Sarpsborg ( or ), historically Borg, is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be de ...

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 Viken

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

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

. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Sarpsborg. Sarpsborg is part of the fifth largest urban area in Norway when paired with neighbouring

Fredrikstad Fredrikstad (; previously ''Frederiksstad''; literally "Fredrik's Town") is a city and municipality in Viken county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Fredrikstad. The city of Fredrikstad was founded in 1 ...

. As of 1 January 2018, according to

Statistics Norway Statistics Norway ( no, Statistisk sentralbyrå, abbreviated to ''SSB'') is the Norwegian statistics bureau. It was established in 1876. Relying on a staff of about 1,000, Statistics Norway publish about 1,000 new statistical releases every ye ...

these two municipalities have a total population of 136,127 with 55,840 in Sarpsborg and 81,278 in Fredrikstad.

Borregaard Borregaard is a Norwegian company, established in 1889 in the southeastern town of Sarpsborg in Østfold county. Its main products were traditionally pulp and paper. The company later started producing chemicals based on timber as a raw ma ...

Industries is, and always has been, the most important industry in the city. The city is also the home of Borg Bryggerier, part of the

Hansa Borg Bryggerier Hansa Borg Bryggerier is a Norwegian brewery and distribution company which markets beer, bottled water and soft drinks. History Hansa Borg Bryggerier AS was founded in 1997, after a merger between Hansa Bryggeri and Borg Bryggerier. The compan ...

, which is Norway's second largest

brewery A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of bee ...

-group.

General information

Name

Norse Norse is a demonym for Norsemen, a medieval North Germanic ethnolinguistic group ancestral to modern Scandinavians, defined as speakers of Old Norse from about the 9th to the 13th centuries. Norse may also refer to: Culture and religion * Nor ...

times the city was just called ''Borg'' (from ''borg'' which means "

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

"). The background for this was the

fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

built by Olav Haraldsson (see History section). Later the

genitive case In grammar, the genitive case ( abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive can ...

of the name of the

waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in severa ...

''Sarpr'' ( Sarp Falls) was added, it's unclear how Sarpsborg received this part of its name, two interpretations are the most prevalent. The first coming from the Icelandic word ''Sarpr'' which means birdcage in English. The other interpretation is that ''Sarpr'' means "the one who swallows", probably referring to the local waterfall. In Norse times Østfold county was called ''Borgarsýsla'' which means "the county (sýsla) of Borg" and the law district of southeast Norway was called ''Borgarþing'' meaning "the

thing Thing or The Thing may refer to: Philosophy * An object * Broadly, an entity * Thing-in-itself (or ''noumenon''), the reality that underlies perceptions, a term coined by Immanuel Kant * Thing theory, a branch of critical theory that focus ...

/court of Borg". The old name has been revived in the

diocese of Borg Borg is a diocese in the Church of Norway. The diocese includes parishes in the counties of Østfold and Akershus, excluding Asker and Bærum. It was created in 1969 by separation from the Diocese of Oslo. The cathedral city is Fredrikstad. Fredr ...

(1968) and

Borgarting Court of Appeal The Borgarting Court of Appeal ( no, Borgarting lagmannsrett) is one of six intermediate courts of appeal in the Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Oslo. The court has jurisdiction over the counties of Oslo and western Viken. ...

(1995).

Coat of arms

The

coat-of-arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in i ...

is from modern times and was granted on 13 November 1991. It is based on a coat of arms dating from 1556 and shows a bear above a castle. The bear was introduced as early as some time in the 13th century, by the

earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form '' jarl'', and meant " chieftain", partic ...

of Sarpsborg ''(Comes de Saresburgh)'', Alv Erlingsson. He used the bear to symbolise his strength. The castle symbolises the fortress (borg) that gave the city its original name.

History

The city was founded as ''Borg'' by the Viking King Olav Haraldsson (Saint Olaf) in 1016. It was burned to the ground by Swedish invaders in 1567 during the

Northern Seven Years' War The Northern Seven Years' War (also known as the ''Nordic Seven Years' War'', the ''First Northern War'' or the ''Seven Years War in Scandinavia'') was fought between the Kingdom of Sweden (1523–1611), Kingdom of Sweden and a coalition of Denm ...

