The
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
and
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 ...
have a very long tradition of positive
relations.
The
American Revolution
The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...
of 1776 had a profound impact on Norway, and the democratic ideals of the
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven ar ...
served as a model for the authors of Norway's own Constitution of 1814. The close relationship between the two nations was reinforced by massive Norwegian emigration to the U.S. during the period 1825–1940, when more than 850,000
Norwegians
Norwegians ( no, nordmenn) are a North Germanic ethnic group and nation native to Norway, where they form the vast majority of the population. They share a common culture and speak the Norwegian language. Norwegians are descended from the N ...
made new homes in the United States and helped build the nation.
After the liberation from German occupation in 1945, Norway abandoned its history of neutrality and joined NATO, stressing its military alliance and economic cooperation with Britain and the United States. The
Marshall Plan
The Marshall Plan (officially the European Recovery Program, ERP) was an American initiative enacted in 1948 to provide foreign aid to Western Europe. The United States transferred over $13 billion (equivalent of about $ in ) in economic re ...
helped Norway to modernize its economy and integrate more into the world market. It avoided any provocation that might offend the Soviet Union, its northern neighbor. Since the 1960s, Norway has been drawn increasingly into European affairs while the importance of ties to Britain and the United States has declined. Norway refuses to join the European Union, and engages in a largely independent foreign policy. There is a lingering desire for nonalignment, strengthened by the discovery of vast amounts of oil, that built up a huge rainy day fund in the treasury.
The friendly state of the bilateral relationship was reinforced when King
Harald V of Norway
Harald V ( no, Harald den femte, ; born 21 February 1937) is King of Norway. He acceded to the throne on 17 January 1991.
Harald was the third child and only son of King Olav V of Norway and Princess Märtha of Sweden. He was second in the lin ...
hosted the visit of U.S. President
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
in November 1999, the first visit to Norway by a U.S. President in office. The excellent relations between Norway and the United States, and the Mission in
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 ...
can focus its efforts on projects that serve mutual interests. Among them are expanding on the success of NATO in securing transatlantic security, promoting new business opportunities between the two nations, working with the
Arctic Council
The Arctic Council is a high-level intergovernmental forum that addresses issues faced by the Arctic governments and the indigenous people of the Arctic. At present, eight countries exercise sovereignty over the lands within the Arctic Circle, ...
to preserve the
Arctic
The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...
environment and with Russia in particular in the
Barents Sea
The Barents Sea ( , also ; no, Barentshavet, ; russian: Баренцево море, Barentsevo More) is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located off the northern coasts of Norway and Russia and divided between Norwegian and Russian territo ...
, helping the
Baltic
Baltic may refer to:
Peoples and languages
* Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian
*Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originati ...
nations to find their place in the new Europe, and capitalizing on information technology to promote human rights and a sense of world community.
According to the 2012 U.S. Global Leadership Report, 46% of
Norwegians
Norwegians ( no, nordmenn) are a North Germanic ethnic group and nation native to Norway, where they form the vast majority of the population. They share a common culture and speak the Norwegian language. Norwegians are descended from the N ...
approve of U.S. leadership, with 21% disapproving and 33% uncertain.
Embassies
The United States maintains an embassy in Oslo.
The
United States Ambassador to Norway
The United States Ambassador to Norway (formally the Ambassador of the United States to the Kingdom of Norway) is the official representative of the President and the Government of the United States of America to the King and Government of Norw ...
is in charge of the
embassy of the United States in Oslo
The Embassy of the United States in Oslo is the diplomatic representation of the federal government of the United States to the Kingdom of Norway. A new embassy was put into service in May 2017. The current Embassy is located in Morgedalsvegen 36, ...
.
Principal U.S. officials:
*
Ambassador
An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...
–
Marc Nathanson
Marc B. Nathanson (born May 12, 1945) is an American entrepreneur who has served as the United States ambassador to Norway since 2022. He is best known for his founding of Falcon Cable, which he sold in 1999 for $3.7 billion. He is a member of th ...
