Bergen (, ) is a city and
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
in
Vestland
Vestland is a Counties of Norway, county in Norway. The county is located in Western Norway, and its administrative centre is Bergen, where the executive and political leadership is based. The County governor (Norway), County Governor is based in ...
county on the
west coast of
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
. Bergen is the
second-largest city in Norway after the capital
Oslo
Oslo ( or ; ) 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 1,064,235 in 2022 ...
.
By May 2025 the population is 294 029 according to Statistics Norway.
The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of
Bergenshalvøyen
The Bergen Peninsula (, ; ) is a peninsula in Vestland county, Norway. The city of Bergen, Norway's second largest city, is located on the peninsula. The peninsula extends out from the mainland and it is surrounded by the following fjords: Sa ...
. The city centre and northern neighbourhoods are on
Byfjorden, 'the city fjord'. The city is surrounded by mountains, causing Bergen to be called the "city of
seven mountains". Many of the extra-municipal suburbs are on islands. Bergen is the administrative centre of Vestland county. The city consists of eight boroughs:
Arna,
Bergenhus
Bergenhus is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of ...
,
Fana,
Fyllingsdalen
Fyllingsdalen () is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough is located southwest of the city centre in the Fyllingsdalen valley, west of the mountain Løvstakken. The neighbourhoods of Fyllingsdalen mainly consis ...
,
Laksevåg
Laksevåg is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough is located in the western part of the municipality. Historically, the area was called ''Laxevaag'', and it was a separate municipality until 1972 when it was ...
,
Ytrebygda
Ytrebygda is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough is the site of Bergen Flesland Airport.
Location
Ytrebygda is located southwest of the city center, south of the Grimstadfjorden and the lake Nordåsvannet. ...
,
Ã…rstad, and
Ã…sane
Ã…sane is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough makes up the northern part of the city, north of the city centre.
Ã…sane is connected to downtown Bergen by the E16/ E39 highway. The E16 highway continues on ...
.
Trading in Bergen may have started as early as the 1020s. According to tradition, the city was founded in 1070 by King
Olav Kyrre
Olaf III or Olaf Haraldsson (Old Norse: ''Óláfr Haraldsson'', Norwegian: ''Olav Haraldsson''; – 22 September 1093), known as Olaf the Peaceful (Old Norse: ''Óláfr kyrri'', Norwegian: ''Olav Kyrre''), was King of Norway from 1067 until hi ...
and was named Bjørgvin, 'the green meadow among the mountains'. It served as Norway's capital in the 13th century, and from the end of the 13th century became a
bureau city of the
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...
. Until 1789, Bergen enjoyed exclusive rights to mediate trade between
Northern Norway
Northern Norway (, , ; ) is a geographical region of Norway, consisting of the three northernmost counties Nordland, Troms and Finnmark, in total about 35% of the Norwegian mainland. Some of the largest towns in Northern Norway (from south to no ...
and abroad, and it was the largest city in Norway until the 1830s when it was overtaken by the capital, Christiania (now known as
Oslo
Oslo ( or ; ) 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 1,064,235 in 2022 ...
). What remains of the quays,
Bryggen
Bryggen (''the dock''), also known as Tyskebryggen (, ''the German dock''), is a series of Hanseatic heritage commercial buildings lining up the eastern side of the VÃ¥gen harbour in the city of Bergen, Norway. Bryggen has been on the UNESCO lis ...
, is a World Heritage Site. The city was hit by numerous fires over the years. The
Bergen School of Meteorology was developed at the
Geophysical Institute starting in 1917, the
Norwegian School of Economics
The Norwegian School of Economics () or NHH is a business school situated in Bergen, Norway. It was founded in 1936 as Norway's first business school and is the leading teaching and research institution in Norway for the fields of management and ...
was founded in 1936, and the
University of Bergen
The University of Bergen () is a public university, public research university in Bergen, Norway. As of 2021, the university had over 4,000 employees and 19,000 students. It was established by an act of parliament in 1946 consolidating several sci ...
in 1946. From 1831 to 1972, Bergen was its own
county
A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...
. In 1972 the municipality absorbed four surrounding municipalities and became a part of Hordaland county.
The city is an international centre for aquaculture, shipping, the offshore petroleum industry and subsea technology, and a national centre for higher education, media, tourism and finance.
Bergen Port is Norway's busiest in terms of both freight and passengers, with over 300 cruise ship calls a year bringing nearly half a million passengers to Bergen, a number that has doubled in 10 years.
Almost half of the passengers are German or British.
The city's main football team is
SK Brann
Sportsklubben Brann is a Norwegian professional football club based in Bergen. Founded on 26 September 1908, Brann has played in the first tier of Norwegian football for 67 out of 80 seasons, the second most of any club. They play their hom ...
and a unique tradition of the city is the
buekorps
Buekorps (; literally "Bow Corps" or "Archery Brigade") are traditional marching neighbourhood youth organizations in Bergen (city), Bergen, Norway.
The tradition is unique to Bergen (city), Bergen. The organizations, which are called ''bataljon ...
, which are traditional marching neighbourhood youth organisations. Natives speak a distinct dialect, known as
Bergensk
Bergensk or Bergen dialect is a dialect of Norwegian used in Bergen, Norway. It is easy for Norwegians to recognise, as it is more distinguishable from other dialects in Vestland than, for example, the Stavanger dialect (''Stavangersk'') from th ...
. The city features
Bergen Airport, Flesland
Bergen Airport (; ), alternatively Bergen Flesland Airport or simply Flesland Airport, is an international airport located at Flesland in the city and municipality of Bergen, Vestland, Norway. Opened in 1955, it is the second-busiest airport i ...
and
Bergen Light Rail
Bergen Light Rail () is a light rail system in Bergen, Norway. The first stage of the project was a twenty-station stretch between the city center and Lagunen Storsenter, Nesttun, where the first 15 stations comprising a stretch opened in 2010, ...
, and is the terminus of the
Bergen Line
The Bergen Line, or the Bergen Railway ( or ), is a long scenic overlook, scenic standard gauge railway line between Bergen and Hønefoss, Norway. The name is often applied to the entire route from Bergen to Oslo, including the Randsfjord Line ...
. Four large bridges connect Bergen to its suburban municipalities.
Bergen has a mild winter climate, though with significant precipitation. From December to March, Bergen can, in rare cases, be up to warmer than Oslo, even though both cities are at about 60° North. In summer however, Bergen is several degrees cooler than Oslo due to the same maritime effects. The Gulf Stream keeps the sea relatively warm, considering the latitude, and the mountains protect the city from cold winds from the north, north-east and east.
History

The city of Bergen was traditionally thought to have been founded by king
Olav Kyrre
Olaf III or Olaf Haraldsson (Old Norse: ''Óláfr Haraldsson'', Norwegian: ''Olav Haraldsson''; – 22 September 1093), known as Olaf the Peaceful (Old Norse: ''Óláfr kyrri'', Norwegian: ''Olav Kyrre''), was King of Norway from 1067 until hi ...
, son of
Harald Hardråde
Harald Sigurdsson (; – 25 September 1066), also known as Harald III of Norway and given the epithet ''Hardrada'' in the sagas, was List of Norwegian monarchs, King of Norway from 1046 to 1066. He unsuccessfully claimed the Monarchy of Denma ...
in 1070AD,
four years after the Viking Age in England ended with the
Battle of Stamford Bridge
The Battle of Stamford Bridge () took place at the village of Stamford Bridge, East Riding of Yorkshire, in England, on 25 September 1066, between an English army under Harold Godwinson, King Harold Godwinson and an invading Norwegian force l ...
. Modern research has, however, discovered that a trading settlement had already been established in the 1020s or 1030s.
Bergen gradually assumed the function of capital of Norway in the early 13th century, as the first city where a rudimentary central administration was established. The city's cathedral was the site of the first royal coronation in Norway in the 1150s, and continued to host royal coronations throughout the 13th century.
Bergenhus fortress
Bergenhus fortress () is a fortress located in Bergen, Norway. Located at the entrance of Bergen harbour, the castle is one of the oldest and best preserved stone fortifications in Norway.
History
The fortress contains buildings dating as earl ...
dates from the 1240s and guards the entrance to the harbour in Bergen. The functions of the capital city were lost to
Oslo
Oslo ( or ; ) 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 1,064,235 in 2022 ...
during the reign of King
Haakon V
Haakon V Magnusson (10 April 1270 – 8 May 1319) (; ) was King of Norway from 1299 until 1319.
Biography
Haakon was the younger surviving son of Magnus the Lawmender, King of Norway, and his wife Ingeborg of Denmark. Through his mother ...
(1299–1319).
During the 14th century, North German merchants, who had already been present in substantial numbers since the 13th century, founded one of the four ' of the
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...
at
Bryggen
Bryggen (''the dock''), also known as Tyskebryggen (, ''the German dock''), is a series of Hanseatic heritage commercial buildings lining up the eastern side of the VÃ¥gen harbour in the city of Bergen, Norway. Bryggen has been on the UNESCO lis ...
in Bergen. The principal export traded from Bergen was dried cod from the northern Norwegian coast,
which started . The city was granted a monopoly for trade from the north of Norway by King
HÃ¥kon HÃ¥konsson
Haakon IV Haakonsson ( – 16 December 1263; ; ), sometimes called Haakon the Old in contrast to his namesake son, was King of Norway from 1217 to 1263. His reign lasted for 46 years, longer than any Norwegian king since Harald Fairhair. Haako ...
(1217–1263).
Stockfish
Stockfish is unsalted fish, especially cod, dried by cold air and wind on wooden racks (which are called "hjell" in Norway) on the foreshore. The drying of food is the world's oldest known preservation method, and dried fish has a storage li ...
was the main reason that the city became one of North Europe's largest centres for trade.
By the late 14th century, Bergen had established itself as the centre of the trade in Norway. The
Hanseatic
The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...
merchants lived in their own separate quarter of the town, where
Middle Low German
Middle Low German is a developmental stage of Low German. It developed from the Old Saxon language in the Middle Ages and has been documented in writing since about 1225–34 (). During the Hanseatic period (from about 1300 to about 1600), Mid ...
was used, enjoying
exclusive right
An exclusive right, or exclusivity, is a ''de facto'', non-tangible prerogative existing in law (that is, the power or, in a wider sense, right) to perform an action or acquire a benefit and to permit or deny others the right to perform the same ...
s to trade with the northern fishermen who each summer sailed to Bergen.
