Norway (2005) | Greenland (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | 19 counties (fylker, singular - fylke); Akershus, Aust-Agder, Buskerud, Finnmark, Hedmark, Hordaland, More og Romsdal, Nordland, Nord-Trondelag, Oppland, Oslo, Ostfold, Rogaland, Sogn og Fjordane, Sor-Trondelag, Telemark, Troms, Vest-Agder, Vestfold | 3 districts (landsdele); Avannaa (Nordgronland), Tunu (Ostgronland), Kitaa (Vestgronland)
note: there are 18 municipalities in Greenland |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 19.5% (male 459,418/female 437,734)
15-64 years: 65.7% (male 1,531,249/female 1,484,656) 65 years and over: 14.8% (male 286,343/female 393,641) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years: 25% (male 7,216/female 6,888)
15-64 years: 68.7% (male 20,897/female 17,823) 65 years and over: 6.3% (male 1,672/female 1,879) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | barley, wheat, potatoes; pork, beef, veal, milk; fish | forage crops, garden and greenhouse vegetables; sheep, reindeer; fish |
Airports | 101 (2004 est.) | 14 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 65
2,438 to 3,047 m: 13 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 26 (2004 est.) |
total: 9
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 36
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 29 (2004 est.) |
total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 324,220 sq km
land: 307,860 sq km water: 16,360 sq km |
total: 2,166,086 sq km
land: 2,166,086 sq km (410,449 sq km ice-free, 1,755,637 sq km ice-covered) (2000 est.) |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than New Mexico | slightly more than three times the size of Texas |
Background | Two centuries of Viking raids into Europe tapered off following the adoption of Christianity by King Olav TRYGGVASON in 994. Conversion of the Norwegian kingdom occurred over the next several decades. In 1397, Norway was absorbed into a union with Denmark that was to last for more than four centuries. In 1814, Norwegians resisted the cession of their country to Sweden and adopted a new constitution. Sweden then invaded Norway but agreed to let Norway keep its constitution in return for accepting the union under a Swedish king. Rising nationalism throughout the 19th century led to a 1905 referendum granting Norway independence. Although Norway remained neutral in World War I, it suffered heavy losses to its shipping. Norway proclaimed its neutrality at the outset of World War II, but was nonetheless occupied for five years by Nazi Germany (1940-45). In 1949, neutrality was abandoned and Norway became a member of NATO. Discovery of oil and gas in adjacent waters in the late 1960s boosted Norway's economic fortunes. The current focus is on containing spending on the extensive welfare system and planning for the time when petroleum reserves are depleted. In referenda held in 1972 and 1994, Norway rejected joining the EU. | The world's largest island, Greenland is about 81% ice-capped. Vikings reached the island in the 10th century from Iceland; Danish colonization began in the 18th century and Greenland was made an integral part of Denmark in 1953. It joined the European Community (now the European Union) with Denmark in 1973 but withdrew in 1985 over a dispute over stringent fishing quotas. Greenland was granted self-government in 1979 by the Danish parliament. The law went into effect the following year. Denmark continues to exercise control of Greenland's foreign affairs. |
Birth rate | 11.67 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 15.93 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $134 billion
expenditures: $116.8 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
revenues: $646 million
expenditures: $629 million, including capital expenditures of $85 million (1999) |
Capital | Oslo | Nuuk (Godthab) |
Climate | temperate along coast, modified by North Atlantic Current; colder interior with increased precipitation and colder summers; rainy year-round on west coast | arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters |
Coastline | 25,148 km (includes mainland 2,650 km, as well as long fjords, numerous small islands, and minor indentations 22,498 km; length of island coastlines 58,133 km) | 44,087 km |
Constitution | 17 May 1814; amended many times | 5 June 1953 (Danish constitution) |
Country name | conventional long form: Kingdom of Norway
conventional short form: Norway local long form: Kongeriket Norge local short form: Norge |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Greenland local long form: none local short form: Kalaallit Nunaat |
Death rate | 9.45 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 7.77 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $0 (Norway is a net external creditor) (2003 est.) | $25 million (1999) |
Dependency status | - | part of the Kingdom of Denmark; self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1979 |
Dependent areas | Bouvet Island, Jan Mayen, Svalbard | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador John D. ONG
embassy: Drammensveien 18, 0244 Oslo mailing address: PSC 69, Box 1000, APO AE 09707 telephone: [47] (22) 44 85 50 FAX: [47] (22) 44 33 63 |
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Knut VOLLEBAEK
chancery: 2720 34th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 333-6000 FAX: [1] (202) 337-0870 consulate(s) general: Houston, Minneapolis, New York, and San Francisco |
none (self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark) |
Disputes - international | Norway asserts a territorial claim in Antarctica (Queen Maud Land and its continental shelf); despite recent discussions, Russia and Norway continue to dispute their maritime limits in the Barents Sea and Russia's fishing rights beyond Svalbard's territorial limits within the Svalbard Treaty zone | uncontested dispute between Canada and Denmark over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Canada's Ellesmere Island and Greenland |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $1.4 billion (1998) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $380 million subsidy from Denmark (1997) |
