capital
Capital may refer to:
Common uses
* Capital city, a municipality of primary status
** List of national capital cities
* Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences
* Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...
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 ...
. It constitutes both a
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
and a
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 ...
. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater
urban area
An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities, t ...
had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022, and the
metropolitan area
A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...
had an estimated population of in 2021.
During the
Viking Age
The Viking Age () was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonizing, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. It followed the Migration Period and the Ger ...
, the area was part of
Viken
Viken may refer to:
*Viken, Scandinavia, a historical region
*Viken (county), a Norwegian county established in 2020
*Viken, Sweden, a bimunicipal locality in Skåne County, Sweden
*Viken (lake), a lake in Sweden, part of the part of the Göta cana ...
. Oslo was founded as a city at the end of the Viking Age in 1040 under the name Ánslo, and established as a ''kaupstad'' or trading place in 1048 by
Harald Hardrada
Harald Sigurdsson (; – 25 September 1066), also known as Harald III of Norway and given the epithet ''Hardrada'' (; modern no, Hardråde, roughly translated as "stern counsel" or "hard ruler") in the sagas, was King of Norway from 1046 t ...
. The city was elevated to a
bishopric
In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
in 1070 and a capital under
Haakon V of Norway
Haakon V Magnusson (10 April 1270 – 8 May 1319) ( non, Hákon Magnússon; no, Håkon Magnusson, label=Modern Norwegian) was king of Norway from 1299 until 1319.
Biography
Haakon was the younger surviving son of Magnus the Lawmender, Kin ...
around 1300.
Personal union
A personal union is the combination of two or more states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, would involve the constituent states being to some extent interlink ...
s with Denmark from 1397 to 1523 and again from 1536 to 1814 reduced its influence. After being destroyed by a fire in 1624, during the reign of
King Christian IV
Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian monar ...
, a new city was built closer to
Akershus Fortress
Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress h ...
and named Christiania in honour of the king. It became a
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 ...
(''
formannskapsdistrikt
() is the name for Norwegian local self-government districts that were legally enacted on 1 January 1838. This system of municipalities was created in a bill approved by the Parliament of Norway and signed into law by King Carl Johan on 14 January ...
'') on 1 January 1838. The city functioned as the capital of Norway during the 1814–1905
union between Sweden and Norway
Sweden and Norway or Sweden–Norway ( sv, Svensk-norska unionen; no, Den svensk-norske union(en)), officially the United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway, and known as the United Kingdoms, was a personal union of the separate kingdoms of Swede ...
. From 1877, the city's name was spelled Kristiania in government usage, a spelling that was adopted by the municipal authorities in 1897. In 1925, the city, after incorporating the village retaining its former name, was renamed Oslo. In 1948 Oslo merged with Aker, a municipality which surrounded the capital and which was 27 times larger, thus creating the modern, much larger Oslo municipality.
Oslo is the
economic
An economy is an area of the Production (economics), production, Distribution (economics), distribution and trade, as well as Consumption (economics), consumption of Goods (economics), goods and Service (economics), services. In general, it is ...
and
governmental
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
centre of Norway. The city is also a hub of Norwegian trade, banking, industry and shipping. It is an important centre for maritime industries and maritime trade in Europe. The city is home to many companies within the maritime sector, some of which are among the world's largest shipping companies, shipbrokers and maritime insurance brokers. Oslo is a pilot city of the
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...
and the
European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...
intercultural cities programme.
Oslo is considered a global city and was ranked "Beta World City" in studies carried out by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network in 2008. It was ranked number 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
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
. In 2013 Oslo tied with the Australian city of
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
as the fourth most expensive city in the world, according to the
Economist Intelligence Unit
The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) is the research and analysis division of the Economist Group, providing forecasting and advisory services through research and analysis, such as monthly country reports, five-year country economic forecasts, ...
(EIU)'s Worldwide Cost of Living study. Oslo was ranked as the 24th most liveable city in the world by Monocle magazine.
Oslo's population was increasing at record rates during the early 2000s, making it the fastest growing major
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
in Europe at the time. This growth stems for the most part from international
immigration
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...
and related high birth rates, but also from intra-national migration. By 2010 the immigrant population in the city was growing somewhat faster than the
Norwegian
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
* Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
* Demographics of Norway
*The Norwegian language, including ...
population, and in the city proper this had become more than 25% of the total population if the children of immigrant parents are included.
Urban region
The municipality of Oslo has a population of as of 31 March 2022. The urban area extends beyond the boundaries of the municipality into the surrounding
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
of
Viken
Viken may refer to:
*Viken, Scandinavia, a historical region
*Viken (county), a Norwegian county established in 2020
*Viken, Sweden, a bimunicipal locality in Skåne County, Sweden
*Viken (lake), a lake in Sweden, part of the part of the Göta cana ...
(municipalities of
Asker
Asker ( no, Asker), properly called Askerbygda in Norwegian, is a district and former Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Akershus, Norway. From 2020 it is part of the larger administrative municipality Asker, Viken (also known as Greate ...
,
Bærum
Bærum () is a municipality in the Greater Oslo Region in Norway that forms an affluent suburb of Oslo on the west coast of the city. Bærum is Norway's fifth largest municipality with a population of 128,760 (2021). It is part of the electoral ...
,
Lillestrøm
Lillestrøm is a municipality in Viken county. It is located in the traditional district of Romerike. With a population of 85,757 inhabitants, it is the fourth most populated municipality in Viken. It was founded on 1 January 2020 as a merger be ...
,
Enebakk
Enebakk is a municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the Follo traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Kirkebygda.
The parish of ''Enebak'' was established as a municipalit ...
,
Rælingen
Rælingen is a village and municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Fjerdingby. Rælingen was separated from the municip ...
,
Lørenskog
is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Akershus in Viken (county), Viken Counties of Norway, county, Norway. A suburb of Oslo, it is part of the Oslo urban area and the Districts of Norway, traditional region of Romerike. The administrati ...
,
Nittedal
Nittedal is a municipality and city in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rotnes.
The parish of ''Nitedal'' was established as a m ...
,
Gjerdrum
Gjerdrum () is a municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike.
Gjerdrum borders the municipalities of Nannestad, Nittedal, and Ullensaker, and Lillestrøm. The administrative centre of the m ...
, Nordre Follo); the total population of this agglomeration was 1,064,235 in 2022. The city centre is situated at the end of the
Oslofjord
The Oslofjord (, ; en, Oslo Fjord) is an inlet in the south-east of Norway, stretching from an imaginary line between the and lighthouses and down to in the south to Oslo in the north. It is part of the Skagerrak strait, connecting the Nor ...
, from which point the city sprawls out in three distinct "corridors"—inland north-eastwards, and southwards along both sides of the fjord—which gives the
urbanized area
An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities ...
a shape reminiscent of an upside-down reclining "Y" (on maps, satellite pictures, or from high above the city).
To the north and east, wide forested hills (''Marka'') rise above the city giving the location the shape of a giant
amphitheatre
An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...
. The urban
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 ...
(''bykommune'') of Oslo and county (''
fylke
Norway is divided into 11 administrative regions, called counties (singular no, fylke, plural nb, fylker; nn, fylke from Old Norse: ''fylki'' from the word "folk", sme, fylka, sma, fylhke, smj, fylkka, fkv, fylkki) which until 1918 ...
'') of Oslo are two parts of the same entity, making Oslo the only city in Norway where two administrative levels are integrated. Of Oslo's total area, is built-up and is agricultural. The open areas within the built-up zone amount to .
The city of Oslo was established as a municipality on 3 January 1838 (see
formannskapsdistrikt
() is the name for Norwegian local self-government districts that were legally enacted on 1 January 1838. This system of municipalities was created in a bill approved by the Parliament of Norway and signed into law by King Carl Johan on 14 January ...
). It was separated from the county of
Akershus
Akershus () is a traditional region and current electoral district in Norway, with Oslo as its main city and traditional capital. It is named after the Akershus Fortress in Oslo. From the middle ages to 1919, Akershus was a fief and main county ...
to become a county of its own in 1842. The rural municipality of Aker was merged with Oslo on 1 January 1948 (and simultaneously transferred from Akershus county to Oslo county). Furthermore, Oslo shares several important functions with Akershus county.
Boroughs
''As defined in January 2004 by the city council''
In addition is Marka (1,610 residents, 301.1 km2), that is administered by several boroughs; and Sentrum (1,471 residents, 1.8 km2) that is partially administered by St. Hanshaugen, and in part directly by the city council. As of 27 February 2020, there were 2,386 residents who were not allocated to a borough.
Name and seal
After being destroyed by a fire in 1624, during the reign of
King Christian IV
Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian monar ...
, a new city was built closer to
Akershus Fortress
Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress h ...
and named Christiania in the king's honour. The old site east of the Aker river was not abandoned, however, and the village of Oslo remained as a suburb outside the city gates. The suburb called Oslo was eventually included in the city proper. In 1925 the name of the suburb was transferred to the whole city, while the suburb was renamed "Gamlebyen", literally "the Old town", to avoid confusion.Han har kartlagt Christianias karthistorie , ''Osloby'', 8 December 2014. The Old Town is an area within the administrative district
Gamle Oslo
Gamle Oslo is a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway. The name means "Old Oslo", and the district contains Old Town.
The borough has several landmarks and large parks, including the Edvard Munch Museum, the Botanical Gardens and a medieval park.
...
. The previous names are reflected in street names like Oslo gate (Oslo street) and Oslo hospital.
Toponymy
The origin of the name ''Oslo'' has been the subject of much debate. It is certainly derived from
Old Norse
Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...
and was—in all probability—originally the name of a large farm at
Bjørvika
Bjørvika is a neighborhood in the Sentrum borough of Oslo, Norway. The area is an inlet in the inner Oslofjord, situated between Gamlebyen and Akershus Fortress. It serves as an outlet for the river Akerselva. Since the 2000s, it has been und ...
, however the meaning of that name is disputed. Modern linguists generally interpret the original ''Óslo'', ''Áslo'' or ''Ánslo'' as either "meadow at the foot of a hill" or "meadow consecrated to the
Gods
A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greater ...
", with both considered equally likely.
Erroneously, it was once assumed that ''Oslo'' meant "the mouth of the Lo river", a supposed previous name for the river Alna. However, not only has no evidence been found of a river "Lo" predating the work where
Peder Claussøn Friis
Peder Claussøn Friis (1 April 1545 – 15 October 1614) was a Norwegian clergyman, author and historian. He is most associated with his translation of ''Snorre Sturlessøns Norske Kongers Chronica''.
Peder Claussen Friis grew up in Audnedal i ...
first proposed this etymology, but the very name is ungrammatical in Norwegian: the correct form would have been ''Loaros'' (cf.
Nidaros
Nidaros, Niðarós or Niðaróss () was the medieval name of Trondheim when it was the capital of Norway's first Christian kings. It was named for its position at the mouth (Old Norse: ''óss'') of the River Nid (the present-day Nidelva).
Althou ...
). The name ''Lo'' is now believed to be a
back-formation
In etymology, back-formation is the process or result of creating a new word via inflection, typically by removing or substituting actual or supposed affixes from a lexical item, in a way that expands the number of lexemes associated with the c ...
arrived at by Friis in support of his
dea about
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within the U.S. It is the lead agency for domestic en ...
etymology for ''Oslo''.
Seal
Oslo is one of very few cities in Norway, besides
Bergen
Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...
and
Tønsberg
Tønsberg , historically Tunsberg, is a city and municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, eastern Norway, located around south-southwest of Oslo on the western coast of the Oslofjord near its mouth onto the Skagerrak. The administrative ce ...
, that does not have a formal
coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...
, but which uses a city seal instead. The seal of Oslo shows the city's
patron saint
A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...
millstone
Millstones or mill stones are stones used in gristmills, for grinding wheat or other grains. They are sometimes referred to as grindstones or grinding stones.
Millstones come in pairs: a convex stationary base known as the ''bedstone'' and ...
and
arrow
An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers c ...
s, with a naked woman at his feet. He is seated on a throne with lion decorations, which at the time was also commonly used by the Norwegian kings.
Other names
Oslo has various nicknames and names in other languages. The city is sometimes known as "The Tiger City" ( no, Tigerstaden), probably inspired by an 1870 poem by
Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson
Bjørnstjerne Martinius Bjørnson ( , ; 8 December 1832 – 26 April 1910) was a Norwegian writer who received the 1903 Nobel Prize in Literature "as a tribute to his noble, magnificent and versatile poetry, which has always been distinguished ...
which referenced then-Christiania in central Oslo. The nickname is mostly used by Norwegians from out of town, and rarely by people from the Oslo region.
History
During the
Viking Age
The Viking Age () was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonizing, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. It followed the Migration Period and the Ger ...
the area that includes modern Oslo was located in
Viken
Viken may refer to:
*Viken, Scandinavia, a historical region
*Viken (county), a Norwegian county established in 2020
*Viken, Sweden, a bimunicipal locality in Skåne County, Sweden
*Viken (lake), a lake in Sweden, part of the part of the Göta cana ...
, the northernmost province of
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
. Control over the area shifted between Danish and Norwegian kings in the Middle Ages, and Denmark continued to claim the area until 1241.
According to the Norse
saga
is a series of science fantasy role-playing video games by Square Enix. The series originated on the Game Boy in 1989 as the creation of Akitoshi Kawazu at Square (video game company), Square. It has since continued across multiple platforms, ...
s, Oslo was founded around 1049 by
Harald Hardrada
Harald Sigurdsson (; – 25 September 1066), also known as Harald III of Norway and given the epithet ''Hardrada'' (; modern no, Hardråde, roughly translated as "stern counsel" or "hard ruler") in the sagas, was King of Norway from 1046 t ...
. Recent archaeological research, however, has uncovered Christian burials which can be dated to prior to AD 1000, evidence of a preceding urban settlement. This called for the celebration of Oslo's millennium in 2000.
It has been regarded as the capital city since the reign of
Haakon V of Norway
Haakon V Magnusson (10 April 1270 – 8 May 1319) ( non, Hákon Magnússon; no, Håkon Magnusson, label=Modern Norwegian) was king of Norway from 1299 until 1319.
Biography
Haakon was the younger surviving son of Magnus the Lawmender, Kin ...
(1299–1319), the first king to reside permanently in the city. He also started the construction of the
Akershus Fortress
Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress h ...
and the Oslo
Kongsgård Kongsgård (Swedish:''Kungsgård'') is a residence, estate, or farmland that has belonged or still belongs to the Scandinavian monarchs or royal families.
History
During the Viking Age and early Middle Ages, the nations of Scandinavia were organ ...
. A century later, Norway was the weaker part in a
personal union
A personal union is the combination of two or more states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, would involve the constituent states being to some extent interlink ...
with Denmark, and Oslo's role was reduced to that of provincial administrative centre, with the monarchs residing in
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
. The fact that the
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...
was founded as late as 1811 had an adverse effect on the development of the nation.
Oslo was destroyed several times by fire, and after the fourteenth calamity, in 1624,
Christian IV of Denmark
Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian monar ...
and Norway ordered it rebuilt at a new site across the bay, near Akershus Castle and given the name ''Christiania''. Long before this, Christiania had started to establish its stature as a centre of commerce and culture in Norway. The part of the city built starting in 1624 is now often called ' because of its orthogonal layout in regular, square blocks. Anatomigården is a historic timber framing house located on the north side of Christiania Torv.
The last
Black Death
The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...
outbreak in Oslo occurred in 1654. In 1814 Christiania once more became a real capital when the union with Denmark was dissolved.
Many landmarks were built in the 19th century, including the
Royal Palace
This is a list of royal palaces, sorted by continent.
Africa
* Abdin Palace, Cairo
* Al-Gawhara Palace, Cairo
* Koubbeh Palace, Cairo
* Tahra Palace, Cairo
* Menelik Palace
* Jubilee Palace
* Guenete Leul Palace
* Imperial Palace- Massa ...
(1825–1848),
Storting building
The Storting building ( no, Stortingsbygningen) is the seat of the Storting, the parliament of Norway. The building is located at 22 Karl Johans gate in central Oslo, Norway. It was taken into use on 5 March 1866 and was designed by the Swedish ...
(the Parliament) (1861–1866), the
University
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
Stock Exchange
A stock exchange, securities exchange, or bourse is an exchange where stockbrokers and traders can buy and sell securities, such as shares of stock, bonds and other financial instruments. Stock exchanges may also provide facilities for th ...