The Hansa community resented Scottish merchants who settled in Bergen, and on 9 November 1523 several Scottish households were targeted by German residents. Today, Bergen's old quayside,
Bryggen
Bryggen (''the dock''), also known as Tyskebryggen (, ''the German dock''), is a series of Hanseatic heritage commercial buildings lining up the eastern side of the VÃ¥gen harbour in the city of Bergen, Norway. Bryggen has been on the UNESCO lis ...
, is on
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
's list of
World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
s.

In 1349, the
Black Death
The Black Death was a bubonic plague pandemic that occurred in Europe from 1346 to 1353. It was one of the list of epidemics, most fatal pandemics in human history; as many as people perished, perhaps 50% of Europe's 14th century population. ...
was brought to Norway by an English ship arriving in Bergen.
Later outbreaks occurred in 1618, 1629 and 1637, on each occasion taking about 3,000 lives. In the 15th century, the city was attacked several times by the
Victual Brothers
The Victual Brothers () were a loosely organized guild of privateers who later turned to piracy. They affected maritime history, maritime trade during the 14th century in both the North Sea, North and Baltic Sea, Baltic Seas.
They were initially ...
,
and in 1429 they succeeded in burning the royal castle and much of the city. In 1665, the city's harbour was the site of the
Battle of VÃ¥gen
The Battle of VÃ¥gen was a naval battle between a Dutch merchant and treasure fleet and an English flotilla of warships in 2 August 1665 as part of the Second Anglo-Dutch War. The battle took place in VÃ¥gen (meaning "the bay, voe" in Norwe ...
, when an English naval flotilla attacked a Dutch merchant and treasure fleet supported by the city's garrison. Accidental fires sometimes got out of control, and one in 1702 reduced most of the town to ashes.
Throughout the 15th and 16th centuries, Bergen remained one of the largest cities in
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...
, and it was Norway's biggest city until the 1830s,
being overtaken by the capital city of
Oslo
Oslo ( or ; ) 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 1,064,235 in 2022 ...
. From around 1600, the Hanseatic dominance of the city's trade gradually declined in favour of Norwegian merchants (often of Hanseatic ancestry), and in the 1750s, the ', or major trading post of the Hanseatic League, finally closed. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Bergen was involved in the
Atlantic slave trade
The Atlantic slave trade or transatlantic slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of Slavery in Africa, enslaved African people to the Americas. European slave ships regularly used the triangular trade route and its Middle Pass ...
. Bergen-based slave trader
Jørgen Thormøhlen, the largest shipowner in Norway, was the main owner of the
slave ship
Slave ships were large cargo ships specially built or converted from the 17th to the 19th century for transporting Slavery, slaves. Such ships were also known as "Guineamen" because the trade involved human trafficking to and from the Guinea ( ...
''Cornelia'', which made two slave-trading voyages in 1673 and 1674 respectively; he also developed the city's industrial sector, particularly in the neighbourhood of
Møhlenpris
Møhlenpris (formerly Vestre Sydnes) is a neighbourhood in the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. It is next to the Puddefjorden in the borough of Bergenhus
Bergenhus is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway
...
, which is named after him.
Bergen retained its monopoly of trade with northern Norway until 1789.
The Bergen stock exchange, the ', was established in 1813.
Modern history
Bergen was separated from Hordaland as a county of its own in 1831.
It was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see ). The
rural municipality
A rural municipality is a classification of municipality, a type of local government, found in several countries.
These include:
* Rural municipality (Canada), Rural municipalities in Canada, a Lists of municipalities in Canada, type of municipa ...
of was merged with Bergen on 1 January 1877. The rural municipality of
Ã…rstad was merged with Bergen on 1 July 1915.
During World War II, Bergen was occupied on the first day of the German invasion on 9 April 1940, after a brief fight between German ships and the Norwegian
coastal artillery
Coastal artillery is the branch of the armed forces concerned with operating anti-ship artillery or fixed gun batteries in coastal fortifications.
From the Middle Ages until World War II, coastal artillery and naval artillery in the form of ...
. The
Norwegian resistance movement
The Norwegian resistance (Norwegian language, Norwegian: ''Motstandsbevegelsen'') to the German occupation of Norway, occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany began after Operation Weserübung in 1940 and ended in 1945. It took several forms:
*As ...
groups in Bergen were
Saborg,
Milorg
Milorg (abbreviation of militær organisasjon – military organization) was the main Norwegian resistance movement during World War II. Resistance work included intelligence gathering, sabotage, supply-missions, raids, espionage, transport of ...
, ''""'',
Sivorg, ' and the Communist Party.
On 20 April 1944, during the German occupation, the Dutch cargo ship ' anchored off the
Bergenhus Fortress
Bergenhus fortress () is a fortress located in Bergen, Norway. Located at the entrance of Bergen harbour, the castle is one of the oldest and best preserved stone fortifications in Norway.
History
The fortress contains buildings dating as earl ...
, loaded with over 120 tons of explosives, and blew up, killing at least 150 people and damaging historic buildings. The city was subject to some Allied
bombing raids
A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechanica ...
, aimed at German naval installations in the harbour. Some of these caused Norwegian civilian casualties numbering about 100.
Bergen is also well known in Norway for the
Isdal Woman
The Isdal Woman (, 1930–1945 – November 1970) is a placeholder name given to an unidentified woman who was found dead at Isdalen ("The Ice Valley") in Bergen, Norway, on 29 November 1970.
Although police at the time ruled a verdict of lik ...
(), an unidentified person who was found dead at Isdalen ("Ice Valley") on 29 November 1970. The unsolved case encouraged international speculation over the years and it remains one of the most profound mysteries in recent Norwegian history.
The rural municipalities of
Arna,
Fana,
Laksevåg
Laksevåg is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough is located in the western part of the municipality. Historically, the area was called ''Laxevaag'', and it was a separate municipality until 1972 when it was ...
, and
Ã…sane
Ã…sane is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough makes up the northern part of the city, north of the city centre.
Ã…sane is connected to downtown Bergen by the E16/ E39 highway. The E16 highway continues on ...
were merged with Bergen on 1 January 1972. The city lost its status as a separate county on the same date,
and Bergen is now a
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
, in the county of
Vestland
Vestland is a Counties of Norway, county in Norway. The county is located in Western Norway, and its administrative centre is Bergen, where the executive and political leadership is based. The County governor (Norway), County Governor is based in ...
.
Fires
The city's history is marked by numerous great fires. In 1198, the faction set fire to the city in connection with a battle against the faction during the civil war. In 1248, and burned, and 11 churches were destroyed. In 1413 another fire struck the city, and 14 churches were destroyed. In 1428 the city was plundered by the
Victual Brothers
The Victual Brothers () were a loosely organized guild of privateers who later turned to piracy. They affected maritime history, maritime trade during the 14th century in both the North Sea, North and Baltic Sea, Baltic Seas.
They were initially ...
, and in 1455,
Hanseatic
The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...
merchants were responsible for burning down
Munkeliv Abbey
Munkeliv Abbey () was a Rule of St. Benedict, Benedictine abbey located at Nordnes in Bergen, Norway, Bergen, Norway. It was one of the oldest monasteries in Norway, and also one of the wealthiest and best-documented. There are no visible remains ...
. In 1476, burned down in a fire started by a drunk trader. In 1582, another fire hit the city centre and . In 1675, 105 buildings burned down in . In 1686 another great fire hit , destroying 231 city blocks and 218 boathouses. The greatest fire in history was in 1702, when 90% of the city was burned to ashes. In 1751, there was a great fire at . In 1756, yet another fire at burned down 1,500 buildings, and further great fires hit in 1771 and 1901. In 1916, 300 buildings
burned down in the city centre including the
Swan pharmacy, the oldest pharmacy in Norway, and in 1955 parts of burned down.
Toponymy
Bergen is pronounced in English or and in
Norwegian (in
the local dialect ). The
Old Norse
Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was 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 ...
forms of the name were and (and in
Icelandic and
Faroese the city is still called ). The first element is (n.) or (n.), which translates as 'mountain(s)'. The last element is (f.), which means a new settlement where there used to be a pasture or meadow. Bergen is often called "the city among the seven mountains". The playwright
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 Denmark–Norway, Dano–Norwegian dual monarchy. He was infl ...
, inspired by the
seven hills of Rome
The seven hills of Rome (, ) east of the river Tiber form the geographical heart of Rome, within the walls of the city.
Hills
The seven hills are:
* Aventine Hill (Latin: ''Collis Aventinus''; Italian: ''Aventino'')
* Caelian Hill (''Coll ...
, decided that his home town must be blessed with a corresponding seven mountains, though locals debate which seven they are.
In 1918, there was a campaign to reintroduce the Norse form ' as the name of the city. This was turned down – but as a compromise, the name of the
diocese
In Ecclesiastical polity, 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 Roman province, prov ...
was changed to '.
Geography

Bergen occupies most of the peninsula of
Bergenshalvøyen
The Bergen Peninsula (, ; ) is a peninsula in Vestland county, Norway. The city of Bergen, Norway's second largest city, is located on the peninsula. The peninsula extends out from the mainland and it is surrounded by the following fjords: Sa ...
in the
district
A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...
of
Midthordland
Midhordland or Midthordland is a traditional district in the Vestlandet region of Norway. It consists of the central-west portion of the old Hordaland county (now part of Vestland county), mostly including the islands and coastal fjord areas sur ...
in mid-western Hordaland. The municipality covers an area of . Most of the urban area is on or close to a fjord or bay, although the urban area has several mountains. The city centre is surrounded by the
Seven Mountains, although there is disagreement as to which of the nine mountains constitute these.
Ulriken
Ulriken (or the older, ''Ã…lreken'') is the highest of the Seven Mountains () that surround the city of Bergen, Norway. It has a height of above sea level. Ulriken has an aerial tramway, Ulriksbanen, that can bring people to the top. At the t ...
,
Fløyen
Fløyen or Fløyfjellet is one of the "Seven Mountains (Bergen), seven city mountains" in Bergen, Hordaland, Norway. Its highest point is above sea level. The name could originate from ''fløystangen'' or a weather vane that was set up to indica ...
,
Løvstakken
Løvstakken is one of the Seven Mountains that surround the center of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The tall mountain is located between the Fyllingsdalen and Bergensdalen valleys on the Bergen Peninsula. Løvstakken and the ...
and
Damsgårdsfjellet are always included as well as three of
Lyderhorn,
Sandviksfjellet,
Blåmanen,
Rundemanen and
Kolbeinsvarden.
