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The Kingdom of Norway is one of the three Nordic nations known as Scandinavia (alongside Sweden and Denmark). Norway is a long and narrow country, with more than 30% of the land covered by forests, many rivers and lakes. Norway is a constitutional monarchy that adopted its own constitution on 17 May 1814. Although the King has no real political power, the Royal Family enjoys a strong position among the Norwegian people. The Prime Minister is the most senior member of the Government, responsible for coordinating and leading the work of the Government. North Sea oil and gas fields are one of the cornerstones of the Norwegian economy. Other major industries upon which Norway relies are fishery, pulp and paper, forestry, mining, manufacturing and shipping.

* Source: Go Norway

Capital: Olso

Population: 5,085,582 (July 2013 est.)

Official Languages: Bokmal Norwegian and Nynorsk Norwegian

Currency: Krone (NOK)

Ethnicity/race: Norwegian 94.4% (includes Sami, about 60,000), other European 3.6%, other 2% (2007 estimate)

Religion: Church of Norway (Evangelical Lutheran – official) 82.1%, other Christian 3.9%, Muslim 2.3%, Roman Catholic 1.8%, other 2.4%, unspecified 7.5% (2011 est.)

* Source: CIA Factbook

3 Interesting Facts:

1. Norway is usually mistaken to be an EU country – it is not a member of the European Union, but it is part of the border free area of Schengen. Norway and Switzerland are the only two Western European countries that are not part of the European Union.
2. Norway and Denmark formed one kingdom from 1380 to 1814 when, in the wake of the Napoleonic wars, Norway was united with Sweden, adopting a modern constitution in the process. In 1905, Norway and Sweden went their separate ways peacefully and Norway has been independent since then.
3. Norwegians claim to have invented modern skiing as a sport. The word “ski” is Norwegian for “piece of wood”.

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