. Among the world-famous artists who lived here during this period were
Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...
and
Knut Hamsun
Knut Hamsun (4 August 1859 – 19 February 1952) was a Norwegian writer who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1920. Hamsun's work spans more than 70 years and shows variation with regard to consciousness, subject, perspective a ...
(the latter was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature). In 1850, Christiania also overtook
Bergen
Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...
and became the most populous city in the country. In 1877 the city was renamed ''Kristiania''. The original name of Oslo was restored in 1925.
1000–1600
Under the reign of Olaf III of Norway, Oslo became a cultural centre for
Eastern Norway
Eastern Norway ( nb, Østlandet, nn, Austlandet) is the geographical region of the south-eastern part of Norway. It consists of the counties Vestfold og Telemark, Viken, Oslo and Innlandet.
Eastern Norway is by far the most populous region o ...
.
Hallvard Vebjørnsson
Hallvard Vebjørnsson (''Hallvard Den Hellige'') ( 1020–1043), commonly referred to as Saint Hallvard (''Sankt Hallvard''), is the patron saint of Oslo. He is considered a martyr because of his defence of an innocent thrall woman. His religious ...
became the city's
patron saint
A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...
and is depicted on the city's seal.
In 1174,
Hovedøya Abbey
Hovedøya Abbey (''Hovedøya kloster'') was a medieval era Cistercian monastery on the island of Hovedøya in Oslofjord outside of Oslo, Norway.
History
The monastery was founded on 18 May 1147 by monks from Kirkstead Abbey in England on H ...
was built. The churches and abbeys became major owners of large tracts of land, which proved important for the city's economic development, especially before the Black Death.
On 25 July 1197,
Sverre of Norway
Sverre Sigurdsson ( non, Sverrir Sigurðarson) (c. 1145/1151 – 9 March 1202) was the king of Norway from 1184 to 1202.
Many consider him one of the most important rulers in Norwegian history. He assumed power as the leader of the rebel party ...
and his soldiers attacked Oslo from
Hovedøya
Hovedøya is one of several small islands off the coast of Oslo, Norway in the Oslofjord. The island is quite small, no more than 800 metres across in any direction, the total area is 0,4 square kilometre. It is well known for its lush and green ...
.
During the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
, Oslo reached its heights in the reign of
Haakon V of Norway
Haakon V Magnusson (10 April 1270 – 8 May 1319) ( non, Hákon Magnússon; no, Håkon Magnusson, label=Modern Norwegian) was king of Norway from 1299 until 1319.
Biography
Haakon was the younger surviving son of Magnus the Lawmender, Kin ...
. He started building Akershus Fortress and was also the first king to reside permanently in the city, which helped to make Oslo the capital of Norway.
At the end of the 12th century,
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League (; gml, Hanse, , ; german: label=Modern German, Deutsche Hanse) was a medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Central and Northern Europe. Growing from a few North German to ...
traders from
Rostock
Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state, c ...
moved into the city and gained major influence in the city. The Black Death came to Norway in 1349 and, like other cities in Europe, the city suffered greatly. The churches' earnings from their land also dropped so much that the Hanseatic traders dominated the city's foreign trade in the 15th century.
17th century
Over the years, a fire destroyed significant parts of the city many times, as many of the city's buildings were built entirely of wood. After the last fire in 1624, which lasted for three days,
Christian IV of Denmark
Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian monar ...
decided that the old city should not be rebuilt again. His men built a network of roads in Akershagen near Akershus Castle. He demanded that all citizens move their shops and workplaces to the newly built city of Christiania, named as an honor to the king.
The transformation of the city went slowly for the first hundred years. Outside the city, near
Vaterland
Vaterland means "Fatherland" in German. It may also refer to:
*Vaterland, Norway, a neighborhood in Oslo
*The ocean liner SS ''Vaterland'', later known as SS ''Leviathan''
*''Liechtensteiner Vaterland'', largest daily newspaper in Liechtenstein
...
Old Town, Oslo
The Old Town of Oslo ( no, Gamlebyen, ) is a neighbourhood in the inner city of Oslo, Norway, belonging to the borough of Gamle Oslo and is the oldest urban area within the current capital. This part of the capital of Norway was simply called O ...
, a new, unmanaged part of the city grew up filled with citizens of the lower class status.
18th century
In the 18th century, after the
Great Northern War
The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedi ...
, the city's economy boomed with shipbuilding and trade. The strong economy transformed Christiania into a trading port.
19th century
In 1814 the former provincial town of Christiania became the capital of the independent Kingdom of Norway, in a personal union with Sweden. Several state institutions were established and the city's role as a capital initiated a period of rapidly increasing population. The government of this new state needed buildings for its expanding administration and institutions. Several important buildings were erected – The Bank of Norway (1828), the
Royal Palace
This is a list of royal palaces, sorted by continent.
Africa
* Abdin Palace, Cairo
* Al-Gawhara Palace, Cairo
* Koubbeh Palace, Cairo
* Tahra Palace, Cairo
* Menelik Palace
* Jubilee Palace
* Guenete Leul Palace
* Imperial Palace- Massa ...
(1848), and the
Storting
The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years bas ...
(1866). Large areas of the surrounding Aker municipality were incorporated in 1839, 1859 an 1878. The 1859 expansion included
Grünerløkka
Grünerløkka is a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway. Grünerløkka became part of the city of Oslo (then Christiania) in 1858. Grünerløkka was traditionally a working class district; however, since the late 20th century the area has increasi ...
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 ...
. At that time the area called ''Oslo'' (now ''Gamlebyen'' or Old Town) was a village or suburb outside the city borders east of Aker river. The population increased from approximately 10.000 in 1814 to 230.000 in 1900. Christiania expanded its industry from 1840, most importantly around
Akerselva
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 a ...
. There was a spectacular building boom during the last decades of the 19th century, with many new apartment buildings and renewal of the city center, but the boom collapsed in 1899.
1900–present
In 1948, Oslo merged with Aker, a municipality which surrounded the capital and which was 27 times larger, thus creating the modern, vastly enlarged Oslo municipality. At the time, Aker was a mostly affluent, green suburban community, and the merger was unpopular in Aker.
The municipality developed new areas such as Ullevål garden city (1918–1926) and
Torshov
Torshov is a neighborhood north of Grünerløkka and Lilleborg in the borough Sagene in Oslo, Norway. Oslo Tramway (''Trikken i Oslo'') provides connections with lines running between Majorstuen and Kjelsås. Vogts gate serves as the main str ...
(1917–1925).
City Hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...
was constructed in the former slum area of Vika from 1931 to 1950. The municipality of Aker was incorporated into Oslo in 1948, and suburbs were developed, such as
Lambertseter
Lambertseter () is a suburb of the city of Oslo, Norway, and is part of the borough of Nordstrand.
Lambertseter was built over a short period starting from 1951, and was the very first modern suburb of Oslo. A Tram line was built to the neighborho ...
(from 1951).
Aker Brygge
Aker Brygge is a neighbourhood in central Oslo, Norway. Since the 1980s and 1990s it has been a popular area for shopping, dining, and entertainment, as well as a high-end residential area. It was previously an industrial area.
Location
Aker Bry ...
was constructed on the site of the former
shipyard
A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance a ...
Akers Mekaniske Verksted, from 1982 to 1998.
The city and municipality used the name ''Kristiania'' until 1 January 1925 when the name changed to ''Oslo''. Oslo was the name of an eastern suburb – it had been the site of the city centre, until the devastating 1624 fire. King
Christian IV of Denmark
Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian monar ...
ordered a new city built with his own name; Oslo remained a poor suburb outside the city border. In the early-20th century, Norwegians argued that a name memorialising a Danish king was inappropriate as the name of the capital of Norway, which became fully independent in 1905.
Norway was invaded by Germany on 9 April 1940. Efforts to stop the invasion, most notably the sinking of Blücher, delayed the occupation of Oslo for a few hours which allowed King Haakon to escape the city. Oslo remained occupied throughout the war until Germany capitulated in 1945. During this time, the occupying troops were harried by saboteurs in acts of resistance. On 31 December 1944, allied bombers missed their intended target and hit a tram, resulting in 79 civilian deaths.
During the
2011 Norway attacks
The 2011 Norway attacks, referred to in Norway as 22 July ( no, 22. juli) or as 22/7, were two domestic terrorist attacks by neo-Nazi Anders Behring Breivik against the government, the civilian population, and a Workers' Youth League (AUF) ...
, Oslo was hit by a bomb blast that ripped through the Government Quarter, damaging several buildings including the building that houses the Office of the Prime Minister. Eight people died in the bomb attack.
On 25 June 2022, two people were killed and 21 others injured in a mass shooting at three sites, which was being treated by the police as an act of
Islamic terrorism
Islamic terrorism (also known as Islamist terrorism or radical Islamic terrorism) refers to terrorist acts with religious motivations carried out by fundamentalist militant Islamists and Islamic extremists.
Incidents and fatalities f ...
.
File:Medieval Oslo map.jpg, Map of medieval Oslo, by Amund Helland
File:Harbour of Christiania (JW Edy plate 50).jpg, 1800-1820: Port of Christiania, by John William Edy
File:Bridge, at Christiania (JW Edy plate 52).jpg, 1800-1820: The old
Vaterland
Vaterland means "Fatherland" in German. It may also refer to:
*Vaterland, Norway, a neighborhood in Oslo
*The ocean liner SS ''Vaterland'', later known as SS ''Leviathan''
*''Liechtensteiner Vaterland'', largest daily newspaper in Liechtenstein
...
Bridge, by John William Edy
File:Christiania Norway in 1814 by MK Tholstrup.jpg, 1814: Christiania seen from
Ekeberg
Ekeberg is a neighborhood in the city of Oslo, Norway. The Norway Cup soccer tournament takes place at Ekebergsletta every summer. "Sletta" means "the plain". The painting "The Scream" by Edvard Munch is painted from Utsikten ("the view"), a p ...
, by M. K. Tholstrup
File:Homannsbyen.jpg, 1867:
Homansbyen
Homansbyen is a neighborhood in Frogner borough in Oslo, Norway. The area is named for the lawyer brothers Jacob (1816-1868) and Henrik Homan (1824-1900).
Area
The area is located between the streets of Pilestredet in the east, and Uranienbor ...
, by
Georg Andreas Bull
Georg Andreas Bull (26 March 1829 – 1 February 1917) was a Norwegian architect and chief building inspector in Christiania (now Oslo) for forty years. He was among the major architects in the country, and performed surveying studies and arche ...
Akerselva
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 a ...
, by Carl Baagøe
File:Karl Johan 1880s.jpeg, 1890s:
Karl Johans gate
Karl Johans gate is the main street of the city of Oslo, Norway. The street was named in honor of King Charles III John, who was also King of Sweden as Charles XIV John.
Karl Johans gate is a composite of several older streets that used to be s ...
File:0133. Christiania, Nationalteatret, 1897 - NB bldsa AL0133 2.jpg, 1897: The
Christiania Theatre
Christiania Theatre, or ''Kristiania Theatre'', was Norway's finest stage for spoken drama from 4 October 1836 (opening date) to 1 September 1899. It was located at Bankplassen by the Akershus Fortress, in central Christiania. It was the fir ...
File:2 Universitetet. Kristiania - no-nb digifoto 20151127 00220 bldsa PK09950 (cropped).jpg, 1800s-1900s: The University of Kristiania
File:Stortorvet 7, Stortorvet 8 med Kaffistova, Karl Johans gate 15, 1926, Anders Beer Wilse, Oslo Museum, OB.Y2962.jpg, 1926:
Karl Johans gate
Karl Johans gate is the main street of the city of Oslo, Norway. The street was named in honor of King Charles III John, who was also King of Sweden as Charles XIV John.
Karl Johans gate is a composite of several older streets that used to be s ...
Frogner Line
The Frogner Line ( no, Frognerlinjen) is a section of the Oslo Tramway which runs between Solli and Majorstuen, serving the neighborhood of Frogner. The line is served by tram number 12, and the Frogner section makes up the westernmost part of thi ...
) at Frognerveien
Geography
Oslo occupies an arc of land at the northernmost end of the
Oslofjord
The Oslofjord (, ; en, Oslo Fjord) is an inlet in the south-east of Norway, stretching from an imaginary line between the and lighthouses and down to in the south to Oslo in the north. It is part of the Skagerrak strait, connecting the Nor ...
. The
fjord
In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Ice ...
, which is nearly bisected by the
Nesodden
Nesodden is a municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Follo. The administrative centre of the municipality is Nesoddtangen. The parish of ''Næsodden'' was established as a municipality on 1 ...
peninsula opposite Oslo, lies to the south; in all other directions Oslo is surrounded by green hills and mountains. There are 40 islands within the city limits, the largest being
Malmøya
Malmøya is an island south of Oslo Central Station. Oslo, the capital of Norway. The island is mostly known for its large quantities of fossils from the Cambro-Silurian
The Silurian ( ) is a geologic period and system spanning 24.6 millio ...
(), and scores more around the Oslofjord. Oslo has 343 lakes, the largest being
Maridalsvannet
Maridalsvannet ( en, Lake Maridal) is a lake in Maridalen, Oslo, Norway. It is the largest lake in the municipality of Oslo, and serves as the main drinking water supply for the city. The lake drains via the river Akerselva to the Oslofjord
...
(). This is also a main source of drinking water for large parts of Oslo.
Although
Eastern Norway
Eastern Norway ( nb, Østlandet, nn, Austlandet) is the geographical region of the south-eastern part of Norway. It consists of the counties Vestfold og Telemark, Viken, Oslo and Innlandet.
Eastern Norway is by far the most populous region o ...
has a number of rivers, none of these flow into the ocean at Oslo. Instead Oslo has two smaller rivers:
Akerselva
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 a ...
(draining Maridalsvannet, which flows into the fjord in
Bjørvika
Bjørvika is a neighborhood in the Sentrum borough of Oslo, Norway. The area is an inlet in the inner Oslofjord, situated between Gamlebyen and Akershus Fortress. It serves as an outlet for the river Akerselva. Since the 2000s, it has been und ...
), and
Alna
Alna is a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway. It is named after the River Alna, which flows through it.
The borough consists of the following neighborhoods:
* Alnabru
* Ellingsrud
* Furuset
* Haugerud
* Hellerud
* Lindeberg
* Trosterud
* Tve ...
. The waterfalls in Akerselva gave power to some of the first modern industry of Norway in the 1840s. Later in the century, the river became the symbol of the stable and consistent economic and social divide of the city into an East End and a West End; the labourers' neighbourhoods lie on both sides of the river, and the divide in reality follows Uelands street a bit further west. River Alna flows through Groruddalen, Oslo's major suburb and industrial area. The highest point is Kirkeberget, at . Although the city's population is small compared to most European capitals, it occupies an unusually large land area, of which two-thirds are
protected area
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
s of forests, hills and lakes. Its boundaries encompass many parks and open areas, giving it an airy and green appearance.
Climate
Oslo has a
humid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...
(
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
: ''Dfb'') or, if the original
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
winter threshold is used, an
oceanic climate
An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...
(''Cfb'') in the 1991–2020 base period. Oslo has pleasantly warm summers and fairly cold winters. Oslo receives moderate amount of rainfall during the year. The driest season is winter and spring, and the wettest is summer and autumn. Because of the city's northern latitude, daylight varies greatly, from more than 18 hours in midsummer, when it never gets completely dark at night (no darker than
nautical twilight
Twilight is light produced by sunlight scattering in the upper atmosphere, when the Sun is below the horizon, which illuminates the lower atmosphere and the Earth's surface. The word twilight can also refer to the periods of time when this il ...
), to around 6 hours in midwinter.
The warmest month on record is July 1901 with mean , and the all-time high was also recorded in July 1901. The warmest month in more recent years is July 2018 with mean and average daily high . The record summer of 2018 also recorded the warmest May and May all-time high with on 30th, and 2018 was even the sunniest year on record with 2133 sunhours. On 27 July 2018, the temperature in Oslo rose to , the hottest recorded since 1937, when weather recordings started at Blindern.