Gullfjellet is Bergen's highest mountain, at
above mean sea level
Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...
.
Bergen is far enough north that during clear nights at the solstice, there is borderline civil daylight in spite of the sun having set.
Bergen is sheltered from the North Sea by the islands
Askøy
Askøy is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The island municipality is located in the Midhordland district of the county, sitting in a large group of islands immediately northwest of the city of Bergen, which i ...
,
Holsnøy
Holsnøy is an island in Alver Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The island lies to the north/west of the mainland, between the islands of Radøy to the north and Askøy to the south. The highest point on the island is the tall Eldsf ...
(the municipality of
Meland
Meland is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in the Nordhordland district in the old Hordaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1923 until its dissolution on 1 January 2020 when it was merged into the ne ...
) and
Sotra
Sotra or Store Sotra is the name of a large island in Øygarden Municipality in Vestland county, Norway, located just west of the city of Bergen. It is part of a pair of islands called ' Sotra' and ' Litlesotra' ('small Sotra') that are part of ...
(the municipalities of
Fjell
Fjell is a former municipality in the old Hordaland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Midhordland. The municipality consisted of several islands west of the city of Bergen, the major ones being Litlesotra, the northern ...
and
Sund Sund may refer to:
Places
In northern Europe, there are more than a hundred straits named ''Sund'', see: Sound (geography).
*Sund, Ã…land, a municipality in Finland
* Sund, Norway, a former municipality in Vestland county, Norway
* Sund, Flakstad, ...
). Bergen borders the municipalities
Alver and
Osterøy
Osterøy is an List of islands of Norway, island Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is located in the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Nordhordland. The municipality encompasses ...
to the north,
Vaksdal
is a municipality in the county of Vestland, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Nordhordland. The administrative centre is the village of Dalekvam. Other villages in Vaksdal include Dalegarden, Flatkvål, Helle, Nesheim ...
and
Samnanger
Samnanger () is a municipality in the Midhordland region of Vestland county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Tysse, Hordaland, Tysse. Other main villages in the municipality include Haga, Hordaland, Haga an ...
to the east,
Os (
Bjørnafjorden
Bjørnafjorden is a fjord in Vestland county, Norway. It runs through the municipalities of Austevoll, Bjørnafjorden, and Tysnes. The large island of Tysnesøya (and many small, surrounding islands such as Reksteren) lie along the south side ...
) and
Austevoll
Austevoll is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality and an archipelago in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Midthordland in Western Norway. The administrative centre ...
to the south, and
Øygarden
Øygarden is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is an island municipality located in the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Midhordland, stretching along the west coast of the coun ...
and
Askøy
Askøy is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The island municipality is located in the Midhordland district of the county, sitting in a large group of islands immediately northwest of the city of Bergen, which i ...
to the west.
Climate
Bergen has an
oceanic climate
An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
: ''Cfb'',
Trewartha: ''Dolk''), with mild summers and cool winters. Rainfall is plentiful in all seasons, along with intermittent snowfall during winter, which often melts quickly. The exceptionally plentiful precipitation that defines the city is caused by
orographic lift
Orographic lift occurs when an air mass is forced from a low elevation to a higher elevation as it moves over rising terrain. As the air mass gains altitude it quickly cools down adiabatically, which can raise the relative humidity to 100% and cr ...
, sometimes causing more than two months of consecutive rainy days.
The city is therefore considered the rainiest city in Europe, although it is not the wettest "place" on the continent.
Bergen's weather is much warmer than the city's latitude (60.4° N) might suggest. Temperatures below −10 °C (14 °F) are rare. Summer temperatures sometimes reach the upper 20s, although temperatures over 30°C were previously only seen a few days each decade. The growing season in Bergen is exceptionally long for its latitude, more than 200 days. Its mild winters and proximity to the Gulf Stream provide the city with a
plant hardiness zone
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 widely ...
of 8b and 9a depending on location; this zone is much more common below 50°N even in Europe, with cities as far south as
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...
,
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki (; ), also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, Salonika, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece (with slightly over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area) and the capital cit ...
and
Istanbul
Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
falling into this category. The average date for the last overnight freeze (low below ) in spring is April 4 and average date for first freeze in autumn is November 7 giving a frost-free season of 216 days.
Extreme temperatures are also quite rare in the city. The highest temperature ever recorded was on 26 July 2019, beating the previous record from 2018 at degrees, and the lowest was in January 1987.
The city is quite cloudy year round, although old sunshine hours data might have caused an underestimate of sunshine hours, due to the city's mountainside location.
A new sun recorder was established at
Bergen Airport, Flesland
Bergen Airport (; ), alternatively Bergen Flesland Airport or simply Flesland Airport, is an international airport located at Flesland in the city and municipality of Bergen, Vestland, Norway. Opened in 1955, it is the second-busiest airport i ...
(a location with less terrain obscuring the sun) in December 2015, and this recorded an average of 1,596 hours of sun annually during 2016–2022.
Cityscape
The city centre of Bergen lies in the west of the municipality, facing the fjord of
Byfjorden. It is among a group of mountains known as the
Seven Mountains, although the number is a matter of definition. From here, the urban area of Bergen extends to the north, west and south, and to its east is a large mountain massif. Outside the city centre and the surrounding neighbourhoods (i.e.
Ã…rstad, inner
Laksevåg
Laksevåg is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough is located in the western part of the municipality. Historically, the area was called ''Laxevaag'', and it was a separate municipality until 1972 when it was ...
and
Sandviken
Sandviken is a locality and the seat of Sandviken Municipality in Gävleborg County, Sweden with 26,438 inhabitants in 2023. It is situated about 25 km west of Gävle and lies approximately 190 km north of Stockholm. The rail journey t ...
), the majority of the population lives in relatively sparsely populated residential areas built after 1950. While some are dominated by
apartment building
An apartment (American English, Canadian English), flat (British English, Indian English, South African English), tenement ( Scots English), or unit (Australian English) is a self-contained housing unit (a type of residential real estate) ...
s and modern
terraced house
A terrace, terraced house ( UK), or townhouse ( US) is a type of medium-density housing which first started in 16th century Europe with a row of joined houses sharing side walls. In the United States and Canada these are sometimes known as row ...
s (e.g.
Fyllingsdalen
Fyllingsdalen () is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough is located southwest of the city centre in the Fyllingsdalen valley, west of the mountain Løvstakken. The neighbourhoods of Fyllingsdalen mainly consis ...
), others are dominated by
single-family home
A single-family detached home, also called a single-detached dwelling, single-family residence (SFR) or separate house is a free-standing residential building. It is defined in opposition to a multi-family residential dwelling.
Definitions
...
s.
The oldest part of Bergen is the area around the bay of VÃ¥gen in the city centre. Originally centred on the bay's eastern side, Bergen eventually expanded west and southwards. Few buildings from the oldest period remain, the most significant being
St Mary's Church from the 12th century. For several hundred years, the extent of the city remained almost constant. The population was stagnant, and the city limits were narrow.
In 1702, seven-eighths of the city burned. Most of the old buildings of Bergen, including Bryggen (which was rebuilt in a mediaeval style), were built after the fire. The fire marked a transition from
tar
Tar is a dark brown or black viscous liquid of hydrocarbons and free carbon, obtained from a wide variety of organic materials through destructive distillation. Tar can be produced from coal, wood, petroleum, or peat. "a dark brown or black b ...
covered houses, as well as the remaining
log house
A log house, or log building, is a structure built with horizontal logs interlocked at the corners by notching. Logs may be round, squared or hewn to other shapes, either handcrafted or milled. The term "log cabin" generally refers to a smal ...
s, to painted and some brick-covered wooden buildings.

The last half of the 19th century saw a period of rapid expansion and modernisation. The fire of 1855 west of
Torgallmenningen led to the development of regularly sized city blocks in this area of the city centre. The city limits were expanded in 1876, and
Nygård,
Møhlenpris
Møhlenpris (formerly Vestre Sydnes) is a neighbourhood in the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. It is next to the Puddefjorden in the borough of Bergenhus
Bergenhus is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway
...
and
Sandviken
Sandviken is a locality and the seat of Sandviken Municipality in Gävleborg County, Sweden with 26,438 inhabitants in 2023. It is situated about 25 km west of Gävle and lies approximately 190 km north of Stockholm. The rail journey t ...
were urbanized with large-scale construction of city blocks housing both the poor and the wealthy.
Their architecture is influenced by a variety of styles;
historicism
Historicism is an approach to explaining the existence of phenomena, especially social and cultural practices (including ideas and beliefs), by studying the process or history by which they came about. The term is widely used in philosophy, ant ...
,
classicism
Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for a classical period, classical antiquity in the Western tradition, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. In its purest form, classicism is an aesthe ...
and
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...
.
The wealthy built villas between Møhlenpris and Nygård, and on the side of Mount Fløyen; these areas were also added to Bergen in 1876. Simultaneously, an urbanization process was taking place in
Solheimsviken
Solheimsviken is a bay and a neighbourhood in the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The bay is situated at the end of the Damsgårdssundet strait, near the large Store Lungegårdsvann bay. Located near the city centre of Bergen, Solheim ...
in Ã…rstad, at that time outside the Bergen municipality, centred on the large industrial activity in the area.
The workers' homes in this area were poorly built, and little remains after large-scale redevelopment in the 1960s–1980s.
After Årstad became a part of Bergen in 1916, a development plan was applied to the new area. Few city blocks akin to those in Nygård and Møhlenpris were planned. Many of the worker class built their own homes, and many small, detached apartment buildings were built. After World War II, Bergen had again run short of land to build on, and, contrary to the original plans, many large apartment buildings were built in
Landås in the 1950s and 1960s. Bergen acquired
Fyllingsdalen
Fyllingsdalen () is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough is located southwest of the city centre in the Fyllingsdalen valley, west of the mountain Løvstakken. The neighbourhoods of Fyllingsdalen mainly consis ...
from
Fana municipality in 1955. Like similar areas in Oslo (e.g.
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 neighbor ...
), Fyllingsdalen was developed into a modern suburb with large apartment buildings,
mid-rise
A low-rise is a building that is only a few stories tall or any building that is shorter than a high-rise, though others include the classification of mid-rise.
Definition
Emporis defines a low-rise as "an enclosed structure below 35 metres 15 ...
s, and some single-family homes, in the 1960s and 1970s. Similar developments took place beyond Bergen's city limits, for example in
Loddefjord.