. Half the population was evacuated down the river to what is today known as Fredrikstad, about downstream. Much of the rebuilt town disappeared into the river

Glomma The Glomma, or Glåma, is Norway's longest and most voluminous river. With a total length of , it has a drainage basin that covers fully 13% of Norway's surface area, all in the southern part of the country. Geography At its fullest length, the ...

during a 1702

mudslide A mudflow or mud flow is a form of mass wasting involving fast-moving flow of debris that has become liquified by the addition of water. Such flows can move at speeds ranging from 3 meters/minute to 5 meters/second. Mudflows contain a signific ...

. Again Borg was rebuilt, and it was recreated as a city in 1839, and separated from Tune as a municipality of its own. The rural municipalities of Tune,

Skjeberg Skjeberg is a district of Sarpsborg, Østfold County, Norway. Skjeberg was formerly a municipality in Østfold County. The last administrative centre was at Borgenhaugen. As of 2018, Skjeberg has a population of 1,397. The parish of Skjeberg ...

, and Varteig were merged with the city on 1 January 1992. The population is steadily growing, and during the summer of 2005 it reached 50,000 inhabitants. In 2016 the town celebrated its 1,000th anniversary, and the entire year was commemorated by a special programme that encouraged historic preservation within the town. Historically, the sawmill and timber shipping industry has been Sarpsborg's most important sources of income, however since the

industrialisation Industrialisation ( alternatively spelled industrialization) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial society. This involves an extensive re-organisation of an econ ...

in Norway, more specifically Sarpsborg and the establishment of local manufacturing businesses during the late 1800s, the biggest being

, Sarpsborg has changed from its traditional timber-based economy and pre-industrial society to a more manufacturing and refining-based economy and industrial society. In modern times Sarpsborg has moved away from being a city based on the local manufacturing and refining industry, with only around ten percent employed within the local manufacturing industry, coinciding with Norway's general shift towards a

post-industrial society In sociology, the post-industrial society is the stage of society's development when the service sector generates more wealth than the manufacturing sector of the economy. The term was originated by Alain Touraine and is closely related to sim ...

. Despite this, the city is still widely regarded by Norwegians both unofficially and officially, to be an industrial city.

City districts

Sport

During the 1950s and 1960s, Sarpsborg was famous for its

football (soccer) Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is t ...

team, Sarpsborg FK, but is now more known for its

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two o ...

team, Sparta Warriors. In football, Sarpsborg 08 FF has taken over the local throne, currently playing at the highest national level. On 6 November 2009, they sent arch-rival FFK down from the top division in a play-off game in Fredrikstad stadion. Sarpsborg 08 has a women's football team that was promoted to the women's Division 1 at the end of 2011, at the same time as the club's under-19 girls reached the Junior Cup Final. Sarpsborg BK plays in the highest

bandy Bandy is a winter sport and ball sport played by two teams wearing ice skates on a large ice surface (either indoors or outdoors) while using sticks to direct a ball into the opposing team's goal. The international governing body for bandy is ...

division. Sarpsborg is famous for its two elite leagues teams in floorball,

Sarpsborg IBK Sarpsborg ( or ), historically Borg, is a city and municipality in Viken county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Sarpsborg. Sarpsborg is part of the fifth largest urban area in Norway when paired with neighb ...

and

Greåker IBK Greåker is a borough in the city of Sarpsborg, Norway, located 7 km west of the city centre. Before 1992 Greåker was a part of Tune municipality. It is situated at the river Glomma between Sarpsborg and Fredrikstad. The borough of Greåke ...

Climate

Sarpsborg has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freez ...

(Dfb) or temperate

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...

(Cfb), depending on winter threshold used ( as in USA or as in Europe). The all-time high was recorded in July 2018. The all-time low was set in December 2002. Since the weather station was incepted in 1991, the records may not be representative of a longer time frame. The average date for the last overnight freeze (low below ) in spring is 20 April and average date for first freeze in autumn is 22 October giving a frost-free season of 184 days (1981-2010 average).

Musical artists and bands

Notable residents

Public service

Zacharias Mellebye Zacharias Mellebye (20 December 1781 – 9 November 1854) was a Norwegian farmer and non-commissioned military officer who served as a representative at the Norwegian Constituent Assembly. Biography Zacharias Rasmussen Mellebye was born on ...