In January, on average three out of four days are below freezing () and one out of four days is colder than (1961–1990). The coldest temperature recorded is , on 21 January 1841, while the coldest recorded at Blindern is in January 1941. The coldest month on record is January 1941 and also January 1947 with mean and average daily low . The average date for the last overnight freeze (low below ) in spring is 23 April and average date for first freeze in autumn is 17 October giving a frost-free season of 176 days (1981–2010 average for Blindern). Oslo sits right on the border between
hardiness zones
A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most wide ...
7a and 7b.
Parks and recreation areas
Oslo has many parks and green areas within the city core, as well as outside it.
*
Frogner Park
Frogner Park ( no, Frognerparken) is a public park located in the West End borough of Frogner in Oslo, Norway. The park is historically part of Frogner Manor, and the manor house is located in the south of the park, and houses Oslo Museum. Both ...
is a large park located a few minutes' walk away from the city centre. This is the biggest and best-known park in Norway, with a large collection of sculptures by
Gustav Vigeland
Gustav Vigeland (11 April 1869 – 12 March 1943), born as Adolf Gustav Thorsen, was a Norwegian sculptor. Gustav Vigeland occupies a special position among Norwegian sculptors, both in the power of his creative imagination and in his product ...
.
*
Bygdøy
Bygdøy or Bygdø is a peninsula situated on the western side of Oslo, Norway. Administratively, Bygdøy belongs to the borough of Frogner; historically Bygdøy was part of Aker Municipality and became part of Oslo in 1948.
Bygdøy is a popular ...
is a large green area, commonly called the Museum Peninsula of Oslo. The area is surrounded by the sea and is one of the most expensive districts in Norway.
* Ekebergparken Sculpture Park is a sculpture park and a national heritage park with a panoramic view of the city at
Ekeberg
Ekeberg is a neighborhood in the city of Oslo, Norway. The Norway Cup soccer tournament takes place at Ekebergsletta every summer. "Sletta" means "the plain". The painting "The Scream" by Edvard Munch is painted from Utsikten ("the view"), a p ...
in the southeast of the city.
* St. Hanshaugen Park is an old public park on a high hill in central Oslo. "St. Hanshaugen" is also the name of the surrounding neighbourhood as well as the larger administrative district (borough) that includes major parts of central Oslo.
*
Tøyen Park
Tøyen Park ( no, Tøyenparken) is a park in Oslo, Norway. It is located to the north-east of the Munch Museum and neighbours the University of Oslo Botanical Gardens.
Tøyen Park is an expanse of grass-covered hills, dotted with clusters of l ...
stretches out behind the old
Munch Museum
Munch Museum ( no, Munch-museet), marketed as Munch (stylised as MUNCH) since 2020, is an art museum in Bjørvika, Oslo, Norway dedicated to the life and works of the Norwegian artist Edvard Munch.
The museum was originally located at Tøyen, ...
, and is a vast, grassy expanse. In the north, there is a lookout point known as Ola Narr. The Tøyen area also includes the
Botanical Garden
A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...
and Museum belonging to the University of Oslo.
Oslo (with neighbouring Sandvika-Asker) is built in a horseshoe shape on the shores of the Oslofjord and limited in most directions by hills and forests. As a result, any point within the city is relatively close to the forest. There are two major forests bordering the city: ''
Østmarka
Østmarka is a forested area to the east of Oslo and part of the congregation of woodland areas known as Oslomarka. The area is situated within the municipalities Oslo, Lørenskog, Rælingen, Ski and Enebakk. Østmarka is delimited to the west by ...
'' (literally "Eastern Forest", on the eastern perimeter of the city), and the very large ''
Nordmarka
Nordmarka is the mostly forested region which makes up the northern part of Oslo, Norway. Nordmarka is the largest and most central part of Oslomarka. The area called Nordmarka also extends into the municipalities of Hole, Ringerike, Lunner, Je ...
'' (literally "Northern Forest", stretching from the northern perimeter of the city deep into the hinterland).
*
Sognsvann
Sognsvann (or ''Sognsvannet'') is a 3.3 km circumference lake just north of Oslo, Norway.
Lying just within the greenbelt around Oslo, the lake is a popular recreational area, used as a camping, picnicking and bathing destination for the re ...
is a lake in Oslomarka, located at the land border, just north of Oslo. Sognsvann was drinking water for Oslo from 1876 to 1967.
The lake's altitude above sea level is 183 metres. The water is in a popular hiking area. Near the water itself, it is great for barbecues, swimming, beach volleyball and other activities.
The municipality operates eight public swimming pools.
Tøyenbadet
Tøyenbadet is an indoor swimming facility in Oslo, 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 Scandin ...
is the largest indoor swimming facility in Oslo and one of the few pools in Norway offering a 50-metre main pool. Another in that size is the outdoor pool
Frognerbadet
Frognerbadet ("the Frogner Baths") is a pool complex in the borough of Frogner in Oslo, Norway. It was designed by architect Frode Rinnan.
Located adjacent to Frognerparken, it opened in 1956, and doubles as a public bath and swimming pool and a ...
.
Cityscape
Oslo's cityscape is being redeveloped as a modern city with various access-points, an extensive metro-system with a new financial district and a cultural city. In 2008, an exhibition was held in London presenting the award-winning
Oslo Opera House
The Oslo Opera House ( no, Operahuset) is the home of the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet, and the national opera theatre in Norway. The building is situated in the Bjørvika neighbourhood of central Oslo, at the head of the Oslofjord. It is ...
, the urban regeneration scheme of Oslo's seafront, Munch/Stenersen and the new Deichman Library. Most of the buildings in the city and in neighbouring communities are low in height with only the
Plaza
A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true geometric square, used for community gatherings. ...
, Posthuset and the highrises at Bjørvika considerably taller.
Architecture
Oslo's architecture is very diverse. The architect
Carl Frederik Stanley
Carl Frederik Stanley (c. 1738 – 9 March 1813) was an England, English-Denmark, Danish sculptor, a leading proponent of early Neoclassical sculpture, Neo-Classicism in Denmark.
Early life and education
Carl Frederik Stanley was born the son ...
(1769–1805), who was educated in
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
, spent some years in Norway around the turn of the 19th century. He undertook some minor commissions for wealthy patrons in and around Oslo, but his major achievement was the renovation of the
Oslo Katedralskole
Schola Osloensis, known in Norwegian as Oslo Katedralskole (''Oslo Cathedral School'') and more commonly as "Katta",
, completed in 1800. He added a classical portico to the front of an older structure, and a semicircular auditorium that was sequestered by Parliament in 1814 as a temporary place to assemble, now preserved at
Norsk Folkemuseum
Norsk Folkemuseum (Norwegian Museum of Cultural History), at Bygdøy, Oslo, Norway, is a museum of cultural history with extensive collections of artifacts from all social groups and all regions of the country. It also incorporates a large open- ...
as a national monument.
When Christiania was made capital of Norway in 1814, there were practically no buildings suitable for the many new government institutions. An ambitious building program was initiated, but realised very slowly because of economic constraints. The first major undertaking was the
Royal Palace
This is a list of royal palaces, sorted by continent.
Africa
* Abdin Palace, Cairo
* Al-Gawhara Palace, Cairo
* Koubbeh Palace, Cairo
* Tahra Palace, Cairo
* Menelik Palace
* Jubilee Palace
* Guenete Leul Palace
* Imperial Palace- Massa ...
, designed by
Hans Linstow
Hans Ditlev Franciscus (Frants) von Linstow (4 May 1787 – 10 June 1851) was a Danish/Norwegian architect who designed the Royal Palace in Oslo and much of the surrounding park and the street ''Karl Johans gate''.
Background
Hans Ditlev Franc ...
and built between 1824 and 1848. Linstow also planned
Karl Johans gate
Karl Johans gate is the main street of the city of Oslo, Norway. The street was named in honor of King Charles III John, who was also King of Sweden as Charles XIV John.
Karl Johans gate is a composite of several older streets that used to be s ...
, the avenue connecting the Palace and the city, with a monumental square halfway to be surrounded by buildings for
University
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
, the
Parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
(Storting) and other institutions. Only the university buildings were realised according to this plan.
Christian Heinrich Grosch
Christian Heinrich Grosch (21 January 1801 – 4 May 1865) was a Norwegian architect. He was a dominant figure in Norwegian architecture in the first half of the 1800s.
Biography
Christian Heinrich Grosch was born in Copenhagen, Denmark. H ...
, one of the first architects educated completely within Norway, designed the original building for the
Oslo Stock Exchange
Oslo Stock Exchange ( no, Oslo Børs) (OSE: OSLO) is a stock exchange within the Nordic countries and offers Norway’s only regulated markets for securities trading today. The stock exchange offers a full product range including equities, deriv ...
(1826–1828), the local branch of the Bank of Norway (1828),
Christiania Theatre
Christiania Theatre, or ''Kristiania Theatre'', was Norway's finest stage for spoken drama from 4 October 1836 (opening date) to 1 September 1899. It was located at Bankplassen by the Akershus Fortress, in central Christiania. It was the fir ...
(1836–1837), and the first campus for the
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...
(1841–1856). For the university buildings, he sought the assistance of the renowned German architect
Karl Friedrich Schinkel
Karl Friedrich Schinkel (13 March 1781 – 9 October 1841) was a Prussian architect, city planner and painter who also designed furniture and stage sets. Schinkel was one of the most prominent architects of Germany and designed both neoclassica ...
. German architectural influence persisted in Norway, and many wooden buildings followed the principles of
Neoclassicism
Neoclassicism (also spelled Neo-classicism) was a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassicism was ...
designed Trefoldighetskirken, the first neo-gothic church, completed by von Hanno in 1858.
A number of landmark buildings, particularly in Oslo, were built in the Functionalist style (better known in the US and Britain as Modernist), the first being
Skansen
Skansen (; "the Sconce") is the oldest open-air museum and zoo in Sweden located on the island Djurgården in Stockholm, Sweden. It was opened on 11 October 1891 by Artur Hazelius (1833–1901) to show the way of life in the different parts of S ...
restaurant (1925–1927) by
Lars Backer
Lars Thalian Backer (5 January 1892 – 7 June 1930) was a Norwegian architect. Backer was a pioneer of modernism in Norwegian architecture during the 1920s.
Biography
Backer was born in Oslo, Norway. His parents were Herman Major Backer ( ...
, demolished in 1970. Backer also designed the restaurant at Ekeberg, which opened in 1929.
Kunstnernes Hus
Kunstnernes Hus (Norwegian for "Artists' House") is an art gallery in Oslo, Norway. It is Norway's largest gallery under the direction of artists, and has served as a major center for exhibits of Norwegian and international contemporary art. It i ...
art gallery by
Gudolf Blakstad
Gudolf Blakstad (19 May 1893 – 22 November 1985) was a Norwegian architect. He was noted for his work in the transition between neo-classicism and functionalism in Norwegian architecture.
Biography
Blakstad was born in Gjerpen, Norway. He ...
and
Herman Munthe-Kaas
Herman Munthe-Kaas (25 May 1890 – 5 May 1977) was a Norwegian architect. He was primarily known for his functionalist building designs.
Biography
Munthe-Kaas was born at Christiania (now Oslo), Norway. He was the son of Marius William M ...
(1930) still shows the influence of the preceding classicist trend of the 1920s. The redevelopment of
Oslo Airport
Oslo Airport ( no, Oslo lufthavn; ), alternatively referred to as Oslo Gardermoen Airport or simply Gardermoen, is the international airport serving Oslo, Norway, the capital and most populous city in the country. A hub for Flyr, Norse Atl ...
(by the Aviaplan consortium) at Gardermoen, which opened in 1998, was Norway's largest construction project to date.
File:14-09-02-oslo-RalfR-393.jpg, Oslo Harbour
File:Bjørvika TRS 060605.jpg,
Oslo Central Station
Oslo Central Station ( no, Oslo sentralstasjon, abbreviated ) is the main railway station in Oslo, and the largest railway station within the entire Norwegian railway system. It connects with Jernbanetorget station. It's the terminus of Dramme ...
File:Oslo Opera House seen from Langkaia.JPG,
Oslo Opera House
The Oslo Opera House ( no, Operahuset) is the home of the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet, and the national opera theatre in Norway. The building is situated in the Bjørvika neighbourhood of central Oslo, at the head of the Oslofjord. It is ...
File:Akershus festning.jpg,
Akershus Fortress
Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress h ...
File:Oslo Sentralstasjon.JPG,
Jernbanetorget
Jernbanetorget is both a rapid transit station on the Oslo Metro and a tram stop of the Oslo Tramway. The metro station is in the Common Tunnel used by all lines under the city centre. It is located between Stortinget to the west and Grønland ...
File:Astrup Fearnley 009.JPG, Art gallery of Astrup Fearnley Museum
File:Bydel Bjerke, Linderud %26 Veitvet fra Kalbakken.jpg, Highly populated urban area of Bjerke
File:Königliches Schloss, Oslo.jpg,
Royal Palace
This is a list of royal palaces, sorted by continent.
Africa
* Abdin Palace, Cairo
* Al-Gawhara Palace, Cairo
* Koubbeh Palace, Cairo
* Tahra Palace, Cairo
* Menelik Palace
* Jubilee Palace
* Guenete Leul Palace
* Imperial Palace- Massa ...
Politics and government
Oslo is the capital of Norway, and as such is the seat of Norway's national government. Most government offices, including that of the
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
, are gathered at ''Regjeringskvartalet'', a cluster of buildings close to the national Parliament, the
Storting
The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years bas ...
.
Constituting both a municipality and a county of Norway, the city of Oslo is represented in the Storting by nineteen members of parliament. The
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
Green Party
A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence.
Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation ...
and the Red Party have one each.
The combined municipality and county of Oslo has had a
parliamentary system
A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of the ...
of government since 1986. The supreme authority of the city is the City Council (''Bystyret''), which has 59 seats. Representatives are popularly elected every four years. The City Council has five
standing committees
A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...
, each having its own areas of responsibility. The largest parties in the City Council after the 2015-elections are the Labour Party and the Conservatives, with 20 and 19 representatives respectively.
2015 elections
The
Mayor of Oslo
The Mayor of Oslo is the chief executive of the Oslo. The Mayor's office administers all city services, public property, most public agencies, and enforces all city and state laws within Oslo city.
List of mayors of oslo
This is a list of ...
is the head of the City Council and the highest ranking representative of the city. This used to be the most powerful political position in Oslo, but following the implementation of parliamentarism, the mayor has had more of a ceremonial role, similar to that of the President of the Storting at the national level. The Mayor of Oslo is
Marianne Borgen
Marianne Borgen (born 2 June 1951) is a Norwegian politician for the Socialist Left Party, and the current Mayor of Oslo.
She finished her secondary education at Sofienberg Upper Secondary School in 1975, graduated from the University of Oslo wi ...
.
Since the local elections of 2015, the
city government
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...
has been a coalition of the Labour Party, the Green Party and the Socialist Left. Based mostly on support from the Red Party, the coalition maintains a workable majority in the City Council. Following the local elections of 2019, the
centre-left
Centre-left politics lean to the left on the left–right political spectrum but are closer to the centre than other left-wing politics. Those on the centre-left believe in working within the established systems to improve social justice. The c ...
coalition remained in government.
The
Governing Mayor of Oslo
The Governing Mayor of Oslo ( Norwegian: Byrådsleder) is the head of the city government of Oslo. The Governing Mayor appoints and removes the members (vice mayors) of the city cabinet and decides how the departments and the central administratio ...
is the head of the City government. The post was created with the implementation of parliamentarism in Oslo and is similar to the role of the prime minister at the national level. The governing mayor is
Raymond Johansen
Raymond Johansen (born 14 February 1961) is a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party who has been Governing Mayor of Oslo since 2015. A former member of the Socialist Left Party, Johansen previously served as the Oslo city commissioner for tr ...
.
Economy
Oslo has a varied and strong economy and was ranked number one among European large cities in economic potential in the
fDi Magazine
''fDi Intelligence'' is an English-language bi-monthly news and foreign direct investment (FDI) publication, providing an up-to-date review of global investment activity. The A4 glossy pages reach a circulation of 15,488 ABC audited, active corpo ...
report European Cities of the Future 2012. It was ranked 2nd in the category of business friendliness, behind Amsterdam.
