Bjølsen is a

neighbourhood A neighbourhood (British English, Irish English, Australian English and Canadian English) or neighborhood (American English; see spelling differences) is a geographically localised community within a larger city, town, suburb or rural are ...

in the Sagene borough in central-northern

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. Originally a farm in the former

Aker Aker may refer to: Places * Aker, Norway, a geographic area in Oslo and a former municipality in Norway * Vestre Aker, a district of Oslo within former Aker municipality * Nordre Aker, a district of Oslo within former Aker municipality * Aker Br ...

municipality, it was incorporated into Christiania (now Oslo) in 1878. It has been sawmill and mill operation as far back as the 17th century. Later came the textile industry to Bjølsen, and also a

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

quarry. After most of Bjølsen was incorporated in Christiania (Oslo) in 1878 and much of the farm land was purchased by the

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

it became regulated park, Bjølsen park, which is still a green lung in the area. It adjoins a colonial garden where the children's television series

Portveien 2 ''Portveien 2'' was a children's TV-show produced by NRK, which premiered on 19 March 1985. It has had many reruns, and has become a part of Norwegian TV history. The show produced 140 episodes. The outdoor footage for the series was filmed in a ...

was recorded.

Notable sites

Aker River Akerselva or Akerselven ( en, Aker River) is a river which flows through Oslo. It starts at Maridalsvannet in Oslomarka, and traverses the boroughs of Nordre Aker, Sagene, Grünerløkka, central Oslo and Grønland, whereby it finally ends at P ...

: Oslo's green lung. The river historically has given power to numerous industry companies in Oslo * Bjølsen park: 34 acre park that is known for a beautiful linden tree-lined street which runs north-south along the park's highest point * Margarinfabrikken (Margarine Factory): Historic margarine factory that was in operation until 1929; now Norway's largest kindergarten. * Bjølsenveggen (Bjølsen wall): 50+ meter street

mural A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spani ...

completed in 2020 * Bjølsenhallen (Bjølsen hall): sports and business center that includes large indoor sports hall, pharmacy and a large grocery store. The sports hall consists of a handball court with grandstand, a

floorball Floorball is a type of floor hockey with five players and a goalkeeper in each team. Men and women play indoors with sticks and a plastic ball with holes. Matches are played in three twenty-minute periods. The sport of bandy also played a role ...

court and a number of smaller halls. Hall was a historic site to a

sabotage Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening a polity, effort, or organization through subversion, obstruction, disruption, or destruction. One who engages in sabotage is a ''saboteur''. Saboteurs typically try to conceal their identitie ...

act by Max Manus and others during World War II. * Oslo skatepark: Norway's largest and only sports center built exclusively for skateboarders Bjølsen map 1900

References

Neighbourhoods of Oslo {{Oslo-geo-stub