Norway Flag and Meaning

Flag of Norway

Norway Flag Meaning

Norway’s flag is based on Dannebrogen ( Danish flag ) when Norway was in union with Denmark between the years 1397 and 1814. The blue cross on the unoriginal red and white flag symbolizes the time of union with Sweden as Norway was in union with the years 1814 to 1905.

However, the blue color darker than on the Swedish flag as the color is based on an older variant of the Swedish flag.

Norway Overview

The country is intersected from north to south by the Scandinavian mountain range. Glacier erosion has carved deep furrows in the mountains facing the Atlantic, and this is also the geological background for the formation of the country’s deep fjords. The climate is greatly influenced by the Gulf Stream, whose heat limits the cold of winter and allows for crops that are not possible at similar latitudes. The highlands are characterized by peat bogs and tundra. The indigenous people, the Sami, live in the northernmost part of the country where they are engaged in reindeer husbandry. Most of the country’s population lives in the south, and especially in the area around Oslo. 90% of the country is uninhabited.

Non-human country with right-wing government that notoriously violates the UN Refugee Convention.

The people: Norwegians (96.3%), Danes (0.4%), Swedes (0.3%), Englishmen (0.3%), Pakistanis (0.2%), North Americans (0.2%), Yugoslavs (0.2%), Iranians (0.2%), others (1.9%). Among the latter are the indigenous people, the Sami, who live primarily in Finnmark.

Religion: 88% of the population are Protestants (Lutherans). There are Catholic and evangelical minorities.

Language: There are two different recognized forms of Norwegian: 80% of school pupils learn the traditional form, “Bokmål”, and 20% the new form, “National language” or New Norwegian. The Sami speak their own language.

Political parties: The Norwegian Labor Party (DNA, Social Democracy). The Conservative Party. The Extreme Right Party The Progressive Party was founded in 1973. The Christian Democratic Party. The Liberal Party. Center Party. Socialist Left Party (SV). Red Valgalliance (RV).

Social organizations: The National Organization (LO)

Official name: Kingdom of Norway.

Administrative Division: 19 (Counties)

Capital: Oslo, 1,422,442 residents (2010).

Other important cities: Bergen, 200,200 residents; Trondheim, 140,700 residents; Stavanger, 109,900 residents (2000).

Government: Constitutional parliamentary monarchy since 1884. Harald V has been the country’s king since 1991. Erna Solberg has been the country’s prime minister since October 2013. Parliament has a Chamber (Parliament) with 165 members.

National Day: May 17 (Constitution Day, 1814).

Armed Forces: 27,000 (2003).