(1781 in Skjeberg – 1854) farmer, military officer and rep. at the

Norwegian Constituent Assembly The Norwegian Constituent Assembly (in Norwegian ''Grunnlovsforsamlingen'', also known as ''Riksforsamlingen'') is the name given to the 1814 constitutional assembly at Eidsvoll in Norway, that adopted the Norwegian Constitution and formalised th ...

* Harald Dahl (1863–1920), father of the British writer

Roald Dahl Roald Dahl (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British novelist, short-story writer, poet, screenwriter, and wartime fighter ace of Norwegian descent. His books have sold more than 250 million copies worldwide. Dahl has b ...

came from Sarpsborg *

Roald Amundsen Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen (, ; ; 16 July 1872 – ) was a Norwegians, Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He was a key figure of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. Born in Borge, Østfold, Norway, Amu ...

(1872-1928) explorer, first person to reach the South Pole, came from Borge * Oscar Torp (1893 in Skjeberg – 1958) former Prime Minister of Norway, 1951-1955 * Carl Fredrik Wisløff (1908–2004) theologian and Christian preacher, grew up in Sarpsborg *

Øistein Strømnæs Øistein Strømnæs (28 June 1914 – 21 July 1980) was the head of XU, the main Norwegian intelligence organization from 1943 to 1945. Strømnæs was born in Sarpsborg in Østfold county, Norway. He studied biology at the University of Oslo ...

(1914 in Sarpsborg – 1980) head of XU, the WWII intelligence organization *

Torbjørn Sikkeland Torbjørn Sikkeland (3 August 1923 – 7 November 2014) was a Norwegian chemist, nuclear physicist and radiation biophysicist. He was born in Norway in Varteig. He was part of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley team that claimed di ...

(1923 in Varteig – 2014) chemist, nuclear physicist and radiation biophysicist *

Thorvald Gressum Thorvald Gressum (29 March 1932 – 13 February 2008) was a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. Gressum served as deputy mayor of Sarpsborg from 1976 to 1983 and mayor from 1984 to 1995. He was the leader of Sarpsborg Labour Party from 197 ...

(1932–2008) a politician and Mayor of Sarpsborg 1984 to 1995 * Kai Eide (born 1949 in Sarpsborg) a diplomat and writer; roles with the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...

* Erik Varden (born 1974), a Roman Catholic spiritual writer and Bishop-Prelate of

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, an ...

The Arts

Nils Ole Oftebro som konge i spelet 1992

* Julius Fritzner (1828 in Skjeberg – 1882) a restaurateur and hotelier in Christiania *

Bjarne Bø Bjarne Bø (April 3, 1907 – August 9, 1998) was a Norwegian actor. Bø was born in Skjeberg in the municipality of Sarpsborg in Østfold county, Norway. He debuted in 1939 in the role of Sjur in the play '' Hu Dagmar'' by Ove Ansteinsson (1 ...

(1907 in Skjeberg – 1998) a Norwegian actor *

Arne Arnardo Arne Arnardo (19 October 1912 – 4 May 1995), born Arne Otto Lorang Andersen, was a Norwegian circus performer and -owner, generally referred to as the "circus king" of Norway. He escaped with the circus at an early age, took the stage name "Arna ...

, (1912 in Sarpsborg – 1995) circus performer and owner, ''"Circus King of Norway"'' * Walther Aas, (Norwegian Wiki) (1928–1990), neo-romantic artist; lived in Sarpsborg from 1954 * Kjell Karlsen (1931 in Sarpsborg – 2020) band leader, composer, jazz pianist and organist * Nils Ole Oftebro (born 1944 in Sarpsborg) a Norwegian actor and illustrator * Jan Groth (born 1946 in Greåker) vocalist, songwriter, artist with Aunt Mary and other bands * Ketil Gudim (born 1956 in Sarpsborg) a Norwegian dancer and actor * Einstein Kristiansen (born 1965 in Greåker) a cartoonist, designer and TV-host * Kåre Christoffer Vestrheim (born 1969 in Sarpsborg) record producer, musician and composer * Stian Johansen (born 1971 in Sarpsborg) stage name ''Occultus'',

black metal Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, a shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, raw ( lo-fi) recording, unconventional song structures, and an em ...