At the same time as
planned city
A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...
expansion took place inside Bergen, its extra-municipal suburbs also grew rapidly. Wealthy citizens of Bergen had been living in Fana since the 19th century, but as the city expanded it became more convenient to settle in the municipality. Similar processes took place in
Ã…sane
Ã…sane is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough makes up the northern part of the city, north of the city centre.
Ã…sane is connected to downtown Bergen by the E16/ E39 highway. The E16 highway continues on ...
and Laksevåg. Most of the homes in these areas are detached
row house
A terrace, terraced house (British English, UK), or townhouse (American English, US) is a type of medium-density housing which first started in 16th century Europe with a row of joined houses party wall, sharing side walls. In the United States ...
s, single family homes or small apartment buildings.
After the surrounding municipalities were merged with Bergen in 1972, expansion has continued in largely the same manner, although the municipality encourages condensing near commercial centres, future
Bergen Light Rail
Bergen Light Rail () is a light rail system in Bergen, Norway. The first stage of the project was a twenty-station stretch between the city center and Lagunen Storsenter, Nesttun, where the first 15 stations comprising a stretch opened in 2010, ...
stations, and elsewhere.
As part of the modernisation wave of the 1950s and 1960s, and due to damage caused by World War II, the
city government
A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
ambitiously planned redevelopment of many areas in central Bergen. The plans involved demolition of several neighbourhoods of wooden houses, namely
Nordnes
Nordnes is a peninsula and neighbourhood in the city centre of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The ...
, Marken, and Stølen. None of the plans was carried out in its original form; the Marken and Stølen redevelopment plans were discarded and that of Nordnes only carried out in the area that had been most damaged by war. The city council of Bergen had in 1964 voted to demolish the entirety of Marken, however, the decision proved to be highly controversial and the decision was reversed in 1974. Bryggen was under threat of being wholly or partly demolished after the fire of 1955, when a large number of the buildings burned to the ground. Instead of being demolished, the remaining buildings were restored and accompanied by reconstructions of some of the burned buildings.
Demolition of old buildings and occasionally whole city blocks is still taking place, the most recent major example being the 2007 razing of Jonsvollskvartalet at Nøstet.
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
s are banned in the city.
Administration
The municipality has had a
parliamentary
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 ...
government since 2000. Up until then, Bergen had been governed by the city council ().
The government now consists of seven government members called commissioners, and is appointed by the city council, the supreme authority of the city.
The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political
party
A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a Hospitality, host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will oft ...
.
Boroughs

Bergen is divided into eight boroughs,
as seen on the map to the right. Clockwise, starting with the northernmost, the boroughs are
Ã…sane
Ã…sane is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough makes up the northern part of the city, north of the city centre.
Ã…sane is connected to downtown Bergen by the E16/ E39 highway. The E16 highway continues on ...
,
Arna,
Fana,
Ytrebygda
Ytrebygda is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough is the site of Bergen Flesland Airport.
Location
Ytrebygda is located southwest of the city center, south of the Grimstadfjorden and the lake Nordåsvannet. ...
,
Fyllingsdalen
Fyllingsdalen () is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough is located southwest of the city centre in the Fyllingsdalen valley, west of the mountain Løvstakken. The neighbourhoods of Fyllingsdalen mainly consis ...
,
Laksevåg
Laksevåg is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough is located in the western part of the municipality. Historically, the area was called ''Laxevaag'', and it was a separate municipality until 1972 when it was ...
,
Ã…rstad and
Bergenhus
Bergenhus is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of ...
. The city centre is in
Bergenhus
Bergenhus is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of ...
. Parts of Fana, Ytrebygda, Ã…sane and Arna are not part of the Bergen urban area, explaining why the municipality has approximately 20,000 more inhabitants than the urban area.
Local borough administrations have varied since Bergen's expansion in 1972. From 1974, each borough had a politically chosen administration. From 1989, Bergen was divided into 12 health and social districts, each locally administered. From 2000 to 2004, the former organizational form with eight politically chosen local administrations was again in use and from 2008 through to 2010, a similar form existed where the local administrations had less power than previously.

(Pertaining to the table above: The acreage figures include fresh water and uninhabited mountain areas, except:
1 1 The borough Bergenhus is , the rest is water and uninhabited mountain areas.
2 2 The borough Ã…rstad is , the rest is water and uninhabited mountain areas.)
Former borough: Sentrum
Sentrum (literally, "Centre") was a borough (with
the same name as a present-day neighbourhood). The borough was numbered ''01'', and its perimeter was from
Store Lungegårdsvann
Store may refer to:
Enterprises
* Retail store, a shop where merchandise is sold, usually products and usually on a retail basis, and where wares are often kept
** App store, an online retail store where apps are sold, included in many mobile op ...
and Strømmen along
Puddefjorden
Puddefjorden, often anglicized as Pudde Fjord,Koop, Gerhard, Klaus-Peter Schmolke. 2014. ''German Light Cruisers of World War II: Warships of the Kriegsmarine''. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth, p. 83. is an inlet or fjord in the central part of the city ...
around
Nordnes
Nordnes is a peninsula and neighbourhood in the city centre of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The ...
and over to Skuteviken, up
Mt. Fløyen east of Langelivannet, on to Skansemyren and over Forskjønnelsen to Store Lungegårdsvann, south of the railroad tracks.
The population of the (now defunct) borough, numbered in 1994 more than 18,000 people.
Demographics
, the municipality had a population of 286,930,
making the population density 599 people per km
2. Urban areas outside the city limits, as defined by
Statistics Norway
Statistics Norway (, 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 year on its web site. All rele ...
, consist of
Indre Arna
Indre Arna is a suburban village in the borough of Arna in the municipality of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. While Indre Arna is relatively far from most of the city centre by road, there is an 8-minute train journey through the mountain U ...
(6,536 residents on 1 January 2012),
Fanahammeren (3,690),
Ytre Arna
Ytre Arna is a settlement in the borough of Arna in the municipality of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. Ytre Arna is principally associated with ''A/S Arne Fabrikker'', the country's first mechanised cotton mill. Ytre Arna Church () is also ...
(2,626),
Hylkje
Hylkje is a village in the borough of Åsane in the municipality of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The village lies in the northeastern part of the municipality, along the Sørfjorden. The European route E39 runs through Hylkje.
The village ...
(2,277) and
Espeland
Espeland is a village in the borough of Arna, Bergen, Arna in the municipality of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. Espeland is located north of Lake Haukeland () and Mount Livarden. The village of Indre Arna lies about to the north.
The vil ...
(2,182).
As of 2007, people of
Norwegian origin (those who have two parents born in Norway) make up 84.5% of Bergen's residents. In addition, 8.1% were
first
First most commonly refers to:
* First, the ordinal form of the number 1
First or 1st may also refer to:
Acronyms
* Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array
* Far Infrared a ...
or second generation immigrants of Western background and 7.4% were first or second generation immigrants of non-Western background.
The population grew by 4,549 people in 2009, a growth rate of 1.8%. Ninety-six percent of the population lives in urban areas. As of 2002, the average
gross income
For households and individuals, gross income is the sum of all wages, salaries, profits, interest payments, rents, and other forms of earnings, before any deductions or taxes. It is opposed to net income, defined as the gross income minus taxes ...
for men above the age of 17 is 426,000
Norwegian krone
The krone (, currency sign, abbreviation: kr (also NKr for distinction); ISO 4217, code: NOK), plural ''kroner'', is the currency of the Kingdom of Norway (including List of possessions of Norway, overseas territories and dependencies). It was t ...
(NOK), the average gross income for women above the age of 17 is NOK238,000, with the total average gross income being NOK330,000.
In 2007, there were 104.6 men for every 100 women in the age group of 20–39.
22.8% of the population were under 17years of age, while 4.5% were 80 and above.
The immigrant population (those with two foreign-born parents) in Bergen, includes 42,169 individuals with backgrounds from more than 200 countries representing 15.5% of the city's population (2014). Of these, 50.2% have background from Europe, 28.9% from Asia, 13.1% from Africa, 5.5% from Latin America, 1.9% from North America, and 0.4% from Oceania. The immigrant population in Bergen in the period 1993–2008 increased by 119.7%, while the ethnic Norwegian population grew by 8.1% during the same period. The national average is 138.0% and 4.2%. The immigrant population has thus accounted for 43.6% of Bergen's population growth and 60.8% of Norway's population growth during the period 1993–2008, compared with 84.5% in Oslo.
The immigrant population in Bergen has changed a lot since 1970. As of 1 January 1986, there were 2,870 people with a non-Western immigrant background in Bergen. In 2006, this figure had increased to 14,630, so the non-Western immigrant population in Bergen was five times higher than in 1986. This is a slightly slower growth than the national average, which has sextupled during the same period. Also in relation to the total population in Bergen, the proportion of non-Westerns increased significantly. In 1986, the proportion of the total population in the municipality of non-Western background was 3.6%. In January 2006, people with a non-Western immigrant background accounted for 6 percent of the population in Bergen. The share of Western immigrants has remained stable at around 2% in the period. The number of
Poles
Pole or poles may refer to:
People
*Poles (people), another term for Polish people, from the country of Poland
* Pole (surname), including a list of people with the name
* Pole (musician) (Stefan Betke, born 1967), German electronic music artist
...
in Bergen rose from 697 in 2006 to 3,128 in 2010.
As of 2022, immigrants of non-Western origin and their children enumerated 30,540, and made up an estimated 11% of Bergen's population. Immigrants of Western origin and their children enumerated 22,954, and made up an estimated 9% of Bergen's population.
The
Church of Norway
The Church of Norway (, , , ) is an Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. Christianity became the state religion of Norway around 1020, and was established a ...
is the largest denomination in Bergen, with 201,006 (79.74%) registered adherents in 2012. Bergen is the seat of the
Diocese of Bjørgvin
The Diocese of Bjørgvin () is one of the 11 dioceses that make up the Church of Norway. It includes all of the churches located in the county of Vestland in Western Norway, and those outside of Norway in the Seamen's Church. The cathedral cit ...
with
Bergen Cathedral as its centrepiece, while
St John's Church is the city's most prominent. As of 2012, the state church is followed by 52,059 irreligious, 4,947 members of various
Protestant
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
free church
A free church is any Christian denomination that is intrinsically separate from government (as opposed to a state church). A free church neither defines government policy, nor accept church theology or policy definitions from the government. A f ...
es, 3,873 actively registered Catholics, 2,707 registered Muslims, 816 registered Hindus, 255 registered
Russian Orthodox
The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...
and 147 registered
Oriental Orthodox
The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christianity, Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysitism, Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 50 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches adhere to the Nicene Christian ...