Norway maintains an
embassy in Washington DC, United States, and three
consulate
A consulate is the office of a consul. A type of diplomatic mission, it is usually subordinate to the state's main representation in the capital of that foreign country (host state), usually an embassy (or, only between two Commonwealth coun ...
s; in New York City,
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
(
Norwegian Consulate General, Houston
The Consulate-General of Norway in Houston is Norway's diplomatic mission in Houston, Texas, United States. It is located in the Neartown area.[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 ...](_blank)
File:Embassy of Norway.JPG, The Norwegian embassy in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
File:ConsulateNorwayHoustonTX.png,
Norwegian Consulate General, Houston
The Consulate-General of Norway in Houston is Norway's diplomatic mission in Houston, Texas, United States. It is located in the Neartown area.[Sons of Norway
Sons of Norway ( no, Sønner av Norge), founded in 1895 as the Independent Order of the Sons of Norway, is a fraternal organization principally representing people of Norwegian-American, Norwegian heritage in the United States and Canada. The or ...](_blank)
Building in
Minneapolis
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
,
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
Norwegian Americans
There are more than 4.5 million people of Norwegian
ancestry
An ancestor, also known as a forefather, fore-elder or a forebear, is a parent or (recursively) the parent of an antecedent (i.e., a grandparent, great-grandparent, great-great-grandparent and so forth). ''Ancestor'' is "any person from whom ...
in the United States today. Of these, approximately three million claim "Norwegian" as their sole or primary ancestry.
*A little more than 2% of
whites
White is a racialized classification of people and a skin color specifier, generally used for people of European origin, although the definition can vary depending on context, nationality, and point of view.
Description of populations as " ...
in the United States are of Norwegian descent. In the
Upper Midwest
The Upper Midwest is a region in the northern portion of the U.S. Census Bureau's Midwestern United States. It is largely a sub-region of the Midwest. Although the exact boundaries are not uniformly agreed-upon, the region is defined as referring ...
, especially
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
, western
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
, northern
Iowa
Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...
, and
the Dakotas
The Dakotas is a collective term for the U.S. states of North Dakota and South Dakota. It has been used historically to describe the Dakota Territory, and is still used for the collective heritage, culture, geography, fauna, sociology, econom ...
, more than 15% of whites are of Norwegian descent. Nearly one-third of all North Dakotans claim Norwegian as their ancestry.
*55% of Norwegian Americans live in the
Midwest
The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...
, although a large number (21%) live in the
Pacific States
The West Coast of the United States, also known as the Pacific Coast, Pacific states, and the western seaboard, is the coastline along which the Western United States meets the North Pacific Ocean. The term typically refers to the contiguous U.S ...
of
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
,
Oregon
Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
, and
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
.
*Norwegian Americans actively celebrate and maintain their heritage in many ways. Much of it centers on the
Lutheran-Evangelical churches they were born into, but also culinary customs (''
lutefisk
''Lutefisk'' (Norwegian, in Northern and parts of Central Norway, in Southern Norway; sv, lutfisk ; fi, lipeäkala ; literally "lye fish") is dried whitefish (normally cod, but ling and burbot are also used). It is made from aged stockfi ...
'' and ''
lefse
Lefse () is a traditional soft Norwegian flatbread. It is made with flour, can include riced potatoes, and includes butter, and milk, cream, or lard. It is cooked on a large, flat griddle. Special tools are used to prepare lefse, including a po ...
''), costumes (''
bunad
''Bunad'' (, plural: ''bunader''/''bunadar'') is a Norwegian umbrella term encompassing, in its broadest sense, a range of both traditional rural clothes (mostly dating to the 18th and 19th centuries) as well as modern 20th-century folk costumes ...
''), and Norwegian holidays (''
Syttende Mai'', May 17) are popular. A number of towns in the United States, particularly in the Upper Midwest, display very strong Norwegian influences.
*Although the Norwegians were the most numerous of all the Scandinavian immigrant groups, other Scandinavians also emigrated to America during the same time period. Today, there are 11–12 million Americans of Scandinavian ancestry. Scandinavian descendants represent about 6% of the white population in the United States as a whole, and more than 25% of the white population of the Upper Midwest.
*Norwegian Americans tend to be Lutheran (
Norwegian-American Lutheranism), although substantial minorities are
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
or belong to other
Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
denominations.
*There are more people of Norwegian ancestry in America than in Norway. Historically high birth rates over the past hundred years among Norwegian Americans resulted in their roughly quadrupling in population over the original 850,000 immigrants.