Oslo is an important centre of maritime knowledge in Europe and is home to approximately 1980 companies and 8,500 employees within the maritime sector. Some of them are the world's largest shipping companies,
shipbroker
Shipbroking is a financial service, which forms part of the global shipping industry. Shipbrokers are specialist intermediaries/negotiators (i.e. brokers) between shipowners and charterers who use ships to transport cargo, or between buyers an ...
s, and
insurance broker
An insurance broker is an intermediary who sells, solicits, or negotiates insurance on behalf of a client for compensation. An insurance broker is distinct from an insurance agent in that a broker typically acts on behalf of a client by negoti ...
s.
Det Norske Veritas
DNV (formerly DNV GL) is an international accredited registrar and classification society headquartered in Høvik, Norway. The company currently has about 12,000 employees and 350 offices operating in more than 100 countries, and provides ser ...
, headquartered at
Høvik
Høvik is a suburban area in the municipality of Bærum, Viken, Norway, in the Oslo metropolitan area. Mainly a residential area, its population (2005) is 4,311.
It is normal to divide Høvik into two parts; Nedre (lower) and Øvre (upper).
Hø ...
outside Oslo, is one of the three major maritime classification societies in the world, with 16.5% of the world fleet to class in its register. The city's port is the largest general cargo port in the country and its leading passenger gateway. Close to 6,000 ships dock at the
Port of Oslo
''Oslo Port Authority'' ( no, Oslo Havn KF) is a kommunalt foretak (municipal enterprise), and accountable to the Municipality of Oslo. For many years, Oslo Havn KF was known as ''Oslo havnevesen (OHV)'' but was renamed on June 8, 2004, to its cu ...
annually with a total of 6 million tonnes of cargo and over five million passengers.
The
GDP
Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjective nature this measure is ofte ...
of Oslo totalled €64 billion (€96,000 per capita) in 2016, which amounted to 20% of the national GDP. This compares with
NOK
Nok is a village in Jaba Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Nigeria. The village is an archeological site.
Archaeology
The discovery of terracotta figurines at this location caused its name to be used for the Nok culture, of which these ...
253 billion (€23 billion) in 1995 (adjusting for 2016 inflation). The metropolitan area, bar
Moss
Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hor ...
and
Drammen
Drammen () is a city and municipality in Viken (county), Viken, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the south-eastern and most populated part of Norway. Drammen municipality also includes smaller towns and village ...
, contributed 25% of the national GDP in 2003 and was also responsible for more than one quarter of
tax revenue
Tax revenue is the income that is collected by governments through taxation. Taxation is the primary source of government revenue. Revenue may be extracted from sources such as individuals, public enterprises, trade, royalties on natural resou ...
s. In comparison, total tax revenues from the oil and gas industry on the
Norwegian Continental Shelf
The Norwegian continental shelf ( no, Den norske kontinentalsokkelen) (abbreviated as NCS) is the continental shelf over which Norway exercises sovereign rights as defined by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
The area of the s ...
amounted to about 16%.
Oslo is one of the most expensive cities in the world. , it is ranked tenth according to the Worldwide
Cost of Living
Cost of living is the cost of maintaining a certain standard of living. Changes in the cost of living over time can be operationalized in a cost-of-living index. Cost of living calculations are also used to compare the cost of maintaining a c ...
Survey provided by
Mercer Human Resource Consulting
Mercer is an American consulting firm founded in 1945. It is one of the four operating subsidiaries of global professional services firm Marsh McLennan (NYSE: MMC). Mercer is headquartered in New York City with offices in 43 countries and oper ...
and first according to the
Economist Intelligence Unit
The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) is the research and analysis division of the Economist Group, providing forecasting and advisory services through research and analysis, such as monthly country reports, five-year country economic forecasts, ...
(EIU). The reason for this discrepancy is that the EIU omits certain factors from its final index calculation, most notably housing. In the 2015 update of the EIU's Worldwide Cost of Living survey, Oslo now ranks as the third most expensive city in the world. Although Oslo does have the most expensive housing market in Norway, it is comparably cheaper than other cities on the list in that regard. Meanwhile, prices on
goods and services
Goods are items that are usually (but not always) tangible, such as pens, physical books, salt, apples, and hats. Services are activities provided by other people, who include architects, suppliers, contractors, technologists, teachers, doctor ...
remain some of the highest of any city. Oslo hosts 2654 of the largest companies in Norway. Within the ranking of Europe's largest cities ordered by their number of companies Oslo is in fifth position. A whole group of oil and gas companies is situated in Oslo.
According to a report compiled by
Swiss bank
Banking in Switzerland dates to the early eighteenth century through Switzerland's merchant trade and has, over the centuries, grown into a complex, regulated, and international industry. Banking is seen as emblematic of Switzerland, along with ...
UBS
UBS Group AG is a multinational Investment banking, investment bank and financial services company founded and based in Switzerland. Co-headquartered in the cities of Zürich and Basel, it maintains a presence in all major financial centres ...
in the month of August 2006, Oslo and London were the world's most expensive cities.
Environment and decarbonization
Oslo is a
compact city
The compact city or city of short distances is an urban planning and urban design concept, which promotes relatively high residential density with mixed land uses. It is based on an efficient public transport system and has an urban layout which ...
. It is easy to move around by public transportation and rentable city bikes are accessible to all, all over the city centre. In 2003, Oslo received The European Sustainable City Award and in 2007 Reader's Digest ranked Oslo as number two on a list of the world's greenest, most liveable cities.
The City of Oslo has set the goal of becoming a low carbon city, and reducing
greenhouse gas emissions
Greenhouse gas emissions from human activities strengthen the greenhouse effect, contributing to climate change. Most is carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels: coal, oil, and natural gas. The largest emitters include coal in China and lar ...
95% from 1990 levels by 2030. The climate action plan for the Port of Oslo includes implementing a low-carbon contracting process, and installing
shore power Shore power or shore supply is the provision of shoreside electrical power to a ship at berth while its main and auxiliary engines are shut down.
Education
Institutions of higher education
*
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...
undergraduate
Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, in the United States, an entry-lev ...
Oslo Metropolitan University
Oslo Metropolitan University (Oslomet; no, Oslomet – storbyuniversitetet)"Skrivemåten av universitetsnamnet Oslomet – storbyuniversitetet," Language Council of Norway, 17/677-4/DGI, 18 January 2018 is a state university in Oslo and Akersh ...
(Oslomet – Storbyuniversitetet), established 2018. Formerly
Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences
Oslo and Akershus University College ( no, Høgskolen i Oslo og Akershus, abbr. HiOA) was the largest state university college in Norway from its establishment in 2011 until 2018, when it was transformed into Oslo Metropolitan University, the youn ...
(Høgskolen i Oslo og Akershus (HiOA)) (2011–2018) and
Oslo University College
Oslo University College ( no, Høgskolen i Oslo; HiO) was the largest state university college in Norway from 1994 to 2011, with more than 18,000 students and approximately 1800 employees.
(Høgskolen i Oslo) (1994–2011). Focuses on 3–4-year
professional degree
A professional degree, formerly known in the US as a first professional degree, is a degree that prepares someone to work in a particular profession, practice, or industry sector often meeting the academic requirements for licensure or accreditatio ...
programs.
*
BI Norwegian Business School
BI Norwegian Business School () is the largest business school in Norway and the second largest in all of Europe. BI has in total four campuses with the main one located in Oslo. The university has 845 employees consisting of an academic staff o ...
(Handelshøyskolen BI)—primarily economics and
business administration
Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...
. The former college were granted a university status in 2018.
*
Norwegian School of Information Technology
Norwegian School of Information Technology ( no, Norges Informasjonsteknologiske Høgskole, NITH) is a Norwegian information technology university college located in Oslo, Norway.
It previously had schools located in Bergen, Stavanger and Bærum, ...
(Norges Informasjonsteknologiske Høyskole
ITH
The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany.
Geography
Location
The Ith is immediatel ...
*
Westerdals Oslo School of Arts, Communication and Technology
Westerdals Oslo School of Arts, Communication and Technology was established in July 2014 as a result of the merger of the three colleges Westerdals School of Communication, NISS ( Nordic Institute of Stage and Studio) and NITH (The Norwegian Sc ...
*
Oslo School of Architecture and Design
The Oslo School of Architecture and Design ( no, Arkitektur- og designhøgskolen i Oslo, AHO) is an autonomous institution within the Norwegian university system. The School offers a unique research-based education with a strong international stan ...
Norwegian School of Sport Sciences
The Norwegian School of Sport Sciences ( no, Norges idrettshøgskole, NIH) is a public university located at Sognsvann in Oslo, Norway. It has the national responsibility for education and research related within sport sciences. It provides educ ...
(Norges idrettshøgskole IH—offers opportunities to study at the Bachelor, Masters and Doctoral level
*
Norwegian Academy of Music
The Norwegian Academy of Music (Norwegian: ''Norges musikkhøgskole'', NMH) is a university-level music conservatory located in Oslo, Norway, in the neighbourhood of Majorstuen, Frogner. It is the largest music academy in Norway and offers the co ...
(Norges musikkhøgskole)
*
MF Norwegian School of Theology
MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Society ( no, MF vitenskapelig høyskole for teologi, religion og samfunn), formerly the Free Faculty of Theology ( no, Det teologiske menighetsfakultet) and MF Norwegian School of Theology, is an accr ...
(Det teologiske Menighetsfakultet – MF)
*
Oslo National Academy of the Arts
The Oslo National Academy of the Arts ( no, Kunsthøgskolen i Oslo, ''KHiO'') is a university college in Oslo, Norway, that provides education in visual arts, design and performing arts. It is one of two public institutes of higher learning in ...
(Kunsthøgskolen i Oslo – KHIO)
*
Norwegian University of Life Sciences
The Norwegian University of Life Sciences ( no, Norges miljø- og biovitenskapelige universitet, NMBU) is a public university located in Ås, Norway. It is located at Ås in Viken, near Oslo, and at Adamstuen in Oslo and has around 5,200 stude ...
(Norges miljø- og biovitenskapelige universitet – NMBU) located in Ås, right outside of Oslo
* Norwegian Army Academy (Krigsskolen)
*The Norwegian Defence University College (Forsvarets høgskole)
*The Norwegian Police University College (Politihøgskolen – PHS)
* Norwegian School of Veterinary Science (Norges Veterinærhøgskole)
*Oslo Academy of Fine Arts (Statens kunstakademi)
*
Oslo School of Management
Kristiania University College is an educational institution in Norway organized through the Ernst G. Mortensen foundation. As of 2022, Kristiania has approximately 19 000 students and provides higher education in Oslo, Bergen and online.
Krist ...
(Markedshøyskolen – MH) located at the
Campus Kristiania
Kristiania University College is an educational institution in Norway organized through the Ernst G. Mortensen foundation. As of 2022, Kristiania has approximately 19 000 students and provides higher education in Oslo, Bergen and online.
Krist ...
education center.
The level of education and productivity in the workforce is high in Norway. Nearly half of those with education at tertiary level in Norway live in the Oslo region, placing it among Europe's top three regions in relation to education.
In 2008, the total workforce in the greater Oslo region (5 counties) numbered 1,020,000 people. The greater Oslo region has several higher educational institutions and is home to more than 73,000 students. The University of Oslo is the largest institution for higher education in Norway with 27,400 students and 7,028 employees in total.
Culture
Oslo has a large and varied number of cultural attractions, which include several buildings containing artwork from
Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch ( , ; 12 December 1863 – 23 January 1944) was a Norwegian painter. His best known work, ''The Scream'' (1893), has become one of Western art's most iconic images.
His childhood was overshadowed by illness, bereavement and the dr ...
and various other international artists but also several
Norwegian
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
* Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
* Demographics of Norway
*The Norwegian language, including ...
artists. Several world-famous writers have either lived or been born in Oslo. Examples are
Knut Hamsun
Knut Hamsun (4 August 1859 – 19 February 1952) was a Norwegian writer who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1920. Hamsun's work spans more than 70 years and shows variation with regard to consciousness, subject, perspective a ...
and
Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...
. The government has recently invested large amounts of money in cultural installations, facilities, buildings and festivals in the City of Oslo.
Bygdøy
Bygdøy or Bygdø is a peninsula situated on the western side of Oslo, Norway. Administratively, Bygdøy belongs to the borough of Frogner; historically Bygdøy was part of Aker Municipality and became part of Oslo in 1948.
Bygdøy is a popular ...
, outside the city centre is the centre for history and the Norwegian Vikings' history. The area contains many parks and seasites and many museums. Examples are the
Fram Museum
The Fram Museum ( no, Frammuseet) is a museum telling the story of Norwegian polar exploration. It is located on the peninsula of Bygdøy in Oslo, Norway.
Fram Museum is in an area with several other museums including the Kon-Tiki Museum, the ...
Kon-Tiki Museum
The Kon-Tiki Museum ( no, Kon-Tiki Museet) is a museum in the Bygdøy peninsula in Oslo, Norway. It houses vessels and maps from the ''Kon-Tiki'' expedition, as well as a library with about 8,000 books.
It was opened in a provisional building i ...
. Oslo hosts the annual Oslo Freedom Forum, a conference described by ''The Economist'' as "on its way to becoming a human-rights equivalent of the Davos economic forum." Oslo is also known for giving out the
Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Chemi ...
every year.
Food
Grønland, the central areas around Youngstorget and Torggata,
Karl Johans gate
Karl Johans gate is the main street of the city of Oslo, Norway. The street was named in honor of King Charles III John, who was also King of Sweden as Charles XIV John.
Karl Johans gate is a composite of several older streets that used to be s ...
(the main pedestrian thoroughfare),
Aker Brygge
Aker Brygge is a neighbourhood in central Oslo, Norway. Since the 1980s and 1990s it has been a popular area for shopping, dining, and entertainment, as well as a high-end residential area. It was previously an industrial area.
Location
Aker Bry ...
and
Tjuvholmen
Tjuvholmen is a neighborhood in the borough Majorstuen in Oslo, Norway. It is located on a peninsula sticking out from Aker Brygge into the Oslofjord. It is located east of Filipstad and south of Vika. At the tip of the peninsula, next to the s ...
, Sørenga, and the boroughs of
Frogner
Frogner is a residential and retail borough in the West End of Oslo, Norway, with a population of 59,269 as of 2020. In addition to the original Frogner, the borough incorporates Bygdøy, Uranienborg and Majorstuen. The borough is named after ...
,
Majorstuen
Majorstuen is a particularly affluent neighbourhood in the Frogner borough in the inner part of Oslo, Norway.
Majorstuen is known for its vibrant downtown and especially its shopping area. The area has several elegant townhouses c. 1880–1890. T ...
Bislett
Bislett is a neighbourhood in the St. Hanshaugen borough in north-central Oslo, Norway. It is internationally famous for the Bislett Games, held at Bislett Stadium.
Bislett has also become known to non-Norwegians due to being the home of the f ...
, and
Grünerløkka
Grünerløkka is a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway. Grünerløkka became part of the city of Oslo (then Christiania) in 1858. Grünerløkka was traditionally a working class district; however, since the late 20th century the area has increasi ...
all have a high concentration of cafes and restaurants. There are several food markets, the largest being Mathallen Food Hall at Vulkan with more than 30 specialty shops, cafés, and eateries.
As of March 2018 six Oslo restaurants were mentioned in the
Michelin Guide
The Michelin Guides ( ) are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The Guide awards up to three Michelin star (classification), stars for excellence to a select few establishments. The ac ...
.
Maaemo
Maaemo is a three-Michelin-star restaurant Oslo, Norway. The name ''Maaemo'' derives from the Finnish language, meaning "Mother earth". The restaurant works in the New Nordic Cuisine genre, and focuses on local food and only uses organic, bio ...
is the only Norwegian restaurant ever to have been awarded three Michelin stars. Statholdergaarden, Kontrast, and Galt each have one star. Only two restaurants in Oslo have a BIB gourmand mention: Restaurant Eik and Smalhans.
Museums, galleries
Oslo houses several major museums and galleries. The
Munch Museum
Munch Museum ( no, Munch-museet), marketed as Munch (stylised as MUNCH) since 2020, is an art museum in Bjørvika, Oslo, Norway dedicated to the life and works of the Norwegian artist Edvard Munch.
The museum was originally located at Tøyen, ...
contains ''
The Scream
''The Scream'' is a composition created by Norwegian artist Edvard Munch in 1893. The agonized face in the painting has become one of the most iconic images of art, seen as symbolizing the anxiety of the human condition. Munch's work, including ...