.
Education

There are 64 elementary schools,
18 lower secondary schools
and 20 upper secondary schools
in Bergen, as well as 11 combined elementary and lower secondary schools.
Bergen Cathedral School is the oldest school in Bergen and was founded by
Pope Adrian IV
Pope Adrian (or Hadrian) IV (; born Nicholas Breakspear (or Brekespear); 1 September 1159) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 4 December 1154 until his death in 1159. Born in England, Adrian IV was the first Pope ...
in 1153.
The "
Bergen School of Meteorology" was developed at the
Geophysical Institute beginning in 1917, the
Norwegian School of Economics
The Norwegian School of Economics () or NHH is a business school situated in Bergen, Norway. It was founded in 1936 as Norway's first business school and is the leading teaching and research institution in Norway for the fields of management and ...
was founded in 1936, and the
University of Bergen
The University of Bergen () is a public university, public research university in Bergen, Norway. As of 2021, the university had over 4,000 employees and 19,000 students. It was established by an act of parliament in 1946 consolidating several sci ...
in 1946.
The University of Bergen has 16,000 students and 3,000 staff, making it the third-largest educational institution in Norway.
Research in Bergen dates back to activity at
Bergen Museum
The University Museum of Bergen () is a university museum in Bergen, Norway. The museum features material related to anthropology, archaeology, botany, geology, zoology, art, and cultural history.
History
The University Museum of Bergen was fo ...
in 1825, although the university was not founded until 1946. The university has a broad range of courses and research in academic fields and three national centres of excellence, in
climate research
Climatology (from Greek , ''klima'', "slope"; and , ''-logia'') or climate science is the scientific study of Earth's climate, typically defined as weather conditions averaged over a period of at least 30 years. Climate concerns the atmospheric ...
,
petroleum research and
medieval studies
Medieval studies is the academic interdisciplinary study of the Middle Ages. A historian who studies medieval studies is called a medievalist.
Institutional development
The term 'medieval studies' began to be adopted by academics in the opening ...
.
The main campus is in the city centre. The university co-operates with
Haukeland University Hospital within medical research. The Chr. Michelsen Institute is an independent research foundation established in 1930 focusing on human rights and development issues.
The
Western Norway University of Applied Sciences
Western Norway University of Applied Sciences () or HVL is a Norwegian public institution of higher education, established in January 2017 through the merging of formerly independent colleges across five campuses: Bergen, Førde, Haugesund, So ...
, which has its main campus in
Kronstad, has 16,000 students and 1800 staff.
It focuses on professional education, such as teaching, healthcare and engineering. The college was created through amalgamation in 1994; campuses are spread around town but will be co-located at
Kronstad. The
Norwegian School of Economics
The Norwegian School of Economics () or NHH is a business school situated in Bergen, Norway. It was founded in 1936 as Norway's first business school and is the leading teaching and research institution in Norway for the fields of management and ...
is in outer
Sandviken
Sandviken is a locality and the seat of Sandviken Municipality in Gävleborg County, Sweden with 26,438 inhabitants in 2023. It is situated about 25 km west of Gävle and lies approximately 190 km north of Stockholm. The rail journey t ...
and is the leading
business school
A business school is a higher education institution or professional school that teaches courses leading to degrees in business administration or management. A business school may also be referred to as school of management, management school, s ...
in Norway,
having produced three
Economy Nobel Prize laureates.
The school has more than 3,000 students and approximately 400 staff.
Other tertiary education institutions include the
Bergen School of Architecture
Bergen School of Architecture or BAS () is a private and academically independent school located in Bergen
Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Berge ...
, the
Bergen National Academy of the Arts
Bergen Academy of Art and Design () or KHiB was one of two independent and accredited scientific institutions of higher learning in the visual arts and design in Norway (The other is Oslo National Academy of the Arts). It was located in Bergen, N ...
, in the city centre with 300 students,
and the
Norwegian Naval Academy in Laksevåg. The
Norwegian Institute of Marine Research
The Norwegian Institute of Marine Research () is a national consultative research institute which is owned by the Ministry of Fisheries and Coastal Affairs. The institute performs research and provides advisory services in the fields of marine ec ...
has been in Bergen since 1900. It provides research and advice relating to ecosystems and aquaculture. It has a staff of 700 people.
Economy
In August 2004, ''
Time
Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
'' magazine named the city one of Europe's 14 "secret capitals"
where Bergen's capital reign is acknowledged within maritime businesses and activities such as
aquaculture
Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. Nelu ...
and
marine research
Marine Research were an indiepop group, based in Oxford/London (UK), formed in 1997 by four of the five members of Heavenly ( Amelia Fletcher, Peter Momtchiloff, Cathy Rogers and Rob Pursey), following the death of Heavenly drummer Mathew ...
, with the
Institute of Marine Research (IMR) (the second-largest
oceanography
Oceanography (), also known as oceanology, sea science, ocean science, and marine science, is the scientific study of the ocean, including its physics, chemistry, biology, and geology.
It is an Earth science, which covers a wide range of to ...
research centre in Europe) as a leading institution. Some of the world's largest aquaculture companies, such as
Mowi
Mowi ASA, known as Marine Harvest ASA until January 1, 2019 and as Pan Fish prior to February 6, 2007, is a Norwegian seafood company with operations in a number of countries around the world. The company's primary interest is fish farming, pr ...
and
Lerøy
Lerøy Seafood Group ASA is a seafood production and distribution company based in Bergen, Norway
The company started operation in the 19th century when the fisherman Ole Mikkel Lerøen started selling fish and other seafood on the fish market of ...
are headquartered in the city. Shipowners based in Bergen control a significant portion of the Norwegian merchant fleet, including shipowners such as
Wilson,
Odfjell
Odfjell SE is a company specialising in worldwide seaborne transportation and storage of chemicals and other speciality bulk liquids. The Odfjell fleet comprises more than 80 ships in total. The ships transport around 600 different kinds of ...
and
Gearbulk. The city has a large presence of financial institutions. Banks
Sbanken and
Sparebanken Vest are headquartered in the city. The Norwegian branches of insurance companies
Tryg
Tryg A/S is a Scandinavian insurance company present in Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland. The company is the largest provider of general insurance services in the Nordic countries and is listed on Nasdaq OMX Copenhagen.
History
The current co ...
,
DNB Livsforsikring and
Nordea Liv are headquartered in Bergen, along with a significant presence of marine insurance companies, including
Norwegian Hull Club. A number of banks maintain large corporate banking divisions in connection with shipping and aquaculture in the city.
Bergen is the main base for the
Royal Norwegian Navy
The Royal Norwegian Navy () is the branch of the Norwegian Armed Forces responsible for navy, naval operations of Norway, including those of the Norwegian Coast Guard. , the Royal Norwegian Navy consists of approximately 3,700 personnel (9,450 i ...
(at
Haakonsvern
Haakonsvern is the main base of the Royal Norwegian Navy and the largest naval base in the Nordic area. The base is located at Mathopen within Bergen municipality, about 15 km south-west of the city centre. Around 5,400 people work at the base as ...
) and its
international airport
An international airport is an airport with customs and border control facilities enabling passengers to travel between countries. International airports are usually larger than domestic airports, and feature longer runways and have faciliti ...
Flesland is the main heliport for the Norwegian
North Sea oil
North Sea oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons, comprising liquid petroleum and natural gas, produced from petroleum reservoirs beneath the North Sea.
In the petroleum industry, the term "North Sea" often includes areas such as the Norwegian ...
and gas industry, from where thousands of offshore workers commute to their work places onboard oil and gas rigs and platforms.
Tourism is an important income source for the city. The hotels in the city may be full at times,
due to the increasing number of tourists and conferences. Bergen is recognized as the unofficial capital of the region known as
Western Norway
Western Norway (; ) is the Regions of Norway, region along the Atlantic coast of southern Norway. It consists of the Counties of Norway, counties Rogaland, Vestland, and Møre og Romsdal. The region has no official or political-administrative fu ...
, and recognized and marketed as the gateway city to the world-famous
fjord
In physical geography, a fjord (also spelled fiord in New Zealand English; ) is a long, narrow sea inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Antarctica, the Arctic, and surrounding landmasses of the n ...
s of Norway, and for that reason, it has become Norway's largest – and one of Europe's largest –
cruise ship
Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...
ports of call.
Transport
Air
Bergen Airport, Flesland
Bergen Airport (; ), alternatively Bergen Flesland Airport or simply Flesland Airport, is an international airport located at Flesland in the city and municipality of Bergen, Vestland, Norway. Opened in 1955, it is the second-busiest airport i ...
, is from the city centre, at
Flesland.
In 2013, the
Avinor
Avinor AS is a state-owned aksjeselskap, limited company that operates most of the civil airports in Norway. The Norwegian state, via the Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications, controls 100 percent of the share capital. Avinor wa ...
-operated airport served 6 million passengers. The airport serves as a
hub for
Scandinavian Airlines
The Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS), commonly known as Scandinavian Airlines, is the national airline of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It is part of SAS Group and is headquartered in Solna, Sweden.
Including its subsidiaries SAS Link and ...
,
Norwegian Air Shuttle
Norwegian Air Shuttle Aksjeselskap, ASA, trading as Norwegian, is a Norway, Norwegian Low-cost carrier, low-cost airline and Scandinavia's second-largest airline, behind Scandinavian Airlines. It is the fourth largest low-cost carrier in Europe ...
and
Widerøe
Widerøes Flyveselskap AS, trading as Widerøe, is a Norwegian airline, and the largest regional airline operating in the Nordic countries. The airline's fleet of 48 aircraft includes 45 De Havilland Dash 8 turboprops as well as 3 Embraer 1 ...
; there are direct flights to 20 domestic and 53 international destinations.
Sea
Bergen Port, operated by
Bergen Port Authority, is the largest
seaport
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manc ...
in Norway.
In 2011, the port saw 264 cruise calls with 350,248 visitors, In 2009, the port handled 56million tonnes of cargo, making it the ninth-busiest cargo port in Europe. There are plans to move the port out of the city centre, but no location has been chosen.
Fjord Line operates a
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 ot ...
service to
Hirtshals
Hirtshals is a town and seaport on the coast of Skagerrak on the island of Vendsyssel-Thy at the top of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark, Europe. It is located in Hjørring municipality in Region Nordjylland. The town of Hirtshals has a ...