Economy - overview | The Norwegian economy is a prosperous bastion of welfare capitalism, featuring a combination of free market activity and government intervention. The government controls key areas, such as the vital petroleum sector (through large-scale state enterprises). The country is richly endowed with natural resources - petroleum, hydropower, fish, forests, and minerals - and is highly dependent on its oil production and international oil prices, with oil and gas accounting for one-third of exports. Only Saudi Arabia and Russia export more oil than Norway. Norway opted to stay out of the EU during a referendum in November 1994; nonetheless, it contributes sizably to the EU budget. The government has moved ahead with privatization. With arguably the highest quality of life worldwide, Norwegians still worry about that time in the next two decades when the oil and gas will begin to run out. Accordingly, Norway has been saving its oil-boosted budget surpluses in a Government Petroleum Fund, which is invested abroad and now is valued at more than $150 billion. After lackluster growth of 1% in 2002 and 0.5% in 2003, GDP growth picked up to 3.3% in 2004. | The economy remains critically dependent on exports of fish and substantial support from the Danish Government, which supplies about half of government revenues. The public sector, including publicly-owned enterprises and the municipalities, plays the dominant role in the economy. Despite several interesting hydrocarbon and minerals exploration activities, it will take several years before production can materialize. Tourism is the only sector offering any near-term potential, and even this is limited due to a short season and high costs. |
Electricity - consumption | 107.4 billion kWh (2002) | 227.9 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 15 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 5.3 billion kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 125.9 billion kWh (2002) | 245 million kWh (2002) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Norwegian Sea 0 m
highest point: Galdhopiggen 2,469 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Gunnbjorn 3,700 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution; acid rain damaging forests and adversely affecting lakes, threatening fish stocks; air pollution from vehicle emissions | protection of the arctic environment; preservation of the Inuit traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
- |
Ethnic groups | Norwegian, Sami 20,000 | Greenlander 88% (Inuit and Greenland-born whites), Danish and others 12% (January 2000) |
Exchange rates | Norwegian kroner per US dollar - 6.7408 (2004), 7.0802 (2003), 7.9838 (2002), 8.9917 (2001), 8.8018 (2000) | Danish kroner per US dollar - 5.9911 (2004), 6.5877 (2003), 7.8947 (2002), 8.3228 (2001), 8.0831 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state: King HARALD V (since 17 January 1991); Heir Apparent Crown Prince HAAKON MAGNUS, son of the monarch (born 20 July 1973)
head of government: Prime Minister Jens STOLTENBERG (since 17 October 2005) cabinet: State Council appointed by the monarch with the approval of parliament elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following parliamentary elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch with the approval of the parliament |
chief of state: Queen MARGRETHE II of Denmark (since 14 January 1972), represented by High Commissioner Peter LAURITEEN (since NA 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Hans ENOKSEN (since 14 December 2002) cabinet: Home Rule Government is elected by the parliament (Landstinget) on the basis of the strength of parties elections: the monarchy is hereditary; high commissioner appointed by the monarch; prime minister is elected by parliament (usually the leader of the majority party); election last held 3 December 2002 (next to be held December 2006) election results: Hans ENOKSEN elected prime minister note: government coalition - Siumut and Inuit Ataqatigiit |
Exports | 3.466 million bbl/day (2001) | NA |
Exports - commodities | petroleum and petroleum products, machinery and equipment, metals, chemicals, ships, fish | fish and fish products 94% (prawns 63%) |
Exports - partners | UK 22.4%, Germany 12.9%, Netherlands 9.9%, France 9.6%, US 8.4%, Sweden 6.7% (2004) | Denmark 63.8%, Japan 12.6%, China 3.9% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red with a blue cross outlined in white that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) | two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a large disk slightly to the hoist side of center - the top half of the disk is red, the bottom half is white |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2.2%
industry: 36.3% services: 61.6% (2004 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $40,000 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $20,000 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3.3% (2004 est.) | 1.8% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 62 00 N, 10 00 E | 72 00 N, 40 00 W |
Geography - note | about two-thirds mountains; some 50,000 islands off its much indented coastline; strategic location adjacent to sea lanes and air routes in North Atlantic; one of most rugged and longest coastlines in world | dominates North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe; sparse population confined to small settlements along coast, but close to one-quarter of the population lives in the capital, Nuuk; world's second largest ice cap |
Heliports | 1 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 91,852 km
paved: 71,185 km (including 178 km of expressways) unpaved: 20,667 km (2002) |
total: NA (there are no roads between towns) (2003) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 4.1%
highest 10%: 21.8% (1995) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | 88,870 bbl/day (2001) | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, foodstuffs | machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, petroleum products |
