional architecture, like churches and lafting, folk music. Some are concerned for the loss of culture in the face of modernization. It is common to see moose warning signs missing from their posts and this is of course illegal, and can result in a fine. The coastal region is populated both by Norwegian and European standards
5.
Hamar
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Hamar is a town and municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the region of Hedmarken. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Hamar, the municipality of Hamar was separated from Vang as a town and municipality of its own in 1849. Vang was merged back into Hamar on 1 January 1992, the town is located on the shores of Mjøsa, Norways largest lake, and is the principal city of Hedmark county. It is bordered to the northwest by the municipality of Ringsaker, to the north by Åmot, to the east by Løten, the municipality is named after the old Hamar farm, since the medieval town was built on its ground. The name is identical with the word hamarr which means rocky hill, the coat-of-arms shows a Black Grouse sitting in the top of a pine tree on a white background. It was first described in the anonymous Hamarkrøniken written in 1553, between 500 and 1000 AD, Aker farm was one of the most important power centres in Norway, located just a few kilometres away from todays Hamar. Three coins found in Ringerike in 1895 have been dated to the time of Harald Hardråde and are inscribed Olafr a Hamri. At some point, presumably after 1030 but clearly before 1152, there are some indications Harald Hardråde initiated this move because he had property at the new site. Much of the information about medieval Hamar is derived from the Hamar Chronicles, the town is said to have reached its apex in the early 14th century, dominated by the Hamar cathedral, bishops manor, and fortress, and surrounding urbanization. The town was known for its fragrant apple orchards, but there were also merchants, craftsmen and this diocese included Hedemarken and Christians Amt, being separated in 1152 from the former diocese of Oslo. The first bishop of Hamar was Arnold, Bishop of Gardar and he began to build the now ruined cathedral of Christ Church, which was completed about the time of Bishop Paul. Bishop Thorfinn was exiled and died at Ter Doest abbey in Flanders, Bishop Jörund was transferred to Trondheim. A provincial council was held in 1380, there were at Hamar a cathedral chapter with ten canons, a school, a Dominican Priory of St. Olaf, and a monastery of the Canons Regular of St. Anthony of Vienne. Hamar, like most of Norway, was diminished by the Black Plague in 1349. The Reformation in Norway took less than 10 years to complete, the fortress was made into the residence of the sheriff and renamed Hamarhus fortress. By 1587, merchants in Oslo had succeeded in moving all of Hamars market activities to Oslo, though some regional and seasonal trade persisted into the 17th century, Hamar as a town ceased to exist by then. In its place, the area was used for agriculture under the farm of Storhamar, though the ruins of the cathedral, fortress, and lesser buildings became landmarks for centuries since then
6.
County governor (Norway)
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County Governor is a Norwegian government agency represented in 17 of the Norwegian counties responsible for a number of supervision and management duties. The Governor is the representative of the King and Government of Norway in each county, the County Governors are subordinate to the Ministry of Government Administration and Reform, but are also subordinate to other ministries in their respective duties. Governors are parts of the branch and thus formally appointed by the King in the cabinet meeting. The Governor is also responsible for matters including marriage, divorce. If a municipality do not have an economy, the Governor will enter the municipality into the ROBEK registry. The Governor of Svalbard has wider authorities, including the police authority, the County Governor has been an institution since the 12th century, though the institution has had many names, including sysselmann, lensmann, amtmann and now fylkesmann. Its present form was created in 1976 when the county municipality was demerged to form a separate, most governors are former politicians or have a background in the police force. It is uncommon for governors to hold an office for less than a decade, although almost all County Governors are former active politicians, it has been regarded as customary that an incumbent County Governor does not participate in partisan politics
7.
Labour Party (Norway)
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The Labour Party, formerly the Norwegian Labour Party, is a social-democratic political party in Norway. It was formerly the senior partner of the governing Red-Green Coalition, the party is currently led by Jonas Gahr Støre. The Labour Party is officially committed to social-democratic ideals and its slogan since the 1930s has been everyone shall take part, and the party traditionally seeks a strong welfare state, funded through taxes and duties. During the first Stoltenberg government, the policies were inspired by Tony Blairs New Labour. The party has frequently described as increasingly neoliberal since the 1980s. The Labour Party profiles itself as a party that subscribes to cooperation on a national as well as international level. Its youth wing is the Workers Youth League, the party is a full member of the Party of European Socialists and Progressive Alliance, and is an observer member of the Socialist International. The Labour Party has always been a supporter of Norways NATO membership and has supported Norwegian membership in the European Union during two referendums. Founded in 1887, the party increased in support until it became the largest party in Norway in 1927. This year also saw the consolidation of surrounding the party during the 1920s following its membership in the Comintern from 1919 to 1923. It formed its first government in 1928, and has led the government for all but 16 years since 1935, from 1945 to 1961, the party had an absolute majority in the Norwegian parliament, the only time this has ever happened in Norwegian history. The domination by the Labour Party, during the 1960s and early 1970s, was broken by competition from the left. From the end of the 1970s however, the party started to lose voters to the right, in 2001 the party achieved its worst electoral results since 1924. Between 2005 and 2013, Labour returned to power after committing to an agreement with other parties in order to form a majority government. Since losing 9 seats in the 2013 election, Labour has been in opposition, the party was founded in 1887 in Arendal and first ran in elections to the Parliament of Norway in 1894. It entered Parliament in 1904 after the 1903 election, and steadily increased its vote until 1927, the party were members of Comintern, a Communist organisation, between 1918 and 1923. From the establishment of Vort Arbeide in 1884, the party had a growing and notable organisation of newspapers, the party press system eventually resulted in Norsk Arbeiderpresse. In January 1913 the party had 24 newspapers, and 6 more newspapers were founded in 1913, the party also had the periodical Det 20de Aarhundre
4.05 %
listen) is a county in Norway, bordering Trøndelag to the north, Oppland to the west and Akershus to the south. The county administration is in Hamar.
Ringsaker
Hamar
Elverum
Stange
Kongsvinger
Sør-Odal
Løten
Åsnes
Trysil
Eidskog
Tynset
Nord-Odal
Grue
Åmot
Våler
Stor-Elvdal
Alvdal
Os
Rendalen
Folldal
Tolga
Engerdal
Hedmark
Poland
Sweden
Somalia
Lithuania
Eritrea
Germany
Iraq
Thailand
Afghanistan
Syria
Denmark
Vietnam
Bosnia-Herzegovina
Iran
Netherlands
Russia
Kosovo
Philippines
Media related to Hedmark at Wikimedia Commons
Hedmark travel guide from Wikivoyage