, Denmark. Bergen is the southern terminus of
Hurtigruten
''Hurtigruten'' (), formally Kystruten Bergen-Kirkenes ("coastal route Bergen-Kirkenes"), is a Norwegian public coastal route transporting passengers that travel locally, regionally, and between the ports of call, and also cargo between ports ...
, the Coastal Express, which operates with daily services along the coast to
Kirkenes
(Norwegian language, Norwegian; ), (Northern Sami language, Northern Sami; , or is a List of towns and cities in Norway, town in Sør-Varanger Municipality in Finnmark county, in the far northeastern part of Norway. The town lies on a peninsu ...
.
[ Passenger ]catamaran
A catamaran () (informally, a "cat") is a watercraft with two parallel hull (watercraft), hulls of equal size. The wide distance between a catamaran's hulls imparts stability through resistance to rolling and overturning; no ballast is requi ...
s run from Bergen south to Leirvik
Leirvik is a town and the administrative centre of Stord municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The town lies along the southern coast of the large island of Stord, along the Hardangerfjorden. The town gained "town status" in 1997. The town ...
and Sunnhordland
Sunnhordland is a traditional district in the western region of Norway. The district consists of the southern coastal regions of the old Hordaland county (now part of Vestland county). It includes the areas that surround the mouth of the Harda ...
, and north to Sognefjord
The Sognefjord or Sognefjorden (, ), nicknamed the King of the Fjords (), is the list of Norwegian fjords, longest and deepest fjord in Norway. Located in Vestland county in Western Norway, it stretches inland from the ocean to the small village ...
and Nordfjord
Nordfjord (—in contrast to Sunnfjord) is a traditional district in Vestland county, Norway.
Geography
The region is located in the northern part of Vestland county in Western Norway. It centers on the Nordfjorden and it comprises Stad Muni ...
.
The port includes three large power connections that allow ships to turn off their engines whilst docked (known as "cold ironing")
Road
The city centre is surrounded by an electronic toll collection
Electronic toll collection (ETC) is a wireless system to automatically collect the usage fee or Road pricing, toll charged to vehicles using toll roads, HOV lanes, toll bridges, and toll tunnels. It is a faster alternative which is replacing Tol ...
ring using the Autopass system. The main motorways consist of E39, which runs north–south through the municipality, E16, which runs eastwards, and National Road 555, which runs westwards. There are four major bridges connecting Bergen to neighbouring municipalities: the Nordhordland Bridge
The Nordhordland Bridge () is a combined cable-stayed and pontoon bridge which crosses Salhusfjorden between Klauvaneset (in Bergen Municipality) and the island of Flatøy (in Alver Municipality) in Vestland county, Norway. It is long, of whic ...
, the Askøy Bridge
The Askøy Bridge () is a suspension bridge that crosses the Byfjorden (Hordaland), Byfjorden between the municipalities of Bergen and Askøy in Vestland county, Norway. It is long and has a main span of . Its span was the longest for any suspen ...
, the Sotra Bridge
The Sotra Bridge () is a suspension bridge which crosses Knarreviksundet between Knarrevik in Øygarden Municipality and Drotningsvik on the mainland of Bergen Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It carries two road lanes and two narrow ped ...
and the Osterøy Bridge
The Osterøy Bridge () is a suspension bridge in Vestland county, Norway. The bridge connects the Kvisti farm area on the island of Osterøy in Osterøy Municipality with the Herland farm area on the mainland in Bergen Municipality east of the ...
. Bergen connects to the island of Bjorøy via the subsea Bjorøy Tunnel
The Bjorøy Tunnel () is a subsea road tunnel in Vestland county, Norway. The tunnel is part of the Norwegian County Road 5236 which connects the island of Bjorøy in the municipality of Øygarden to the mainland near Håkonshella and Hil ...
.
Rail
Bergen Station is the terminus of the Bergen Line
The Bergen Line, or the Bergen Railway ( or ), is a long scenic overlook, scenic standard gauge railway line between Bergen and Hønefoss, Norway. The name is often applied to the entire route from Bergen to Oslo, including the Randsfjord Line ...
, which runs to Oslo
Oslo ( or ; ) 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 1,064,235 in 2022 ...
. Vy operates express trains to Oslo and the Bergen Commuter Rail
Bergen (, ) is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo.
By May 2025 the population is 294 029 according to Statistics Norway. The municipali ...
to Voss
Voss () is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality and a Districts of Norway, traditional district in Vestland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Vossevangen. Other villages inclu ...
. Between Bergen and Arna Station, the train runs about every 30minutes through the Ulriken Tunnel
The Ulriken Tunnel () is a railway tunnel on the Bergen Line between Bergen Station and Arna Station in Bergen Municipality in Vestland county, Norway.
Original (old) tunnel
The existing long tunnel runs under the northern part of the mo ...
; there is no corresponding road tunnel, forcing road vehicles to travel via Ã…sane or Nesttun
Nesttun is an urban settlement in the borough of Fana in the municipality of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. It is located approximately south of the city centre. It was the centre of the old Fana municipality, which merged with Bergen in 19 ...
.
Lightrail
Bergen is one of the smallest cities in Europe to have both tram
A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which Rolling stock, vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some ...
and trolleybus
A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or troll ...
electric urban transport systems simultaneously . Public transport in Hordaland is managed by Skyss, which operates an extensive city bus network in Bergen and to many neighbouring municipalities, including one route which operates as a trolleybus. The trolleybus system in Bergen is the only one still in operation in Norway and one of two trolleybus systems in Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...
.
The modern tram Bergen Light Rail
Bergen Light Rail () is a light rail system in Bergen, Norway. The first stage of the project was a twenty-station stretch between the city center and Lagunen Storsenter, Nesttun, where the first 15 stations comprising a stretch opened in 2010, ...
() opened between the city centre and Nesttun
Nesttun is an urban settlement in the borough of Fana in the municipality of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. It is located approximately south of the city centre. It was the centre of the old Fana municipality, which merged with Bergen in 19 ...
in 2010, extended to RÃ¥dal (Lagunen Storsenter) in 2013 and to the Bergen airport Flesland in 2017. Extensions to other boroughs may occur later.
Fløibanen
The Fløibanen is a funicular railway, owned by Fløibanen AS, in the Norwegian city of Bergen. It connects the city centre with the mountain of Fløyen, with its mountain walks and magnificent views of the city. It is one of Bergen's major tour ...
is a funicular
A funicular ( ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep grade (slope), slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to ...
which runs from the city centre to Mount Fløyen
Fløyen or Fløyfjellet is one of the "Seven Mountains (Bergen), seven city mountains" in Bergen, Hordaland, Norway. Its highest point is above sea level. The name could originate from ''fløystangen'' or a weather vane that was set up to indica ...
and Ulriksbanen
Ulriksbanen is a passenger aerial tramway in Bergen, Norway. It connects the mountain Ulriken to the city, and is frequently used by tourists as well as locals. The tramway was first thought of by Frithjof Meidell Andersen in 1954, and a compa ...
is an aerial tramway
An aerial tramway, aerial tram, sky tram, cable car or aerial cablecar, aerial cableway, ropeway, téléphérique (French), or Seilbahn (German) is a type of aerial lift which uses one or two stationary cables for support, with a third movin ...
which runs to Mount Ulriken
Ulriken (or the older, ''Ã…lreken'') is the highest of the Seven Mountains () that surround the city of Bergen, Norway. It has a height of above sea level. Ulriken has an aerial tramway, Ulriksbanen, that can bring people to the top. At the t ...
.
Culture and sports
(BT) and (BA) are the largest newspapers, with circulations of 87,076 and 30,719 in 2006, ''BT'' is a regional newspaper covering all of Vestland, while ''BA'' focuses on metropolitan Bergen. Other newspapers published in Bergen include the Christian national '' Dagen'', with a circulation of 8.936, and ''TradeWinds
The trade winds or easterlies are permanent east-to-west prevailing winds that flow in the Earth's equatorial region. The trade winds blow mainly from the northeast in the Northern Hemisphere and from the southeast in the Southern Hemisphere ...
'', an international shipping newspaper. Local newspapers are ''Fanaposten
''Fanaposten'' is a Norwegian newspaper, published in Nesttun in Bergen, and covering the districts of Fana and Ytrebygda. The newspaper was founded in 1978, and its first editor was Hans D. Fasmer. The newspaper is issued twice a week. In 2004 ...
'' for Fana, '' Sydvesten'' for Laksevåg and Fyllingsdalen and ''Bygdanytt
''Bygdanytt'' is a Norwegian newspaper, published in Indre Arna in Bergen, and covering Arna and Osterøy. The newspaper was founded in 1951, and its first editor was Sigurd Mjeldheim. The newspaper is issued twice a week. It had a circulation o ...
'' for Arna and the neighbouring municipality Osterøy
Osterøy is an List of islands of Norway, island Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is located in the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Nordhordland. The municipality encompasses ...
. TV 2, Norway's largest private television company, is based in Bergen.
The 1,500-seat Grieg Hall
Grieg Hall () is a 1,500 seat concert hall located on Edvard Griegs' square in Bergen, Norway.
Grieghallen was named in honor of Bergen-born composer Edvard Grieg, who served as music director of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra from 1880 until ...
is the city's main cultural venue, and home of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra
The Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra ( Norwegian: Bergen filharmoniske orkester) is a Norwegian orchestra based in Bergen. Its principal concert venue is the Grieg Hall.
History
Established in 1765 under the name ''Det Musicalske Selskab'' (The M ...
, founded in 1765, and the Bergen Woodwind Quintet. The city also features Carte Blanche
A blank cheque or blank check in the literal sense is a cheque that has no monetary value written in, but is already signed. In the figurative sense, it is used to describe a situation in which an agreement has been made that is open-ended or va ...
, the Norwegian national company of contemporary dance. The annual Bergen International Festival
Bergen International Festival () is an annual international music and cultural festival in Bergen, Norway.
In Spring 2022, Lars Petter Hagen took over as festival director.
Biography
The Bergen International festival is the largest festival ...
is the main cultural festival, which is supplemented by the Bergen International Film Festival
The Bergen International Film Festival (BIFF) is a film festival held annually in October in Bergen, Norway since 2000. It is one of the biggest film festivals in Norway and among the most important documentary film festivals in the Nordic coun ...
. Two internationally renowned composers from Bergen are Edvard Grieg
Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the leading Romantic music, Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwid ...
and Ole Bull
Ole Bornemann Bull (; 5 February 181017 August 1880) was a Norwegian virtuoso violinist and composer. According to Robert Schumann, he was on a level with Niccolò Paganini for the speed and clarity of his playing.