Norwegian consulates in the United States
Minneapolis
In 1906 Norway opened a consulate in
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
. It became a consulate-general in 1946.
In 2001 the Norwegian government planned to close the consulate but it stayed open after
Norwegian American
Norwegian Americans ( nb, Norskamerikanere, nn, Norskamerikanarar) are Americans with ancestral roots in Norway. Norwegian immigrants went to the United States primarily in the latter half of the 19th century and the first few decades of the ...
groups lobbied to keep it open. In 2007 the Norwegian government again announced plans to close the consulate and replace it with an honorary consulate; area Norwegian Americans criticized the outcome.
[Louwagie, Pam.]
Norway threatens to close consulate in Minnesota
" ''Minneapolis Star-Tribune
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
''. October 10, 2007. Retrieved on February 11, 2009.
The Minneapolis consulate served Minnesota, Iowa, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.
[Consulates]
" Norway in the USA (Norwegian Government). September 28, 2006. Retrieved on April 17, 2017. In 2007 there were 850,000 people of Norwegian descent in Minnesota.
[ In 2007 the consulate had four permanent employees and an intern.
In 2007, former U.S. Vice President Walter Mondale agreed to serve as Honorary Consul General. He was succeeded by Gary Gandrud whose grandfather P.A. Gandrud had served in both the House of Representatives and Senate in the Minnesota legislature. Eivind Heiberg, the CEO of Sons of Norway, is the honorary consul of Minneapolis.]
Miami
There was previously a Norwegian consulate in Miami that served Florida, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and the Caribbean. The consulate closed on April 1, 2003. After its closure its territory was divided between the consulates in Houston, New York, Caracas, and Mexico City.[
]
See also
*Foreign relations of Norway
The foreign relations of Norway are based on the country's membership in NATO and within the workings of the United Nations (UN). Additionally, despite not being a member of the European Union (EU), Norway takes a part in the integration of EU t ...
*Foreign relations of the United States
The United States has formal diplomatic relations with most nations. This includes all UN member and observer states other than Bhutan, Iran, North Korea and Syria, and the UN observer State of Palestine, the last of which the U.S. does not rec ...
*Marine Corps Prepositioning Program-Norway
Stockpiles of United States Marine Corps weapons, vehicles, ammunition and other equipment have been located in Norway since 1981 as part of what is currently designated the Marine Corps Prepositioning Program-Norway (MCPP-N). This material is sto ...
References
Further reading
* Cole, Wayne S. (1989) ''Norway and the United States, 1905–1955: Two democracies in peace and war''. Ames: Iowa State University Press. .
* Danielsen, Helge. "Military Assistance, Foreign Policy, and National Security: The Objectives of US Military Assistance to Norway, 1950–1965." ''Scandinavian Journal of History'' 45.1 (2020): 71-94.
* Lundestad, Geir. "The United States and Norway, 1905–2006 Allies of a kind: so similar, so different." ''Journal of Transatlantic Studies'' 4.2 (2006): 187-209.
* Lundestad, Geir. "The evolution of Norwegian security policy: Alliance with the West and reassurance in the East." ''Scandinavian Journal of History'' 17.2-3 (1992): 227-256.
* Lundestad, Geir. ''America, Scandinavia and the Cold War, 1945-1949'' (1980),
External links
History of Norway - U.S. relations
Website of the Office of the Historian
The Office of the Historian is an office of the United States Department of State within the Foreign Service Institute. It is legally responsible for the preparation and publication of the official historical documentary record of U.S. foreign po ...
U.S. Relations With Norway
Website of the U.S. Department of State
The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...
Policy & history
Website on the U.S. - Norway relationship, the United States Embassy in Oslo
Norway's relationship to the US
Website of the Government of Norway
The politics of Norway take place in the framework of a parliamentary, representative democratic constitutional monarchy. Executive power is exercised by the Council of State, the cabinet, led by the prime minister of Norway. Legislative power i ...
Norway and the United States
Website of the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Washington, D.C.
Trade in Goods with Norway
Website of the United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
Norway Creates Jobs in the United States
pdf file of the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Washington, D.C., 2017.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Norway-United States relations
Bilateral relations of the United States
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...