'' and other works by
Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch ( , ; 12 December 1863 – 23 January 1944) was a Norwegian painter. His best known work, ''The Scream'' (1893), has become one of Western art's most iconic images.
His childhood was overshadowed by illness, bereavement and the dr ...
, who donated all his work to the city after his death. The city council is planning a new Munch Museum which is most likely to be built in
Bjørvika
Bjørvika is a neighborhood in the Sentrum borough of Oslo, Norway. The area is an inlet in the inner Oslofjord, situated between Gamlebyen and Akershus Fortress. It serves as an outlet for the river Akerselva. Since the 2000s, it has been und ...
, in the southeast of the city. The museum will be named Munch/Stenersen. 50 different museums are located around the city.
Folkemuseet is located on the
Bygdøy
Bygdøy or Bygdø is a peninsula situated on the western side of Oslo, Norway. Administratively, Bygdøy belongs to the borough of Frogner; historically Bygdøy was part of Aker Municipality and became part of Oslo in 1948.
Bygdøy is a popular ...
peninsula and is dedicated to
Folk art
Folk art covers all forms of visual art made in the context of folk culture. Definitions vary, but generally the objects have practical utility of some kind, rather than being exclusively decorative art, decorative. The makers of folk art a ...
, Folk Dress,
Sami
Acronyms
* SAMI, ''Synchronized Accessible Media Interchange'', a closed-captioning format developed by Microsoft
* Saudi Arabian Military Industries, a government-owned defence company
* South African Malaria Initiative, a virtual expertise net ...
culture and the
viking
Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...
culture. The outdoor museum contains 155 authentic old buildings from all parts of Norway, including a
Stave Church
A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church building once common in north-western Europe. The name derives from the building's structure of post and lintel construction, a type of timber framing where the load-bearing ore-pine posts a ...
Frogner Park
Frogner Park ( no, Frognerparken) is a public park located in the West End borough of Frogner in Oslo, Norway. The park is historically part of Frogner Manor, and the manor house is located in the south of the park, and houses Oslo Museum. Both ...
, is free to access and contains over 212 sculptures by Gustav Vigeland including an obelisk and the Wheel of Life.
Another popular sculpture is Sinnataggen, a baby boy stamping his foot in fury. This statue is very well known as an icon in the city. There is also a newer landscaped sculpture park, Ekebergparken Sculpture Park, with works by Norwegian and international artists such as
Salvador Dalí
Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (; ; ; 11 May 190423 January 1989) was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, and the striking and bizarr ...
Viking ship
Viking ships were marine vessels of unique structure, used in Scandinavia from the Viking Age throughout the Middle Ages.
The boat-types were quite varied, depending on what the ship was intended for, but they were generally characterized as bein ...
s found at Oseberg, Gokstad and Tune and several other unique items from the Viking Age. The museum is currently closed for renovation, but will open again in 2026. The new museum will be called Museum of the Viking Age, and has plans to feature more viking items than at the old location.
The
Oslo City Museum
Oslo City Museum (''Oslo Bymuseum'') is a department of Oslo Museum in Oslo, Norway.
The museum is located at Frogner Manor (''Frogner Hovedgård'') in Frogner Park (''Frognerparken'').
The museum was first founded in 1905 as the association ...
holds a permanent exhibition about the people in Oslo and the history of the city.
The
Kon-Tiki Museum
The Kon-Tiki Museum ( no, Kon-Tiki Museet) is a museum in the Bygdøy peninsula in Oslo, Norway. It houses vessels and maps from the ''Kon-Tiki'' expedition, as well as a library with about 8,000 books.
It was opened in a provisional building i ...
houses
Thor Heyerdahl
Thor Heyerdahl KStJ (; 6 October 1914 – 18 April 2002) was a Norwegian adventurer and ethnographer with a background in zoology, botany and geography.
Heyerdahl is notable for his ''Kon-Tiki'' expedition in 1947, in which he sailed 8,000&nb ...
's Kon-tiki and Ra II.
The
Fram Museum
The Fram Museum ( no, Frammuseet) is a museum telling the story of Norwegian polar exploration. It is located on the peninsula of Bygdøy in Oslo, Norway.
Fram Museum is in an area with several other museums including the Kon-Tiki Museum, the ...
features items from arctic and antarctic expeditions, including the wooden ship
Fram
Fram may refer to:
Ships
* ''Fram'' (ship), an arctic exploration vessel from Norway
* MS ''Fram'', expedition cruise ship owned by Hurtigruten Group
Places and geography
* Fram, Paraguay, a town in Itapúa, Paraguay
* Fram Formation, a se ...
Roald Amundsen
Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen (, ; ; 16 July 1872 – ) was a Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He was a key figure of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.
Born in Borge, Østfold, Norway, Amundsen bega ...
during their expeditions.
The National Museum holds and preserves, exhibits and promotes public knowledge about Norway's most extensive collection of art. The Museum shows permanent exhibitions of works from its own collections but also temporary exhibitions that incorporate work loaned from elsewhere. The National Museums exhibition avenues are the National Gallery, the Museum of Contemporary Art, the National Museum, the Museum of Decorative Arts and the National Museum of Architecture. A new National Museum in Oslo will open in 2020 located at Vestbanen behind the
Nobel Peace Center
The Nobel Peace Center ( no, Nobels Fredssenter) in Oslo, Norway is a showcase for the Nobel Peace Prize and the ideals it represents. The center is also an arena where culture and politics merge to promote involvement, debate and reflection around ...
.
The Nobel Peace Center is an independent organisation opened on 11 June 2005 by the
King Harald V
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 ...
as part of the celebrations to mark Norway's centenary as an independent country. The building houses a permanent exhibition, expanding every year when a new
Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Chemi ...
winner is announced, containing information of every winner in history. The building is mainly used as a communication centre.
Music and events
Many festivals are held in Oslo, such as Oslo Jazz festival, a six-day
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
festival which has been held annually in August for the past 25 years. Oslo's biggest
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
festival is Øyafestivalen or simply "Øya". It draws about 60,000 people to the
Tøyen Park
Tøyen Park ( no, Tøyenparken) is a park in Oslo, Norway. It is located to the north-east of the Munch Museum and neighbours the University of Oslo Botanical Gardens.
Tøyen Park is an expanse of grass-covered hills, dotted with clusters of l ...
east in Oslo and lasts for four days.
The Oslo International
Church Music
Church music is Christian music written for performance in church, or any musical setting of ecclesiastical liturgy, or music set to words expressing propositions of a sacred nature, such as a hymn.
History
Early Christian music
The onl ...
Festival has been held annually since 2000. The Oslo World Music Festival showcases people who are stars in their own country but strangers in Norway. The Oslo
Chamber Music
Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numb ...
Festival is held in August every year and world-class chamber musicians and soloists gather in Oslo to perform at this festival. The Norwegian Wood Rock Festival is held every year in June in Oslo.
The Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony is headed by the Institute; the award ceremony is held annually in The City Hall on 10 December. Even though
Sami
Acronyms
* SAMI, ''Synchronized Accessible Media Interchange'', a closed-captioning format developed by Microsoft
* Saudi Arabian Military Industries, a government-owned defence company
* South African Malaria Initiative, a virtual expertise net ...
land is far away from the capital, the Norwegian Museum of Cultural History marks the Sami National Day with a series of activities and entertainment.
The World Cup Biathlon in
Holmenkollen
Holmenkollen () is a mountain and a neighbourhood in the Vestre Aker borough of Oslo, Norway. It goes up to above sea level and is well-known for its international skiing competitions.
Overview
In addition to being a residential area, the are ...
is held every year and here male and female competitors compete against each other in Sprint, Pursuit and Mass Start disciplines.
Other examples of annual events in Oslo are Desucon, a convention focusing on Japanese culture and Færderseilasen, the world's largest overnight regatta with more than 1100 boats taking part every year.
Rikard Nordraak
Rikard Nordraak (12 June 1842 – 20 March 1866) was a Norwegian composer. He is best known as the composer of the Norwegian national anthem, "Ja, vi elsker dette landet".
Biography
Rikard Nordraak was born and grew up in Oslo, Norway. His family ...
, composer of the
national anthem of Norway
"" (; en, "Yes, we love this country") is the Norwegian national anthem. Originally a patriotic song, it came to be commonly regarded as the ''de facto'' national anthem of Norway in the early 20th century, after being used alongside "" since th ...
, was born in Oslo in 1842.
Norway's principal orchestra is the
Oslo Philharmonic
The Oslo Philharmonic (Oslo-Filharmonien) is a Norwegian symphony orchestra based in Oslo, Norway. The orchestra traces its roots to the Philharmonic Society founded in 1847 and the Christiania Musical Association co-founded by Edvard Grieg in 18 ...
, based at the
Oslo Concert Hall
Oslo Concert Hall (''Oslo Konserthus'') is a concert hall located in Vika, Oslo, Vika, a part of Oslo city centre in Norway. It is the base of the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra (''Oslo-Filharmonien''), but it also aims to be one of the premier music ...
since 1977. Although it was founded in 1919, the Oslo Philharmonic can trace its roots to the founding of the ''Christiania Musikerforening'' (Christiania Musicians Society) by
Edvard Grieg
Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the foremost Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwide. His use of ...
and
Johan Svendsen
Johan Severin Svendsen (30 September 184014 June 1911) was a Norwegian composer, conductor and violinist. Born in Christiania (now Oslo), Norway, he lived most his life in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Svendsen's output includes two symphonies, a violin ...
in 1879.
Oslo has hosted the
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...
twice, in
1996
File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
and
2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
.
Performing arts
Oslo houses over 20 theatres, such as the Norwegian Theatre and the National Theatre located at Karl Johan Street. The National Theatre is the largest theatre in Norway and is situated between the royal palace and the parliament building,
Stortinget
The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years base ...
.
The names of
Ludvig Holberg
Ludvig Holberg, Baron of Holberg (3 December 1684 – 28 January 1754) was a writer, essayist, philosopher, historian and playwright born in Bergen, Norway, during the time of the Dano-Norwegian dual monarchy. He was influenced by Humanism, ...
,
Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...
and
Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson
Bjørnstjerne Martinius Bjørnson ( , ; 8 December 1832 – 26 April 1910) was a Norwegian writer who received the 1903 Nobel Prize in Literature "as a tribute to his noble, magnificent and versatile poetry, which has always been distinguished ...
are engraved on the façade of the building over the main entrance. This theatre represents the actors and play-writers of the country but the songwriters, singers and dancers are represented in the form of a newly opened
Oslo Opera House
The Oslo Opera House ( no, Operahuset) is the home of the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet, and the national opera theatre in Norway. The building is situated in the Bjørvika neighbourhood of central Oslo, at the head of the Oslofjord. It is ...
, situated in
Bjørvika
Bjørvika is a neighborhood in the Sentrum borough of Oslo, Norway. The area is an inlet in the inner Oslofjord, situated between Gamlebyen and Akershus Fortress. It serves as an outlet for the river Akerselva. Since the 2000s, it has been und ...
. The Opera was opened in 2008 and is a national landmark, designed by the Norwegian architectural firm,
Snøhetta
Snøhetta is the highest mountain in the Dovrefjell mountain range in Norway. At , it is the highest mountain in Norway outside the Jotunheimen range, making it the 24th highest peak in Norway, based on a topographic prominence cutoff. At , ...
. There are two houses, together containing over 2000 seats. The building cost 500 million euro to build and took five years to build and is known for being the first
Opera House
An opera house is a theatre building used for performances of opera. It usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and building sets.
While some venues are constructed specifically for o ...
in the world to let people walk on the roof of the building. The foyer and the roof are also used for concerts as well as the three stages.
Literature
Most great Norwegian authors have lived in Oslo for some period in their life. For instance,
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
-winning author
Sigrid Undset
Sigrid Undset () (20 May 1882 – 10 June 1949) was a Norwegian-Danish novelist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928.
Undset was born in Kalundborg, Denmark, but her family moved to Norway when she was two years old. In 1924, ...
grew up in Oslo, and described her life there in the autobiographical novel ''Elleve år'' (1934; translated as ''The Longest Years''; New York 1971).
The playwright
Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...
is probably the most famous Norwegian author. Ibsen wrote plays such as ''
Hedda Gabler
''Hedda Gabler'' () is a play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. The world premiere was staged on 31 January 1891 at the Residenztheater in Munich. Ibsen himself was in attendance, although he remained back-stage. The play has been can ...
'', ''
Peer Gynt
''Peer Gynt'' (, ) is a five- act play in verse by the Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen published in 1876. Written in Norwegian, it is one of the most widely performed Norwegian plays. Ibsen believed ''Per Gynt'', the Norwegian fairy tale on wh ...
'', ''
A Doll's House
''A Doll's House'' (Danish and nb, Et dukkehjem; also translated as ''A Doll House'') is a three-act play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It premiered at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 21 December 1879, having bee ...
'' and ''
The Lady from the Sea
''The Lady from the Sea'' ( no, Fruen fra havet, link=no) is a play written in 1888 by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen inspired by the ballad '' Agnete og Havmanden''. The drama introduces the character of Hilde Wangel who is again portrayed ...
''. The Ibsen Quotes project completed in 2008 is a work of art consisting of 69 Ibsen quotations in stainless steel lettering which have been set into the granite sidewalks of the city's central streets.
In recent years, novelists like
Lars Saabye Christensen
Lars Saabye Christensen (born 21 September 1953 in Oslo) is a Norwegian/Danish author.
Saabye Christensen was raised in the Skillebekk neighbourhood of Oslo, but lived for many years in Sortland in northern Norway; both places play a major r ...
,
Tove Nilsen
Tove Nilsen (born 25 October 1952) is a Norwegian novelist, children's writer and literary critic.
She made her literary debut in 1974 with the novel ''Aldri la dem kle deg forsvarsløst naken''. Her adolescence novel from a dormitory town ...
,
Suresh Chandra Shukla Suresh is an Indian masculine Indian given name, given name originating in the Sanskrit word ' (compound of ' and '). Its meaning is "Ruler of Gods" and it has been used an epithet for the Hindu gods Indra, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva.
People named Su ...
,
Jo Nesbø
Jo Nesbø (; born Jon Nesbø; 29 March 1960) is a Norwegian writer, musician, economist, and former football player and reporter. More than 3 million copies of his novels had been sold in Norway as of March 2014; his work has been translated ...
and Roy Jacobsen have described the city and its people in their novels. Early 20th-century literature from Oslo include poets
Rudolf Nilsen
Rudolf William Nilsen (28 February 1901 – 23 March 1929) was a Norwegian poet and journalist.
Early life
He was born in the district of Vålerenga in Kristiania (present-day Oslo), on 28 February 1901,André Bjerke
Jarl André Bjerke (30 January 1918 – 10 January 1985) was a Norwegian writer and poet. He wrote a wide range of material: poems (both for children and adults), mystery novels (four of them under the pseudonym Bernhard Borge), essays, and arti ...
.
Media
The newspapers ''
Aftenposten
( in the masthead; ; Norwegian for "The Evening Post") is Norway's largest printed newspaper by circulation. It is based in Oslo. It sold 211,769 copies in 2015 (172,029 printed copies according to University of Bergen) and estimated 1.2 million ...
'', ''
Dagbladet
''Dagbladet'' (lit.: ''The Daily Magazine'') is one of Norway's largest newspapers and is published in the tabloid format. It has 1,400,000 daily readers on mobile, web and paper. Traditionally ''Dagbladet'' is considered the main liberal newsp ...
'', ''
Verdens Gang
''Verdens Gang'' ("The course of the world"), generally known under the abbreviation ''VG'', is a Norwegian tabloid newspaper. In 2016, circulation numbers stood at 93,883, having declined from a peak circulation of 390,510 in 2002. ''VG'' is n ...
'', ''
Dagens Næringsliv
''Dagens Næringsliv'' (Norwegian for "Today's Business"), commonly known as ''DN'', is a Norwegian newspaper specializing in business news. , it is the third-largest newspaper in Norway. Editor-in-chief is Janne Johannessen, who was appointed i ...
'', ''
Finansavisen
''Finansavisen'' is a Norwegian language, Norwegian business newspaper published by Hegnar Media in Oslo, Norway.
History and profile
''Finansavisen'' was first published on 1 October 1992 by Trygve Hegnar, who is also editor-in-chief. The paper ...