Biography
Background
Bull was ...
. Grieg's home, Troldhaugen
Troldhaugen is the former home of Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg and his wife Nina Grieg. Troldhaugen is located in Bergen, Norway and consists of the Edvard Grieg Museum, Grieg's villa, the hut where he composed music, and his and his wife ...
, has been converted to a museum. During the 1990s and early 2000s, Bergen produced a series of successful pop, rock and black metal
Black metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include Tempo#Beats per minute, fast tempos, a Screaming (music)#Black metal, shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted Electric guitar, guitars played with tr ...
artists, collectively known as the Bergen Wave
The Bergen Wave (Norwegian: ''Bergensbølgen'') is an expression often used by Norwegian media regarding the city of Bergen, Norway, as a platform for the development of modern music, illustrating a period in time where a new generation of artists ...
.
Den Nationale Scene
Den Nationale Scene () is the largest theatre in Bergen, Norway. Den Nationale Scene is also one of the oldest permanent theatres in Norway.
History
Opened under the name '' Det Norske Theater'' in 1850, the theatre has roots dating back to its ...
is Bergen's main theatre. Founded in 1850, it had Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright, poet and actor. Ibsen is considered the world's pre-eminent dramatist of the 19th century and is often referred to as "the father of modern drama." He pioneered ...
as one of its first in-house playwrights and art directors. Bergen's contemporary art
Contemporary art is a term used to describe the art of today, generally referring to art produced from the 1970s onwards. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a ...
scene is centred on BIT Teatergarasjen, Bergen Kunsthall, United Sardines Factory (USF) and Bergen Center for Electronic Arts (BEK). Bergen was a European Capital of Culture
A European Capital of Culture is a city designated by the European Union (EU) for a period of one calendar year during which it organises a series of cultural events with a strong pan-European dimension. Being a European Capital of Culture can ...
in 2000. Buekorps
Buekorps (; literally "Bow Corps" or "Archery Brigade") are traditional marching neighbourhood youth organizations in Bergen (city), Bergen, Norway.
The tradition is unique to Bergen (city), Bergen. The organizations, which are called ''bataljon ...
is a unique feature of Bergen culture, consisting of boys aged from 7 to 21 parading with imitation weapons and snare drum
The snare drum (or side drum) is a percussion instrument that produces a sharp staccato sound when the head is struck with a drum stick, due to the use of a series of stiff wires held under tension against the lower skin. Snare drums are often u ...
s. The city's Hanseatic heritage is documented in the Hanseatic Museum at Bryggen.
SK Brann
Sportsklubben Brann is a Norwegian professional football club based in Bergen. Founded on 26 September 1908, Brann has played in the first tier of Norwegian football for 67 out of 80 seasons, the second most of any club. They play their hom ...
is Bergen's premier football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
team; founded in 1908, they have played in the top flight for Norwegian men's football, Eliteserien
Eliteserien () is a professional association football league in Norway and the highest level of the Norwegian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Norwegian First Division ...
, for 67 out of 80 seasons since its establishment in 1937
Events
January
* January 1 – Anastasio Somoza GarcÃa becomes President of Nicaragua.
* January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into Feb ...
, the second most of any club. The team were the football champions in 1961–1962, 1963
Events January
* January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cove ...
, and 2007
2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year.
Events
January
* January 1
**Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...
, and reached the quarter-finals of the Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The competition's official name was originally the European Cup Winners' Cup; it was renamed the UEFA Cup Winne ...
in 1996–1997. They have also won the Norwegian Football Cup
The Norwegian Football Cup () is the main knockout cup competition in Norwegian football. It is run by the Football Association of Norway and has been contested since 1902, making it the oldest football tournament in the country. The tournament ...
seven times, most recently in the 2022 season. Brann play their home games at the 16,750-seat Brann Stadion
Brann Stadion is a football stadium in Bergen, Norway. It was constructed in 1919, and has been the home of the football club Brann ever since. The stadium lies south of the city centre, at the foot of Mount Ulriken.
The record attendance ...
. Ã…sane
Ã…sane is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough makes up the northern part of the city, north of the city centre.
Ã…sane is connected to downtown Bergen by the E16/ E39 highway. The E16 highway continues on ...
is the city's second-best team, playing in the First Division at Ã…sane Arena
Ã…sane Arena, formerly known as Arena Nord, is a multi-purpose arena located in Ã…sane borough, Bergen, Norway. It is a gift from billionaire businessman and philanthropist Trond Mohn to the sport. The arena consists of 6 different sports halls a ...
. Now-defunct Fyllingen played in the top flight in 1990
Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...
, 1991
It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...
and 1993
The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as:
* International Year for the World's Indigenous People
The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...
. Brann and Ã…sane
Ã…sane is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough makes up the northern part of the city, north of the city centre.
Ã…sane is connected to downtown Bergen by the E16/ E39 highway. The E16 highway continues on ...
also play in the women's top flight, 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 ...
, along with Arna-Bjørnar
Arna-Bjørnar Fotball is a Norwegian football club from Arna, Bergen.
It was founded in late 2000 as a merger between the football branches from ''IL Bjørnar'' and ''Arna T&IL'', and replaced Bjørnar IL in the league system from 2001. The ...
. Brann have won the league twice (once as IL Sandviken
Idrettslaget Sandviken is a Norwegian sports club from the neighborhood of Sandviken in Bergenhus borough, Bergen. It has sections for basketball, football and handball.
It was mostly known for its women's football team that played in the Topp ...
), and the Norwegian Women's Cup
The Norwegian Women's Cup () is a single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in Norwegian women's association football, football. It has been organised annually since 1978. The final is usually played on a Saturday, the day before the ...
once.
Bergen IK
Bergen Ishockeyklubb is an ice hockey club from Bergen
Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second- ...
is the premier men's ice hockey team, playing at Bergenshallen in the First Division. Tertnes play in the Women's Premier Handball League, and Fyllingen in the Men's Premier Handball League. In athletics, the city is dominated by IL Norna-Salhus, IL Gular and FIK BFG Fana, formerly also Norrøna IL and TIF Viking. The Bergen Storm are an American football team that plays matches at Varden Kunstgress
Varden Kunstgress Field is located in Bergen, Norway, and is currently home to the (NoAFF) American football team Bergen Storm, as well as the association football (soccer) teams Bergen Sparta and Fyllingen Kvinner.
Construction
The field beg ...
and plays in the second division of the Norwegian league.
Bergensk
Bergensk or Bergen dialect is a dialect of Norwegian used in Bergen, Norway. It is easy for Norwegians to recognise, as it is more distinguishable from other dialects in Vestland than, for example, the Stavanger dialect (''Stavangersk'') from th ...
is the native dialect of Bergen. It was strongly influenced by Low German
Low German is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language variety, language spoken mainly in Northern Germany and the northeastern Netherlands. The dialect of Plautdietsch is also spoken in the Russian Mennonite diaspora worldwide. "Low" ...
-speaking merchants from the mid-14th to mid-18th centuries. During the Dano-Norwegian period from 1536 to 1814, Bergen was more influenced by Danish than other areas of Norway. The Danish influence removed the female grammatical gender
In linguistics, a grammatical gender system is a specific form of a noun class system, where nouns are assigned to gender categories that are often not related to the real-world qualities of the entities denoted by those nouns. In languages wit ...
in the 16th century, making Bergensk one of very few Norwegian dialects with only two instead of three grammatical genders. The Rs are uvular trill
The voiced uvular trill is a type of consonantal sound, used in some spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents this sound is , a small capital version of the Latin letter r. This consonant is one of ...
s, as in French, which probably spread to Bergen some time in the 18th century, overtaking the alveolar trill
The voiced alveolar trill is a type of consonantal sound used in some spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents dental consonant, dental, alveolar consonant, alveolar, and postalveolar consonant, postalve ...
in the time span of two to three generations. Owing to an improved literacy rate
Literacy is the ability to read and write, while illiteracy refers to an inability to read and write. Some researchers suggest that the study of "literacy" as a concept can be divided into two periods: the period before 1950, when literacy was ...
, Bergensk was influenced by riksmål
(, also , ) is an unofficial written Norwegian language form or spelling standard, meaning the ''National Language'', closely related and now almost identical to the dominant form of Bokmål, known as .
Both Bokmål and Riksmål evolved from t ...
and bokmål in the 19th and 20th centuries. This led to large parts of the German-inspired vocabulary
A vocabulary (also known as a lexicon) is a set of words, typically the set in a language or the set known to an individual. The word ''vocabulary'' originated from the Latin , meaning "a word, name". It forms an essential component of languag ...
disappearing and pronunciations shifting slightly towards East Norwegian.
The 1986 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...
took place in Bergen. Bergen was the host city for the 2017 UCI Road World Championships
The 2017 UCI Road World Championships were held in 2017 in Bergen, Norway. It was the 90th UCI Road World Championships and the second to be held in Norway, after the 1993 UCI Road World Championships, 1993 world championships in Oslo. Chantal Bl ...
. The city is also a member of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network
The UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) is a flagship city programme of UNESCO launched in 2004 to promote cooperation among cities which have recognized culture and creativity as strategic drivers of sustainable urban development
Urban means ...
in the category of gastronomy since 2015.
Music
Bergen has been the home of several notable alternative bands, collectively referred to as the Bergen Wave
The Bergen Wave (Norwegian: ''Bergensbølgen'') is an expression often used by Norwegian media regarding the city of Bergen, Norway, as a platform for the development of modern music, illustrating a period in time where a new generation of artists ...
. These bands include Röyksopp
Röyksopp () a Norwegian electronic music duo from Tromsø formed in 1998. The duo consists of childhood friends Svein Berge and Torbjørn Brundtland who formed Röyksopp during the Bergen Wave. After experimenting with different Electronic Mu ...
and Kings of Convenience on the small, Bergen-based record label Tellé Records, as well as related side-projects, such as The Whitest Boy Alive
The Whitest Boy Alive is a German-Norwegian musical group based in Berlin. It was originally active from 2003 to 2014; after a five-year hiatus, the group reformed in 2019. The band is composed of singer and guitarist Erlend Øye of Kings of Co ...
, Kommode, and Visekongene
Visekongene is a band from Bergen, Norway. Their music can generally be defined as progressive rock, but they also mix in elements from Heavy metal music, metal, jazz, Rock and roll, rock, Pop music, pop, Children's music, old school Video gam ...
on independent labels. Other internationally well-received artists also originating from Bergen include Aurora
An aurora ( aurorae or auroras),
also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions (around the Arc ...