musician * Stephan Groth (born 1971) musician with Apoptygma Berzerk; lived in Sarpsborg since 1986 * Jasmin Haugstuen Please (born 1988) actress * Ulrikke Brandstorp (born 1995 in Sarpsborg) singer, songwriter and musical actress Thomas Myhre 04

2009 Women's British Open - Marianne Skarpnord (2)

Sport

Therese Bertheau Therese Bertheau (23 November 1861 – March 1936) was a pioneering female Norwegian mountaineer. She was among the first in modern times to introduce trousers as an everyday item of clothing for women. Bertheau was born in Skjeberg in Østfold, ...

(1861 in Skjeberg – 1936) a pioneering female Norwegian mountaineer * John Anderson (1873 in Sarpsborg – 1949) US

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) ...

player for 15 seasons *

Bjørn Spydevold Bjørn Spydevold (8 September 1918 – 30 March 2002) was a Norwegian football player. He was born in Sarpsborg, and played for the sports club Fredrikstad FK. He played for the Norwegian national team at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsink ...

(1918 in Sarpsborg – 2002) a footballer with 37 caps for

Bent Skammelsrud Bent André Skammelsrud (born 18 May 1966) is a Norwegian former professional footballer, most known as an important midfielder for Rosenborg BK. He has eleven consecutive championships in the Norwegian Premier League, and three times he won the ...

(born 1966 in Sarpsborg) footballer, with 366 club caps, mainly for

Rosenborg BK Rosenborg Ballklub, commonly referred to simply as Rosenborg () or RBK, is a Norwegian professional association football, football club from Trondheim that plays in Eliteserien (football), Eliteserien. The club has won a record 26 league titles ...

and 38 for

Thomas Myhre Thomas Harald Myhre (born 16 October 1973) is a Norwegian football manager and former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He is currently the manager of Moss. The last club he played for before his retirement was Kongsvinger, ...

(born 1973 in Sarpsborg) goalkeeper with 346 club caps and 56 for

Raymond Kvisvik Raymond Kvisvik (born 8 November 1974) is a Norwegian former professional association football, footballer who played as a winger (association football), winger. He is most noted for his spells at SK Brann, Brann, but he did also play for Moss F ...

(born 1974 in Sarpsborg) footballer, with 425 club caps and 11 for

Jens Arne Svartedal Jens Arne Svartedal (born February 14, 1976) is a Norwegian former cross-country skier who competed in the World Cup between 1999 and 2010. He represented Trøsken IL from Sarpsborg in Norway. His greatest achievement is winning the individual ...

(born 1976 in Sarpsborg),

cross-country skier Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...

, team silver medallist at the 2006 Winter Olympics * Per-Åge Skrøder (born 1978 in Sarpsborg),

player with men's national team * Marianne Skarpnord (born 1986 in Sarpsborg) pro. golfer, plays on

Ladies European Tour The Ladies European Tour is a professional golf tour for women which was founded in 1978. It is based at Buckinghamshire Golf Club near London in England. Like many UK-based sports organisations it is a company limited by guarantee, a legal str ...

Jonas Holøs Jonas Holøs (born August 27, 1987) is a Norwegian former professional ice hockey defenseman who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) and participated in the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics as a member of Team Norway. Playing career Holøs ...

(born 1987 in Sarpsborg),

player with men's national team * Marie Solberg (born 1988 in Sarpsborg) a sailor, bronze medallist at the

2012 Summer Paralympics The 2012 Summer Paralympics, branded as the London 2012 Paralympic Games, were an international multi-sport parasports event held from 29 August to 9 September 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. They were the 14th Summer Paralympic Gam ...

Sander Skogli Sander Skogli (born 4 May 1993 in Sarpsborg, Norway) is a Norwegian ice hockey goaltender who plays for Sparta Warriors. He has also made several appearances for the Norwegian national team at various youth levels. Awards and achievements Took ...

(born 1993 in Sarpsborg), ice hockey player

Twin towns - Sister cities

Sarpsborg has several

sister cities A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Cities and towns in Norway Municipalities of Østfold Municipalities of Viken (county) Populated places on the Glomma River