'', ''
Dagsavisen
''Dagsavisen'' is a daily newspaper published in Oslo, Norway. The former party organ of the Norwegian Labour Party, the ties loosened over time from 1975 to 1999. It has borne several names, and was called ''Arbeiderbladet'' from 1923 to 1997. ...
'', ''
Morgenbladet
''Morgenbladet'' is a Norwegian weekly, newspaper, covering politics, culture and science.
History
''Morgenbladet'' was founded in 1819 by the book printer Niels Wulfsberg. The paper is the country's first daily newspaper; however, Adresseavi ...
Nationen
''Nationen'' is a Norwegian daily newspaper with a particular focus on agriculture and rural districts. Its circulation in 2015 was 12,954, an increase of 281 copies from 2014.
History and profile
''Nationen'' was founded in 1918.
'' and ''
Klassekampen
''Klassekampen'' ( en, The Class Struggle) is a Norwegian daily newspaper. It describes itself as "the newspaper of the Left." The paper's net circulation is 34,000 (2021), and it has around 111,000 daily readers on paper (160,000 on Saturdays). ...
'' are published in Oslo. The main office of the national broadcasting company
NRK
NRK, an abbreviation of the Norwegian ''Norsk Rikskringkasting Aksjeselskap, AS'', generally expressed in English as the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation, is the Norwegian government-owned radio and television public broadcasting company, and ...
is located at
Marienlyst
Marienlyst is an area in the borough of St. Hanshaugen in Oslo. It is best known as the site of the national headquarters of the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK), and "Marienlyst" is often used synonymously with NRK.
It is located nex ...
in Oslo, near
Majorstuen
Majorstuen is a particularly affluent neighbourhood in the Frogner borough in the inner part of Oslo, Norway.
Majorstuen is known for its vibrant downtown and especially its shopping area. The area has several elegant townhouses c. 1880–1890. T ...
, and NRK also has regional services via both radio and television.
TVNorge
TVNorge (literally "TVNorway"; originally abbreviated TVN, now just abbreviated N in the logos) is a Norwegian television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery EMEA.
History
TVNorge went on the air on 5 December 1988 and was the first adver ...
(TVNorway) is also located in Oslo, while TV 2 (based in
Bergen
Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...
) and TV3 (based in London) operate branch offices in central Oslo. There is also a variety of specialty publications and smaller media companies. A number of magazines are produced in Oslo. The two dominant companies are
Aller Media
Aller Media is a magazine publisher in the Nordic countries, headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark. It publishes ''Elle'', ''Cafe'', ''Familie Journalen'', '' Femina'', ''Allers'' and ''Se og Hør''.
History
Aller Media was founded in Copenhagen ...
and
Hjemmet Mortensen AB
The Egmont Group (formerly The Gutenberghus Group) is a Danish media corporation founded and rooted in Copenhagen, Denmark. The business area of Egmont has traditionally been magazine publishing but has over the years evolved to comprise mass me ...
.
Sports
Oslo is home to the
Holmenkollen National Arena
Holmenkollen National Arena ( no, Holmenkollen nasjonalanlegg) is a Nordic skiing, ski jumping and biathlon venue located at Holmenkollen in Oslo, Norway. It consists of the large ski jumping hill Holmenkollbakken, the normal hill Midtstubakken ...
and
Holmenkollbakken
Holmenkollbakken is a large ski jumping hill located at Holmenkollen in Oslo, Norway. It has a hill size of HS134, a construction point of K-120, and a capacity for 70,000 spectators. Holmenkollen has hosted the Holmenkollen Ski Festival since 18 ...
, the country's main
biathlon
The biathlon is a winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. It is treated as a race, with contestants skiing through a cross-country trail whose distance is divided into shooting rounds. The shooting rounds are not tim ...
and
Nordic skiing
Nordic skiing encompasses the various types of skiing in which the toe of the ski boot is fixed to the Ski binding, binding in a manner that allows the heel to rise off the ski, unlike alpine skiing, where the boot is attached to the ski from toe ...
venues. It hosts annual world cup tournaments, including the
Holmenkollen Ski Festival
The Holmenkollen Ski Festival ( no, Holmenkollen skifestival or ) is a traditional annual Nordic skiing event in Holmenkollen, Oslo, Norway. The full official name of the event is Holmenkollen FIS World Cup Nordic.
History
It takes place in March ...
. Oslo hosted the
Biathlon World Championships
The first Biathlon World Championships (BWCH) was held in 1958, with individual and team contests for men. The number of events has grown significantly over the years. Beginning in 1984, women biathletes had their own World Championships, and fina ...
in
1986
The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles.
**Spain and Portugal ente ...
,
1990
File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
,
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
,
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
and
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
.
FIS Nordic World Ski Championships
The FIS Nordic World Ski Championships is a biennial nordic skiing event organized by the International Ski Federation (FIS). The World Championships was started in 1925 for men and opened for women's participation in 1954. World Championship e ...
have been hosted in
1930
Events
January
* January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be ...
1982
Events January
* January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00).
* January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...
and
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
, as well as the
1952 Winter Olympics
The 1952 Winter Olympics, officially known as the VI Olympic Winter Games ( no, De 6. olympiske vinterleker; nn, Dei 6. olympiske vinterleikane) and commonly known as Oslo 1952, was a winter multi-sport event held from 14 to 25 February 195 ...
Vålerenga
Vålerenga () is a neighbourhood in the city of Oslo, Norway, belonging to the borough of Gamle Oslo. Vålerenga is located between the neighbourhoods of Gamlebyen, Jordal, Ensjø, Etterstad and Lodalen. Vålerenga is in particular known for it ...
Skeid
Skeid is a Norwegian alliance sports club from Nordre Åsen, Oslo. It has sections for association football (one for elite and one for grassroots football), Nordic skiing and bandy.
General history
The club was founded as ''IK Skeid'' on 5 De ...
have won both the
league
League or The League may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band
* ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football
Sports
* Sports league
* Rugby league, full contact footba ...
and the
cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay, ...
, while Mercantile SFK and
Frigg
Frigg (; Old Norse: ) is a goddess, one of the Æsir, in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about her, she is associated with marriage, prophecy, clairvoyance and motherhood, and dwells in the wet ...
UEFA Women's Championship
The UEFA European Women's Championship, also called the UEFA Women's Euro, held every four years, is the main competition in women's association football between national teams of the UEFA confederation. The competition is the women's equivalent ...
in
1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...
and
1997
File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...
Røa IL
Røa IL is a Norwegian sports club from Røa in the borough of Vestre Aker, Oslo. It was founded on 11 November 1900, and has sections for football, gymnastics, bandy, and cross-country skiing. Football, bandy, and Nordic skiing have been do ...
is Oslo's only team in the women's league,
Toppserien
The Toppserien is the top level of women's association football in Norway. It was founded in 1984.
History
Women's league football was introduced on a county basis in 1977. These leagues acted as qualification for the regional (South) league in 1 ...
. Each year, the international youth football tournament
Norway Cup
The Norway Cup is an international youth football tournament in Oslo, Norway. It has been held annually since 1972, with the exception of 1976 (due to a conflicting arrangement), 2020 and 2021 (due to the COVID-19 Pandemic). It is the world's l ...
is held on Ekebergsletta and other places in the city.
Due to the cold climate and proximity to major forests bordering the city, skiing is a popular recreational activity in Oslo. The Tryvann Ski Resort is the most used ski resort in Norway. The most successful
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
team in Norway,
Vålerenga Ishockey
Vålerenga Ishockey (; abbreviated as VIF) is a Norwegian ice hockey team based in Oslo, Norway. Vålerenga has been the dominant force in Norwegian hockey since the 1960s, claiming 26 national championships and 29 regular season titles. Their ol ...
, is based in Oslo.
Manglerud Star
Idrettslaget Manglerud Star is a Norwegian alliance sports club from Manglerud, Oslo. It has sections for association football (one for elite and one for grassroots football) and ice hockey.
General history
The club was founded in 1964 as a merge ...
is another Oslo-team who play in the
top league
Japan Rugby League One (formerly the Top League) is a rugby union competition in Japan. It is the highest level of professional rugby competition in the country. The Japan Rugby Football Union created the competition in 2003, by absorbing the ...
.
Bislett Stadium
Bislett Stadium ( no, Bislett stadion) is a sports stadium in Oslo, Norway. Bislett is Norway's most well known sports arena internationally, with 15 speed skating world records and more than 50 track and field world records having been set here ...
is the city's main track and field venue, and hosts the annual
Bislett Games
The Bislett Games is an annual track and field meeting at the Bislett Stadium in Oslo, Norway. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamond League.
History
The first international athletics meeting at Bislet ...
, part of
Diamond League
The Diamond League is an annual series of elite track and field athletic competitions comprising fourteen of the best invitational athletics meetings. The series sits in the top tier of the World Athletics (formerly known as the IAAF) one-day mee ...
.
Bjerke Travbane
Bjerke Travbane ( en, Bjerke Race Track) is a harness racing track located in the Bjerkebanen neighborhood of the Bjerke borough in Oslo, Norway. The course is . Owned by Norwegian Trotting Association, its tote betting is handled by Norsk ...
is the main venue for
harness racing
Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait (a trot or a pace). They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, or spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australi ...
in the country.
Oslo Spektrum
Oslo Spektrum is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in east central Oslo, Norway that opened in December 1990. It is currently owned and operated by Norges Varemesse. Oslo Spektrum is primarily known for hosting major events such as the annual ...
is used for large
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
and
handball
Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the g ...
Oppsal IF
Oppsal IF is a multi-sports club from Oslo, Norway. The women's handball team currently competes in Rema 1000-ligaen.
The men's football team currently competes in the 2. divisjon, the third tier of the Norwegian football league system.
Wome ...
Jordal Amfi
Jordal Amfi was an indoor ice hockey rink in Oslo, Norway, the first bearing that name. The venue opened in 1951 to host the 1952 Winter Olympics. Jordal was also the site of the 1958 and the 1999 IIHF World Championship. It would in the followi ...
, the home of the ice hockey team
Vålerenga Ishockey
Vålerenga Ishockey (; abbreviated as VIF) is a Norwegian ice hockey team based in Oslo, Norway. Vålerenga has been the dominant force in Norwegian hockey since the 1960s, claiming 26 national championships and 29 regular season titles. Their ol ...
, and the
national team
A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport.
The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exa ...
. The
1999 IIHF World Championship
The 1999 IIHF World Championship was held in Oslo, Hamar and Lillehammer in Norway from 1 to 16 May. It was the top tier of the men's championships for that year.
Venues
World Championship Group A
Qualifying Round
Three qualifying tou ...
in ice hockey were held in Oslo, as have three
Bandy World Championship
The Bandy World Championship is a competition between bandy-playing nations' men's teams. The tournament is administrated by the Federation of International Bandy. It is distinct from the Bandy World Cup, a club competition, and from the W ...
s, in
1961
Events January
* January 3
** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba ( Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015).
** Aero Flight 311 ...
,
1977
Events January
* January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
* January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...
and
1985
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations.
Events January
* January 1
** The Internet's Domain Name System is created.
** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...
. The
UCI Road World Championships
The UCI Road World Championships are the annual world championships for bicycle road racing organized by the (UCI). The UCI Road World Championships consist of events for road race and individual time trial, and a mixed team relay.
Events
...
in
bicycle road racing
Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on Road surface, paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional sport, professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and ...
Oslo Pretenders Sportsklubb Oslo Pretenders Sportsklubb (Oslo Pretenders) has been the leading baseball team in Norway since 1991, winning 21 National Championships (NM) and 18 League Titles (NBL). The team has also participated in the European Cup every year between 2001-201 ...
, a club that hosts a
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...
,
softball
Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...
,
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
, and
disc golf
Disc golf, also known as frisbee golf, is a flying disc sport in which players throw a disc at a target; it is played using rules similar to golf. Most disc golf discs are made out of polypropylene plastic, otherwise known as polypropene, which ...
teams. The baseball team has won 21 Norwegian Cup Championships and 18 Norwegian Baseball League titles. They participate in the
European Cup
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
.
Oslo was
bidding
Bidding is an offer (often competitive) to set a price tag by an individual or business for a product or service ''or'' a demand that something be done. Bidding is used to determine the cost or value of something.
Bidding can be performed by ...
to host the
2022 Winter Olympics
The 2022 Winter Olympics (2022年冬季奥林匹克运动会), officially called the XXIV Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Beijing 2022 (2022), was an international winter multi-sport event held from 4 to 20 February 2022 in Beij ...
, but later withdrew on 2 October 2014.
Tourism
In 2018 Oslo is named one of Lonely Planet's Top Ten Cities. The travel guide's best-selling yearbook Best in Travel has selected Oslo as one of the ten best cities in the world to visit in 2018, citing the Norwegian capital's "innovative architecture and unmissable museums alongside cool bars, bistros and cafés".
Crime
Oslo is commonly regarded as one of the safest capitals in Europe. The
Oslo Police District
Oslo Police District ( Norwegian: ''Oslo politidistrikt'') is the largest police district in Norway. The Police District of Asker og Bærum and Oslo Police District are from January 1, 2016 merged into one, Police Districts Asker and Bærum and Os ...
received reported crimes in 2020, and crime is generally on the decrease in the city. The category of reported crime that's decreasing the quickest in Oslo is property theft. 11,6% of all crimes in Norway are reported to be within Oslo's centre, as of 2020.
Police
Oslo Police District
Oslo Police District ( Norwegian: ''Oslo politidistrikt'') is the largest police district in Norway. The Police District of Asker og Bærum and Oslo Police District are from January 1, 2016 merged into one, Police Districts Asker and Bærum and Os ...
is Norway's largest police district with over 2,300 employees. Over 1,700 of those are police officers, nearly 140 police lawyers and 500 civilian employees. Oslo Police District has five police stations located around the city at Grønland, Sentrum, Stovner, Majorstuen and Manglerud. The
National Criminal Investigation Service
The National Criminal Investigation Service ( no, Den nasjonale enhet for bekjempelse av organisert og annen alvorlig kriminalitet, previously ''Kriminalpolitisentralen''), commonly known as Kripos, is a special agency of the Norwegian Police Ser ...
is located in Oslo, which is a Norwegian special police division under the NMJP. PST is also located in the Oslo District. PST is a security agency which was established in 1936 and is one of the non-secret agencies in Norway.
Terrorist attacks
* One part of the
2011 Norway attacks
The 2011 Norway attacks, referred to in Norway as 22 July ( no, 22. juli) or as 22/7, were two domestic terrorist attacks by neo-Nazi Anders Behring Breivik against the government, the civilian population, and a Workers' Youth League (AUF) ...
occurred within the Oslo centre on 22 July 2011. The Oslo government offices were bombed by a right-wing extremist with political motives.
* The 2022 Oslo shooting happened on 25 June 2022. The attack was a shooting at a pub known to be associated with the queer environment of Oslo, and the attack was targeted towards the LGBTQ movement. Two people were killed, and a further 21 injured. Due to safety concerns, the
pride parade
A pride parade (also known as pride march, pride event, or pride festival) is an outdoor event celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer culture, queer (LGBTQ) social and self-acceptance, achievements, LGBT rights by country o ...
in Oslo planned for 26 June was quickly cancelled.
Transport
Public transport
Oslo has Norway's most extensive public transport system, managed by
Ruter
Ruter AS is the public transport authority for Oslo and Akershus counties in Norway. Formally a limited company – 60% of its shares are owned by the Oslo county municipality and 40% by that of Akershus – it is responsible for the administra ...
. This includes the five-line
Oslo Metro
The Oslo Metro ( no, Oslo T-bane or or simply ) is the rapid transit system of Oslo, Norway, operated by Sporveien T-banen on contract from the transit authority Ruter. The network consists of five lines that all run through the city centre, wit ...
, the world's most extensive metro per resident; the six-line
Oslo Tramway
The Oslo tram network ( no, Trikken i Oslo, short from ', 'electric') is the tram system in Oslo, Norway. It consists of six lines with 99 stops and has a daily ridership of 132,000. It is operated by , a subsidiary of the municipally-owned who ...
; and the eight-line
Oslo Commuter Rail
Oslo Commuter Rail ( no, Lokaltog Østlandet) is a commuter rail centered in Oslo, Norway, connecting the capital to six counties in Eastern Norway. The system is operated by Vy (formerly NSB) and its subsidiary Vy Gjøvikbanen, using Class 69 ...