, Sondre Lerche
Sondre Lerche (; born 5 September 1982) is a Norwegian singer, songwriter, musician and actor. His discography includes ten studio albums and multiple EPs.
Early life
Growing up in a suburb of Bergen, Lerche was heavily influenced by 1980s pop. ...
, Kygo
Kyrre Gørvell-Dahll (; born 11 September 1991), known professionally as Kygo (), is a Norwegian DJ and music producer. He first received international attention with his December 2013 remix of the track " I See Fire" by Ed Sheeran and his De ...
, Boy Pablo
Boy Pablo (stylized as boy pablo) (born 29 November 1998) is the indie pop music project of Norwegian singer songwriter Nicolas Muñoz. Muñoz writes, records, performs, and produces all of the project's music. Boy Pablo's live band currently con ...
and Alan Walker
Alan Olav Walker (born 24 August 1997) is a Norwegian DJ and record producer. His songs "Faded (Alan Walker song), Faded", "Sing Me to Sleep", "Alone (Alan Walker song), Alone", "All Falls Down (Alan Walker song), All Falls Down" (with Noah Cy ...
.
Bergen is also known as the "black metal
Black metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include Tempo#Beats per minute, fast tempos, a Screaming (music)#Black metal, shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted Electric guitar, guitars played with tr ...
capital of Norway", due to its role in the early Norwegian black metal scene
The early Norwegian black metal scene of the 1990s is credited with shaping the modern black metal genre and producing some of the most acclaimed and influential artists in extreme metal.
The scene had a distinct ethos, and its core members ref ...
and the amount of acts to come from the city in the early 1990s. Also the singer Einar Selvik of the band Wardruna was born in Bergen and became famous thanks to the TV series ''Vikings
Vikings were 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 settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...
''.
Bergen is also the birthplace of composer Edvard Grieg
Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the leading Romantic music, Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwid ...
. The biggest music festival in the city is Bergenfest.
Street art
Bergen is considered to be the street art capital of Norway. Famed artist Banksy
Banksy is a pseudonymous England-based street artist, political activist, and film director whose real name and identity remain unconfirmed and the subject of speculation. Active since the 1990s, his satirical street art and subversive ep ...
visited the city in 2000 and inspired many to start creating street art. Soon after, the city brought up the most famous street artist in Norway: Dolk. His art can still be seen in several places in the city, and in 2009 the city council choose to preserve Dolk's work "Spray" with protective glass. In 2011, Bergen council launched a plan of action for street art in Bergen from 2011 to 2015 to ensure that "Bergen will lead the fashion for street art as an expression both in Norway and Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...
".
The Madam Felle (1831–1908) monument in Sandviken, is in honour of a Norwegian woman of German origin, who in the mid-19th century managed, against the will of the council, to maintain a counter of beer. A well-known restaurant of the same name is now elsewhere in Bergen. The monument was erected in 1990 by sculptor Kari Rolfsen, supported by an anonymous donor. Madam Felle, civil name Oline Fell, was posthumously remembered in a popular song, possibly originally a folksong, "Kjenner Dokker Madam Felle?" by Lothar Lindtner and Rolf Berntzen on an album in 1977.
Parks and bathing places
Parks
*Nygårdsparken
Nygårdsparken is a public park located in the city centre of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. It is located between the neighbourhoods of Nygård and Møhlenpris. Covering , Nygårdsparken is the largest urban park in Bergen.
History
Nygårds ...
* Nordnesparken
*Byparken
*Teaterparken
*Meyermarken
*Gamlehaugen
Gamlehaugen is a Royal Castle in Bergen, Norway, and the residence of the Norwegian royal family in the city. Gamlehaugen has a history that goes as far back as the Middle Ages, and the list of previous owners includes many of the wealthiest men i ...
*Storetveitmarken
*Olsvikparken
Bathing places
*Kyrkjetangen
Kyrkjetangen is a large and popular swimming spot by Nordåsvannet in Bønes, Bergen
Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of town ...
*Tennebekktjørna
*Helleneset
* Nordnes Sjøbad
*Grønnskjæret
*Hordvikhavn
*Skjoldabukta
*Marineholmen Sandstrand
Media
Newspapers
*''Fjordaposten
''Fjordaposten'' was a Norwegian newspaper, published in Bergen.
It started on 28 September 1923 and had the same editor-in-chief throughout its existence, Albert Joleik. His family members were aiding him in administration, finances and more. It ...
'' (1923–1940)
* (1868–)
*''Bergensavisen
''Bergensavisen'' (lit. "the Bergen newspaper"), usually shortened to ''BA'', is the second largest newspaper in Bergen, Norway. The paper is published in tabloid format. The newspaper's webpage ba.no is Bergen's largest local newspaper webpag ...
'' (1927–)
Neighbourhoods
The traditional neighbourhoods of Bergen include Bryggen
Bryggen (''the dock''), also known as Tyskebryggen (, ''the German dock''), is a series of Hanseatic heritage commercial buildings lining up the eastern side of the VÃ¥gen harbour in the city of Bergen, Norway. Bryggen has been on the UNESCO lis ...
, Eidemarken, Engen, Fjellet, Kalfaret
Kalfaret is a neighborhood in the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The neighborhood is located in the borough of Bergenhus, just north of the Store Lungegårdsvannet bay, east of the city centre. The area is an affluent neighborhood, a ...
, Ladegården, Løvstakksiden, Marken, Minde, Møhlenpris
Møhlenpris (formerly Vestre Sydnes) is a neighbourhood in the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. It is next to the Puddefjorden in the borough of Bergenhus
Bergenhus is a borough of the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway
...
, Nordnes
Nordnes is a peninsula and neighbourhood in the city centre of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The ...
, Nygård, Nøstet, Sandviken
Sandviken is a locality and the seat of Sandviken Municipality in Gävleborg County, Sweden with 26,438 inhabitants in 2023. It is situated about 25 km west of Gävle and lies approximately 190 km north of Stockholm. The rail journey t ...
, Sentrum, Skansen, Skuteviken, Strandsiden, Stølen, Sydnes, Verftet, Vågsbunnen, Wergeland, and Ytre Sandviken.
''Grunnkretser''
The various addresses in Bergen, each belong to one of the various '' grunnkrets''.
International relations
Each year Bergen sells the Christmas tree
A Christmas tree is a decorated tree, usually an evergreen pinophyta, conifer, such as a spruce, pine or fir, associated with the celebration of Christmas. It may also consist of an artificial tree of similar appearance.
The custom was deve ...
seen in Newcastle's Haymarket as a sign of the ongoing friendship between the sister cities, which were connected by a ferry service from 1890 to 2008. The Nordic friendship cities of Bergen, Gothenburg
Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...
, Turku
Turku ( ; ; , ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Southwest Finland. It is located on the southwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Aura River (Finland), River Aura. The population of Turku is approximately , while t ...
and Aarhus
Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Ã…rhus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus municipality, Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and app ...
arrange inter-Nordic camps each year by registering tenth-grade school classes from each of the other cities to school camps, for a profit. Bergen received a totem pole
Totem poles () are monumental carvings found in western Canada and the northwestern United States. They are a type of Northwest Coast art, consisting of poles, posts or pillars, carved with symbols or figures. They are usually made from large t ...
as a gift of friendship from the city of Seattle
Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
on the city's 900th anniversary in 1970. It is now placed in the Nordnes Park
The Nordnes Park () is a public park in the municipality of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The park is located near the centre of the city of Bergen on the northwestern end of the Nordnes peninsula. It was established in 1888-1898 after an i ...
and gazes out over the sea towards the friendship city far to the west.
Twin towns – sister cities
Bergen is twinned with:
* Aarhus
Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Ã…rhus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus municipality, Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and app ...
, Denmark (since 1946)
* Gothenburg
Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...
, Sweden (since 1946)
* Newcastle
Newcastle usually refers to:
*Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom
*Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom
*Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...
, England, United Kingdom (since 1968)
* Rostock
Rostock (; Polabian language, Polabian: ''Roztoc''), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (), is the largest city in the German States of Germany, state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the sta ...
, Germany (since 1957)
* Seattle
Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
, United States (since 1967)
* Turku
Turku ( ; ; , ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Southwest Finland. It is located on the southwestern coast of the country at the mouth of the Aura River (Finland), River Aura. The population of Turku is approximately , while t ...
, Finland (since 1946)
Gallery
File:Kjottbasaren, Bergen, Noruega, 2019-09-08, DD 14.jpg, Kjøttbasaren, an iconic building in Bergen from 1876
File:Bergen, Lille Lungegårdsvannet - panoramio (2).jpg, Lille Lungegårdsvannet
File:Torgallmenningen, Bergen (2).jpg, Torgallmenningen
File:Bergen Tinghus (Tingrett) courthouse, Christian Michelsens gate, TÃ¥rnplassen, Bergen, Norway 2018-03-19.jpg, Bergen Courthouse
File:Musikkpaviljongen, Bergen, 2019 (01).jpg, View of the Musikkpaviljongen
File:Ulriken Bergen Norway 02.jpg, Ulriken
Ulriken (or the older, ''Ã…lreken'') is the highest of the Seven Mountains () that surround the city of Bergen, Norway. It has a height of above sea level. Ulriken has an aerial tramway, Ulriksbanen, that can bring people to the top. At the t ...
File:Vista del puerto de Bergen desde la montaña Fløyen, Noruega, 2019-09-08, DD 46.jpg, Zachariasbryggen
File:Bergen storsenter (shopping mall), Strømgaten, Fjøsangerveien, Bergen, Norway, 2017-11-01 a.jpg, Bergen Storsenter, shopping mall in central Bergen
File:Nygårdsparken, 5006 Bergen, Norway.jpg, Nygårdsparken
Nygårdsparken is a public park located in the city centre of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. It is located between the neighbourhoods of Nygård and Møhlenpris. Covering , Nygårdsparken is the largest urban park in Bergen.
History
Nygårds ...
Notable people from Bergen
* List of people from Bergen
References
Bibliography
External links
Municipal fact sheet
from Statistics Norway
Statistics Norway (, 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 year on its web site. All rele ...
*
*
{{Authority control
Municipalities of Vestland
Populated coastal places in Norway
1070 establishments in Europe
Populated places established in the 11th century
Port cities and towns in Norway
Port cities and towns of the North Sea
Former capitals of Norway
Viking Age populated places
Trading posts of the Hanseatic League
11th-century establishments in Norway