. The tramway operates within the areas close to the city centre, while the metro, which runs underground through the city centre, operates to suburbs further away; this includes two lines that operate to Bærum, and the Ring Line which loops to areas north of the centre. Oslo is also covered by a bus network consisting of 52 city lines, as well as regional buses to the neighboring county of Akershus.
Oslo Central Station
Oslo Central Station ( no, Oslo sentralstasjon, abbreviated ) is the main railway station in Oslo, and the largest railway station within the entire Norwegian railway system. It connects with Jernbanetorget station. It's the terminus of Dramme ...
acts as the central hub, and offers rail services to most major cities in southern Norway as well as
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
and
Gothenburg
Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...
in Sweden. The
Airport Express Train
An airport rail link is a service providing passenger rail transport from an airport to a nearby city by mainline or commuter trains, rapid transit, people mover, or light rail. Direct links operate straight to the airport terminal, while o ...
operates along the high-speed
Gardermoen Line
The Gardermoen Line ( no, Gardermobanen) is a high-speed railway line between Oslo and Eidsvoll, Norway, running past Lillestrøm and Oslo Airport, Gardermoen. The line is long and replaced the older Hoved Line as the main line north-east of O ...
. The
Drammen Line
The Drammen Line ( no, Drammenbanen) is a railway line between Oslo and Drammen, Norway, which was opened on 7 October 1872. It serves all trains west of Oslo Central Station and is owned by Bane NOR.
The line opened as a narrow gauge railway, ...
runs under the city centre in the
Oslo Tunnel
The Oslo Tunnel ( no, Oslotunnelen) is a , double-track, railway tunnel which runs between Olav Kyrres plass and Oslo Central Station (Oslo S) in Oslo, Norway. The tunnel constitutes the easternmost section of the Drammen Line and runs bel ...
. Some of the city islands and the neighbouring municipality of
Nesodden
Nesodden is a municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Follo. The administrative centre of the municipality is Nesoddtangen. The parish of ''Næsodden'' was established as a municipality on 1 ...
are connected by ferry. Daily
cruiseferry
A cruiseferry is a ship that combines the features of a cruise ship and a Ro-Pax ferry. Many passengers travel with the ships for the cruise experience, staying only a few hours at the destination port or not leaving the ship at all, while oth ...
services operate to
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
and
Frederikshavn
Frederikshavn () is a Danish town in Frederikshavn municipality, Region Nordjylland, on the northeast coast of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark. Its name translates to "Frederik's harbor". It was originally named Fladstrand.
The town h ...
in Denmark, and to
Kiel
Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021).
Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the J ...
in Germany.
Airports
The main airport serving Oslo is
Gardermoen Airport
Oslo Airport ( no, Oslo lufthavn; ), alternatively referred to as Oslo Gardermoen Airport or simply Gardermoen, is the international airport serving Oslo, Norway, the capital and most populous city in the country. A hub for Flyr, Norse At ...
, located in
Ullensaker
Ullensaker is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Akershus in Viken (county), Viken Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Districts of Norway, traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality i ...
, from the city centre of Oslo. It acts as the main international gateway to Norway, and is, as of 2021, ranked as the 23rd busiest airport in Europe. Gardermoen is a hub for
Scandinavian Airlines
Scandinavian Airlines, more commonly known and styled as SAS, is the flag carrier of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. ''SAS'' is an abbreviation of the company's full name, Scandinavian Airlines System or legally Scandinavian Airlines System Denmark ...
,
Norwegian Air Shuttle
Norwegian Air Shuttle Aksjeselskap, ASA, trading as Norwegian, is a Norway, Norwegian Low-cost carrier, low-cost airline and Norway's largest airline. It is the fourth largest low-cost carrier in Europe behind Wizz Air, easyJet and Ryanair, the ...
and
Widerøe
Widerøes Flyveselskap AS, trading as Widerøe, is a Norwegian airline, and is the largest regional airline operating in the Nordic countries. The airline's fleet of 40 Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft, and 3 Embraer E190-E2 aircraft, serves over 40 ...
. Oslo is also served by a secondary airport,
Torp Airport
Sandefjord Airport, Torp ( no, Sandefjord lufthavn, Torp; ) is an international airport located northeast of Sandefjord, Norway and south of Oslo. The airport features a runway aligned 18/36. Torp partially serves as a regional airport for Ve ...
Many of the motorways pass through the downtown and other parts of the city in tunnels. The construction of the roads is partially supported through a toll ring. The major motorways through Oslo are
European Route E6
European route E6 ( no, Europavei 6, sv, Europaväg 6, or simply E6) is the main north-south thoroughfare through Norway as well as the west coast of Sweden. It is long and runs from the southern tip of Sweden at Trelleborg, into Norway and t ...
ring road
A ring road (also known as circular road, beltline, beltway, circumferential (high)way, loop, bypass or orbital) is a road or a series of connected roads encircling a town, city, or country. The most common purpose of a ring road is to assist i ...
s in Oslo; the innermost 2 being city streets and the outermost, Ring 3, being an
expressway
Expressway may refer to:
* Controlled-access highway, the highest-grade type of highway with access ramps, lane markings, etc., for high-speed traffic.
* Limited-access road, a lower grade of highway or arterial road.
*Expressway, the fictional s ...
.
Oslo has made an effort since the late 2000s in restricting private car use, as well promoting the use of
electric vehicle
An electric vehicle (EV) is a vehicle that uses one or more electric motors for propulsion. It can be powered by a collector system, with electricity from extravehicular sources, or it can be powered autonomously by a battery (sometimes cha ...
s above fossil-fueled vehicles. In 2018, Oslo banned all non-resident cars from its downtown areas. Oslo has been called the electric vehicle capital of the world, as 41% of all registered cars in the municipality are fully electric.
In September 2021, the number of electric vehicles entering Oslo's toll ring was higher than the number of fossil-fueled vehicles. The high amount of electric vehicles in Oslo can be attributed to cheaper tolls, no vehicle import tax, no
VAT
A value-added tax (VAT), known in some countries as a goods and services tax (GST), is a type of tax that is assessed incrementally. It is levied on the price of a product or service at each stage of production, distribution, or sale to the en ...
, free parking, and access to
bus lane
A bus lane or bus-only lane is a lane restricted to buses, often on certain days and times, and generally used to speed up public transport that would be otherwise held up by traffic congestion. The related term busway describes a roadway ...
s throughout the city.
File:GMB BFM 71104 1.jpg,
Flytoget
The Airport Express Train ( no, Flytoget) is a Norway, Norwegian high-speed rail, high-speed airport rail link, airport railway service connecting Oslo Airport, Gardermoen, Oslo Airport to Oslo Central Station in nineteen minutes. Run by Flytoget ...
– the Airport Express Train – a high-speed rail service connecting the city with its main airport at
Gardermoen
Oslo Airport ( no, Oslo lufthavn; ), alternatively referred to as Oslo Gardermoen Airport or simply Gardermoen, is the international airport serving Oslo, Norway, the capital and most populous city in the country. A hub for Flyr, Norse Atlan ...
File:Nationaltheatret station Oslo.jpg, A Metro train leaving Nationaltheatret Station
File:CyclePickandDrop.jpg, A rental bicycle station in the city center
File:14-09-02-oslo-RalfR-457.jpg, Buses at
Jernbanetorget
Jernbanetorget is both a rapid transit station on the Oslo Metro and a tram stop of the Oslo Tramway. The metro station is in the Common Tunnel used by all lines under the city centre. It is located between Stortinget to the west and Grønland ...
File:20220203 Bjoervika SL18.jpg, alt=, An SL18-model tram at Bjørvika, set to replace the older
SL79
SL79 is a class of 40 articulated trams operated by the Oslo Tramway of Norway. The trams were a variation of the Duewag trams that had been developed by the German manufacturer since the 1950s. The six-axle vehicles are unidirectional with four ...
and
SL95
SL95 is a series of 32 low-floor, articulated trams operated on the Oslo Tramway. The series was built by Italian rail manufacturer Ansaldo/ Firema, later known as AnsaldoBreda (now Hitachi Rail Italy), and delivered between 1999 and 2004. Capaci ...
models within 2024
Demographics
The population of Oslo was by 2010 increasing at a record rate of nearly 2% annually (17% over the last 15 years), making it the fastest-growing Scandinavian capital. In 2015, according to
Statistics Norway
Statistics Norway ( no, Statistisk sentralbyrå, abbreviated to ''SSB'') is the Norwegian statistics bureau. It was established in 1876.
Relying on a staff of about 1,000, Statistics Norway publish about 1,000 new statistical releases every yea ...
annual report, there were permanent residents in the Oslo municipality, of which resided in the city proper. There were also in the city's urban area and an estimated in the Greater Oslo Region, within of the city centre.
According to the most recent census Oslo residents (70.4% of the population) were ethnically Norwegian, an increase of 6% since 2002 (). Oslo has the largest population of immigrants and Norwegians born to immigrant parents in Norway, both in relative and absolute figures. Of Oslo's inhabitants, were immigrants or born to immigrant parents, representing 30.4 percent of the capital's population. All suburbs in Oslo were above the national average of 14.1 percent. The suburbs with the highest proportions of people of immigrant origin were Søndre Nordstrand, Stovner and Alna, where they formed around 50 percent of the population.
Pakistanis
Pakistanis ( ur, , translit=Pākistānī Qaum, ) are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. According to the 2017 Pakistani national census, the population of Pakistan stood at over 213 million people, making it the w ...
make up the single largest
ethnic minority
The term 'minority group' has different usages depending on the context. According to its common usage, a minority group can simply be understood in terms of demographic sizes within a population: i.e. a group in society with the least number o ...
, followed by
Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in Ce ...
,
Somalis
The Somalis ( so, Soomaalida 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒆𐒖, ar, صوماليون) are an ethnic group native to the Horn of Africa who share a common ancestry, culture and history. The Lowland East Cushitic Somali language is the shared ...
, and
Swedes
Swedes ( sv, svenskar) are a North Germanic ethnic group native to the Nordic region, primarily their nation state of Sweden, who share a common ancestry, culture, history and language. They mostly inhabit Sweden and the other Nordic countr ...
. Other large immigrant groups are people from
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
,
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
,
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
,
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...
,
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
&
Kurdistan region
Kurdistan Region ( ku, هەرێمی کوردستان, translit=Herêmî Kurdistan; ar, إقليم كردستان), abbr. KRI, is an autonomous region in Iraq comprising the four Kurdish-majority governorates of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok, ...
and
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
& Kordestan province.
In 2013, 40% of Oslo's primary school pupils were registered as having a
first language
A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongu ...
other than Norwegian or
Sami
Acronyms
* SAMI, ''Synchronized Accessible Media Interchange'', a closed-captioning format developed by Microsoft
* Saudi Arabian Military Industries, a government-owned defence company
* South African Malaria Initiative, a virtual expertise net ...
. The western part of the city is predominantly ethnic Norwegian, with several schools having less than 5% pupils with an immigrant background. The eastern part of Oslo is more mixed, with some schools up to 97% of immigrant background. Schools are also increasingly divided by ethnicity, with
white flight
White flight or white exodus is the sudden or gradual large-scale migration of white people from areas becoming more racially or ethnoculturally diverse. Starting in the 1950s and 1960s, the terms became popular in the United States. They refer ...
being present in some of the northeastern suburbs of the city. In the borough of
Groruddalen
The Grorud Valley ( no, Groruddalen)
is a valley and urban area
or suburb
in the northeastern part of Oslo, the capital of Norway. Four of Oslo's boroughs lie within the Grorud Valley; Bjerke to the west, Alna to the south, Grorud to the north ...
in 2008 for instance, the ethnic Norwegian population decreased by 1,500, while the immigrant population increased by 1,600.
Oslo has numerous religious communities. In 2019, 48.7% of the population were members of the
Church of Norway
The Church of Norway ( nb, Den norske kirke, nn, Den norske kyrkja, se, Norgga girku, sma, Nöörjen gærhkoe) is an evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. The church b ...
, lower than the national average of 69.9%. Members of other Christian denominations make up 8.4% of the population. Islam was followed by 9.5% and Buddhism by 0.6% of the population. Adherents of other religions formed 1.1% of the population. Life stance communities, mainly the
Norwegian Humanist Association
The Norwegian Humanist Association ( no, Human-Etisk Forbund; HEF) is one of the largest secular humanist associations in the world, with over 130,000 members. Those members constitute 2.3% of the national population of 5.47 million, making HEF b ...
, were represented by 2.8% of the population. 28.9% of the Oslo population were unaffiliated with any religion or life stance community.
Notable residents
Public figures
*
Niels Juel
Niels Juel (8 May 1629 – 8 April 1697) was a Danish admiral and a naval hero. He served as supreme command of the Dano-Norwegian Navy
The history of the Danish navy began with the founding of a joint Dano-Norwegian navy on 10 August 1510, ...
(1629–1697) a Danish-Norwegian admiral and Danish naval hero.
*
Fridtjof Nansen
Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen (; 10 October 186113 May 1930) was a Norwegian polymath and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He gained prominence at various points in his life as an explorer, scientist, diplomat, and humanitarian. He led the team t ...
Vilhelm Bjerknes
Vilhelm Friman Koren Bjerknes ( , ; 14 March 1862 – 9 April 1951) was a Norwegian physicist and meteorologist who did much to found the modern practice of weather forecasting. He formulated the primitive equations that are still in use in num ...
(1862–1951), physicist and meteorologist, founded weather forecasting
* Einar Woxen (1878–1937), barrister and journalist
* Margrethe Parm (1882–1966), Christian leader and scout leader
* Margit Haslund (1885–1963), women's advocate, local politician and first female city Mayor
*
Ragnar Frisch
Ragnar Anton Kittil Frisch (3 March 1895 – 31 January 1973) was an influential Norwegian economist known for being one of the major contributors to establishing economics as a quantitative and statistically informed science in the early 20th ce ...
(1895–1973), economist,
Nobel Prize laureate
The Nobel Prizes ( sv, Nobelpriset, no, Nobelprisen) are awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Karolinska Institutet, and the Norwegian Nobel Committee to individuals and organizations who make out ...
in 1969
*
Trygve Lie
Trygve Halvdan Lie ( , ; 16 July 1896 – 30 December 1968) was a Norwegians, Norwegian politician, labour leader, government official and author. He served as Norwegian foreign minister during the critical years of the Nygaardsvold's Cabinet, N ...
(1896–1968) politician, first
Secretary-General of the United Nations
The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the six principal organs of the United Nations.
The role of the secretary-g ...
*
Lars Onsager
Lars Onsager (November 27, 1903 – October 5, 1976) was a Norwegian-born American physical chemist and theoretical physicist. He held the Gibbs Professorship of Theoretical Chemistry at Yale University. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Che ...
(1903–1976), physical chemist,
Nobel Prize laureate
The Nobel Prizes ( sv, Nobelpriset, no, Nobelprisen) are awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Karolinska Institutet, and the Norwegian Nobel Committee to individuals and organizations who make out ...
in 1968
*
Johan Galtung
Johan Vincent Galtung (born 24 October 1930) is a Norwegian sociologist who is the principal founder of the discipline of peace and conflict studies. He was the main founder of the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) in 1959 and served as its ...
(born 1930), sociologist, founder of
peace and conflict studies
Peace and conflict studies is a social science field that identifies and analyzes violent and nonviolent behaviours as well as the structural mechanisms attending conflicts (including social conflicts), with a view towards understanding those pro ...
*
Gro Harlem Brundtland
Gro Brundtland (; born Gro Harlem, 20 April 1939) is a Norwegian politician (Arbeiderpartiet), who served three terms as the 29th prime minister of Norway (1981, 1986–89, and 1990–96) and as the director-general of the World Health Organizati ...
(born 1939), former
Prime Minister of Norway
The prime minister of Norway ( no, statsminister, which directly translates to "minister of state") is the head of government and chief executive of Norway. The prime minister and Cabinet (consisting of all the most senior government department ...
and Director-General of
WHO
Who or WHO may refer to:
* Who (pronoun), an interrogative or relative pronoun
* Who?, one of the Five Ws in journalism
* World Health Organization
Arts and entertainment Fictional characters
* Who, a creature in the Dr. Seuss book '' Horton He ...
1998–2003
* Mette Kongshem (born 1941), diplomat and politician
*
Eva Joly
Eva Joly (; born Gro Eva Farseth; 5 December 1943) is a Norwegian-born French ''juge d'instruction'' (magistrate) and politician for Europe Écologie–The Greens. She represented that party as a candidate for the presidency of France in the 2012 ...
John Fredriksen
John Fredriksen (born 10 May 1944) is a Norwegian-born Cypriot oil tanker and shipping billionaire businessman based in London. He owns the world's largest oil tanker fleet and has major interests in the offshore driller Seadrill, the fish farmi ...
(born 1944), shipping magnate
*
Frank Murud
Frank Murud (born 23 December 1955) is a former chief of real estate in the city administration of Oslo, who became notorious for the embezzlement of ca. 89,5 million NOK from the company Undervisningsbygg, which is responsible for constructing ...
(born 1955), former Oslo chief of real estate
* Fabian Stang (born 1955), lawyer and politician, Mayor of Oslo 2007–2015
*
Jens Stoltenberg
Jens Stoltenberg (born 16 March 1959) is a Norwegian politician who has been serving as the 13th secretary general of NATO since 2014. A member of the Norwegian Labour Party, he previously served as the 34th prime minister of Norway from 2000 to ...
(born 1959), former
Prime Minister of Norway
The prime minister of Norway ( no, statsminister, which directly translates to "minister of state") is the head of government and chief executive of Norway. The prime minister and Cabinet (consisting of all the most senior government department ...
, Secretary General of
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
*
Børge Ousland
Børge Ousland (born 31 May 1962) is a Norwegian polar explorer. He was the first person to cross Antarctica solo.
He started his career as a Norwegian Navy Special Forces Officer with Marinejegerkommandoen, and he also spent several years wor ...
(born 1962), polar explorer, writer; first person to cross the Antarctic solo
*
Erling Kagge
Erling Kagge (born January 15, 1963) is a Norwegian explorer, publisher, author, lawyer, art collector, entrepreneur and politician.
Three Poles Challenge
Erling Kagge is the first person to reach the North Pole, South Pole and the summit of ...
(born 1963) polar explorer, author, lawyer, art collector, entrepreneur and politician
Arts
*
Peter Christen Asbjørnsen
Peter Christen Asbjørnsen (15 January 18125 January 1885) was a Norwegian writer and scholar. He and Jørgen Engebretsen Moe were collectors of Norwegian folklore. They were so closely united in their lives' work that their folk tale collection ...
(1812–1885) a writer and scholar.
*
Hans Gude
Hans Fredrik Gude (March 13, 1825August 17, 1903) was a Norwegian romanticist painter and is considered along with Johan Christian Dahl to be one of Norway's foremost landscape painters. He has been called a mainstay of Norwegian National Roma ...
(1825–1903) a Norwegian romanticist landscape painter
* Lona Gyldenkrone (1848–1934), opera singer
*
Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...
(1828–1906), playwright, theatre director and poet
* Fritz Arlberg (1830-1896) a Swedish baritone, teacher, composer and opera singer
*
Christian Krohg
Christian Krohg (13 August 1852 – 16 October 1925) was a Norwegian naturalist painter, illustrator, author and journalist. Krohg was inspired by the realism art movement and often chose motifs from everyday life. He was the director and s ...
(1852–1925) a naturalist painter, illustrator, author and journalist
*
Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch ( , ; 12 December 1863 – 23 January 1944) was a Norwegian painter. His best known work, ''The Scream'' (1893), has become one of Western art's most iconic images.
His childhood was overshadowed by illness, bereavement and the dr ...
(1863–1944), painter
*
Magna Lykseth-Skogman
Magna Elvine Lykseth-Skogman (6 February 1874 – 13 November 1949), also known as Magna Lykseth-Schjerven, was a Norway, Norwegian-born Sweden, Swedish operatic soprano. After making her début at the Royal Swedish Opera in 1901 as Santuzza in ' ...
(1874–1949), opera singer
* Sandra Drouker (1875–1944) a Russian concert pianist, composer and music pedagogue
* Torleif S. Knaphus (1881–1965) artist and monument sculptor in
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
, USA
*
Sigrid Undset
Sigrid Undset () (20 May 1882 – 10 June 1949) was a Norwegian-Danish novelist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928.
Undset was born in Kalundborg, Denmark, but her family moved to Norway when she was two years old. In 1924, ...
(1882–1949) writer, awarded the
Nobel Prize in Literature
)
, image = Nobel Prize.png
, caption =
, awarded_for = Outstanding contributions in literature
, presenter = Swedish Academy
, holder = Annie Ernaux (2022)
, location = Stockholm, Sweden
, year = 1901
, ...
in 1928
*
Thorbjørn Egner
Thorbjørn Egner (12 December 1912 – 24 December 1990) was a Norwegian playwright, songwriter and illustrator known principally for his books, plays and musicals for children. He is principally associated with his narratives for children includ ...
(1912–1990) playwright of children's books, songwriter and illustrator
*
Kjersti Døvigen
Kjersti Døvigen (27 June 1943 – 26 January 2021) was a Norwegian actress. She was known, among other things, for her role in the popular Norwegian TV-drama ''Offshore''.
At the age of seven, Kjersti started dancing, her career began as a b ...
(1943–2021) actress
*
Cliff Moustache
Cliff A. Moustache (born 9 November 1952) is a Seycellois-Norwegian film director, actor, and playwright.
Biography
Moustache was born in the island nation of Seychelles. From a young age, he was interested in different forms of media and art. H ...
(born 1952), playwright, film director, and actor from
Seychelles
Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (french: link=no, République des Seychelles; Creole: ''La Repiblik Sesel''), is an archipelagic state consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, V ...
*Suresh Chandra Shukla (born 1954), a Norwegian/Indian poet, playwright, short film director, from
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
*
Lars Saabye Christensen
Lars Saabye Christensen (born 21 September 1953 in Oslo) is a Norwegian/Danish author.
Saabye Christensen was raised in the Skillebekk neighbourhood of Oslo, but lived for many years in Sortland in northern Norway; both places play a major r ...
(born 1953) a Norwegian/Danish novelist
*
Morten Harket
Morten Harket () (born September 14, 1959) is a Norwegian vocalist and songwriter, who is the lead singer of the synthpop/rock band A-ha.
A-ha has released 10 studio albums to date, and topped the charts internationally after their breakthrough ...
(born 1959), singer, songwriter and leader of
A-ha
A-ha (usually stylised as ''a-''h''a''; ) is a Norwegian synth-pop band formed in Oslo in 1982. Founded by Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (guitars and vocals), Magne Furuholmen (keyboards, guitars and vocals), and Morten Harket (lead vocals), the band ...
; Knight of the Order of St Olav
*
Jo Nesbø
Jo Nesbø (; born Jon Nesbø; 29 March 1960) is a Norwegian writer, musician, economist, and former football player and reporter. More than 3 million copies of his novels had been sold in Norway as of March 2014; his work has been translated ...
(born 1960) a writer, musician, economist, and former soccer player
*
Paul Waaktaar-Savoy
Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (born Pål Gamst, 6 September 1961) is a Norwegian musician and songwriter. Waaktaar-Savoy is best known for his work as the main songwriter and guitarist in the Norwegian pop band A-ha, which has sold more than 50 million alb ...
(born 1961), guitarist, songwriter of
A-ha
A-ha (usually stylised as ''a-''h''a''; ) is a Norwegian synth-pop band formed in Oslo in 1982. Founded by Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (guitars and vocals), Magne Furuholmen (keyboards, guitars and vocals), and Morten Harket (lead vocals), the band ...
and
Savoy
Savoy (; frp, Savouè ; french: Savoie ) is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps.
Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south.
Savo ...
; Knight of the Order of St Olav
*
Magne Furuholmen
Magne Furuholmen (born 1 November 1962) is a Norwegian musician and visual artist. He was named Knight First Class of the Order of St. Olav by King Harald for his services to Norwegian music and his international success. Furuholmen, better kno ...
(born 1962), keyboardist, songwriter of
A-ha
A-ha (usually stylised as ''a-''h''a''; ) is a Norwegian synth-pop band formed in Oslo in 1982. Founded by Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (guitars and vocals), Magne Furuholmen (keyboards, guitars and vocals), and Morten Harket (lead vocals), the band ...
Erik Poppe
Erik Poppe (born 24 June 1960) is a Norwegian film director, producer and screenwriter.
Poppe is regarded as one of Scandinavia's most experienced and compelling film directors recognized for his work with actors and multi-pronged narrativ ...
(born 1966), film director, producer and screenwright.
*
Øystein Aarseth
Øystein Aarseth (; 22 March 1968 – 10 August 1993), better known by his stage name Euronymous, was a Norwegian musician and a founder of and central figure in the early Norwegian black metal scene. He was a co-founder and guitarist of the N ...
(1968–1993) stage name ''
Euronymous
Øystein Aarseth (; 22 March 1968 – 10 August 1993), better known by his stage name Euronymous, was a Norwegian musician and a founder of and central figure in the early Norwegian black metal scene. He was a co-founder and guitarist of the N ...
'', Black Metal musician
*
Tine Thing Helseth
Tine Thing Helseth ( ; ; born 18 August 1987) is a Norwegian trumpet soloist specializing in classical repertoire.
Career
Helseth was born in Oslo. She started to play trumpet at the age of 7 in a school band and studied at the Barratt Due I ...
(born 1987) a solo classical trumpeter
*
Mathilde Grooss Viddal
Mathilde Grooss Viddal (born 6 May 1969) is a Norwegian musician (saxophone
The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all sing ...
(born 1969), composer and jazz musician
*
Nico & Vinz
Nico & Vinz are a Norwegian duo consisting of Kahouly Nicolay "Nico" Sereba from Holmlia, Oslo and Vincent "Vinzy V" Dery from Lambertseter, Oslo. They formed in 2010 as Envy but changed their name to Nico & Vinz by the end of 2012. They are comm ...
(formed 2010) singers of a fusion of genres from pop to reggae to soul
Sport
*
Sonja Henie
Sonja Henie (8 April 1912 – 12 October 1969) was a Norway, Norwegian figure skating, figure skater and film star. She was a three-time List of Olympic medalists in figure skating, Olympic champion (Figure skating at the 1928 Winter Olympics, ...
(1912–1969) three-time Olympic champion figure skater and actress
*
Knut Johannesen
Knut ("Kupper'n") Johannesen (born 6 November 1933) is a former speed skater from Norway.
Biography
Born in Oslo and representing the skating club ASK (''Arbeidernes Skøyteklubb'' – later called ''Aktiv Skøyteklubb'') Johannesen won the Wo ...
(born 1933) twice Olympic Champion speed skater
*
Grete Waitz
Grete Waitz (, 1 October 195319 April 2011) was a Norwegian marathon runner and former world record holder. In 1979, at the New York City Marathon, she became the first woman in history to run the marathon in under two and a half hours. Waitz wo ...
(1953–2011) marathon runner, silver medallist at the 1984 Olympic Games
*
Jørn Goldstein
Jørn Irving Goldstein (born March 27, 1953) is a Norwegian Olympic ice hockey player.
Biography
Goldstein was born in Oslo, Norway, and is Jewish. His mother's family, surname Schapow, immigrated to Norway from Lithuania in the early 1900s. H ...
(born 1953) Olympic ice hockey goalie
*
Espen Bredesen
Espen Bredesen (born 2 February 1968) is a Norwegian former ski jumper.
Career
At World Cup level he won gold and silver medals at the 1994 Winter Olympics at Lillehammer.
At the 1992 Winter Olympics, he performed badly, coming last in the nor ...
(born 1968) ski jumper, gold and silver medals at the
1994 Winter Olympics
The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games ( no, De 17. olympiske vinterleker; nn, Dei 17. olympiske vinterleikane) and commonly known as Lillehammer '94, was an international winter multi-sport event held fro ...
*
Kjetil André Aamodt
Kjetil André Aamodt (born 2 September 1971) is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from Norway, a champion in the Olympics, World Championships, and World Cup. He is one of the most successful alpine ski racers from Norway.
Biography
Born in ...
(born 1971) alpine skier with eight Olympic medals
*
Espen Knutsen
Espen Knutsen (born January 12, 1972) is a Norwegian former professional ice hockey player and currently the general manager of Vålerenga in the Norwegian GET-ligaen. He played five seasons in the North American-based National Hockey League (NHL), ...
(born 1972), former professional ice hockey player
* Suzann Pettersen (born 1981) a retired professional golfer, played on the
LPGA Tour
The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at the LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekl ...
*
Mats Zuccarello
Mats André Zuccarello Aasen (born 1 September 1987) is a Norwegian professional ice hockey winger for the Minnesota Wild of the National Hockey League (NHL). He has also played for the New York Rangers and Dallas Stars. Prior to joining the NHL ...
(born 1987) professional ice hockey player in the
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
* Joshua King (born 1992) footballer, 172 caps for
AFC Bournemouth
AFC Bournemouth () is a professional association football club based in Kings Park, Boscombe, a suburb of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest division of English club football. Formed in 1899 as B ...
and 51 for
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 ...
International relations
Oslo is a pilot city of the
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold European Convention on Human Rights, human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. ...
and the
European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...
's ''Intercultural cities'' programme, along with a number of other European cities.
Twin towns – sister cities
Oslo was formerly twinned with
Madison Madison may refer to:
People
* Madison (name), a given name and a surname
* James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States
Place names
* Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...
,
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
and
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
, but has since abolished the concept of twin cities.
Cooperation agreements
As of 2012, Oslo had cooperation agreements with:
*
Artvin
Artvin (Laz language, Laz and ; hy, Արտուին, translit=Artuin) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in northeastern Turkey about inland from the Black Sea.
It is located on a hill overlooking the Çoruh, Çoruh River near the Deriner Dam ...
, Turkey
*
Gothenburg
Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...
, Sweden
*
Mbombela
Mbombela (also known as Nelspruit) is a city in northeastern South Africa. It is the capital of the Mpumalanga province. Located on the Crocodile River, Mbombela lies about by road west of the Mozambique border, east of Johannesburg and north ...
, South Africa
*
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
, Russia
*
Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sch ...
, Germany
*
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
, China
*
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
, Lithuania
*
Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
, Poland
Christmas trees as gifts
Oslo has a tradition of sending a
Christmas tree
A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, or an artificial tree of similar appearance, associated with the celebration of Christmas. The custom was further developed in early modern ...
every year to the cities of
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, ...
;
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
;
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
;
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
;
Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...
;
Antwerp
Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
and
Reykjavík
Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...
. Since 1947, Oslo has sent a , 50 to 100-year-old
spruce
A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the subfami ...
, as an expression of gratitude toward Britain for its support of Norway during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
See also
*
Oslo Accords
The Oslo Accords are a pair of agreements between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO): the Oslo I Accord, signed in Washington, D.C., in 1993;
Timeline of transport in Oslo
Timeline of transport in Oslo covers key incidents within transport in Oslo, the capital of Norway.
The first railway opened in 1854, in 1875 the first horsecar tramway and in 1966 the rapid transit.
See also
* Timeline of Oslo
Notes
Refere ...
References
Further reading
*Christie, Haakon. "Old Oslo." ''Medieval Archaeology'' 10#1 (1966): 45–58.
*Ebert, Bettina. "A skewed balance? Examining the display and research history of the medieval collection at the Museum of Cultural History, University of Oslo." ''Journal of the History of Collections'' 30.1 (2018): 139–151.
*Kolbe, Laura. "Symbols of civic pride, national history or European tradition? City halls in Scandinavian capital cities." ''Urban History'' 35.3 (2008): 382–413, covers Copenhagen, Stockholm, and Oslo.
*Liden, Hans-Emil. "Urban Archaeology in Norway." in ''European towns: their archaeology and early history'' (1977): 83+.
*Luccarelli, Mark, ed. ''Green Oslo: Visions, Planning and Discourse'' (Ashgate 2012 online *Stagg, Frank Noel. ''East Norway and its frontier; a history of Oslo and its uplands'' (1956 online *Streeton, Noëlle L. W. "Perspectives (Old and New) on Late Medieval Church Art in Norway: Questioning the Hegemony of Lübeck Workshops." ''Scandinavian Studies'' 90.1 (2018): 50–77 online