Imports - partners | Sweden 15.7%, Germany 13.6%, Denmark 7.3%, UK 6.5%, China 5%, US 4.9%, Netherlands 4.4%, France 4.3%, Finland 4.1% (2004) | Denmark 78.7%, Sweden 11.9%, Norway 2.7% (2004) |
Independence | 7 June 1905 (Norway declared the union with Sweden dissolved); 26 October 1905 (Sweden agreed to the repeal of the union) | none (part of the Kingdom of Denmark; foreign affairs is the responsibility of Denmark, but Greenland actively participates in international agreements relating to Greenland) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5.2% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Industries | petroleum and gas, food processing, shipbuilding, pulp and paper products, metals, chemicals, timber, mining, textiles, fishing | fish processing (mainly shrimp and Greenland halibut); gold, niobium, tantalite, uranium, iron and diamond mining; handicrafts, hides and skins, small shipyards |
Infant mortality rate | total: 3.7 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.07 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.32 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
total: 15.82 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 17.15 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1% (2004 est.) | 1.6% (1999 est.) |
International organization participation | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EFTA, ESA, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC | NC, NIB, UPU |
Irrigated land | 1,270 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Hoyesterett (justices appointed by the monarch) | High Court or Landsret (appeals can be made to the Ostre Landsret or Eastern Division of the High Court or Supreme Court in Copenhagen) |
Labor force | 2.38 million (2004 est.) | 24,500 (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture, forestry, and fishing 4%, industry 22%, services 74% (1995) | - |
Land boundaries | total: 2,542 km
border countries: Finland 727 km, Sweden 1,619 km, Russia 196 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.87%
permanent crops: 0% other: 97.13% (2001) |
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001) |
Languages | Bokmal Norwegian (official), Nynorsk Norwegian (official), small Sami- and Finnish-speaking minorities | Greenlandic (East Inuit), Danish, English |
Legal system | mixture of customary law, civil law system, and common law traditions; Supreme Court renders advisory opinions to legislature when asked; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | Danish |
Legislative branch | modified unicameral Parliament or Storting (169 seats; members are elected by popular vote by proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 12 September 2005 (next to be held September 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - Labor Party 32.7%, Progress Party 22.1%, Conservative Party 14.1%, Socialist Left Party 8.8%, Christian People's Party 6.8%, Center Party 6.5%, Liberal Party 5.9%, Red Electoral Alliance 1.2%, other 1.9%; seats by party - Labor Party 61, Progress Party 38, Conservative Party 23, Socialist Left Party 15, Christian People's Party 11, Center Party 11, Liberal Party 10 note: for certain purposes, the parliament divides itself into two chambers and elects one-fourth of its membership to an upper house or Lagting |
unicameral Parliament or Landstinget (31 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held on 3 December 2002 (next to be held by December 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - Siumut 28.7%, Inuit Ataqatigiit 25.5%, Atassut Party 20.4%, Demokratiit 15.6%, Katusseqatigiit 5.3%; seats by party - Siumut 10, Inuit Ataqatigiit 8, Atassut 7, Demokratiit 5, Katusseqatigiit 1 note: two representatives were elected to the Danish Parliament or Folketing on 8 February 2005 (next to be held February 2009); percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Siumut 1, Inuit Ataqatigiit 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 79.4 years
male: 76.78 years female: 82.17 years (2005 est.) |
total population: 69.65 years
male: 66.07 years female: 73.31 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% |
definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% note: similar to Denmark proper |
Location | Northern Europe, bordering the North Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Sweden | Northern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada |
Map references | Europe | Arctic Region |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 10 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 3 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line |
Merchant marine | total: 740 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 18,820,495 GRT/27,449,456 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 51, cargo 168, chemical tanker 142, combination ore/oil 20, container 3, liquefied gas 81, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 113, petroleum tanker 79, refrigerated cargo 6, roll on/roll off 30, vehicle carrier 42 foreign-owned: 174 (Belgium 1, China 3, Cyprus 5, Denmark 28, Estonia 2, Finland 5, Germany 4, Hong Kong 52, Iceland 3, Italy 3, Japan 3, Lithuania 1, Monaco 1, Netherlands 4, Poland 2, Saudi Arabia 7, Singapore 10, Sweden 24, United States 16) registered in other countries: 1,117 (2005) |
total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,593 GRT/3,640 DWT
by type: cargo 1, passenger 2 foreign-owned: 1 (Denmark 1) registered in other countries: 1 (2005) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of Denmark |
Military branches | Norwegian Army, Royal Norwegian Navy (includes Coastal Rangers and Coast Guard (Kystvakt)), Royal Norwegian Air Force (Kongelige Norske Luftforsvaret, RNoAF), Home Guard | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $4,033.5 million (2003) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.9% (2003) | - |
National holiday | Constitution Day, 17 May (1814) | June 21 (longest day) |
Nationality | noun: Norwegian(s)
adjective: Norwegian |
noun: Greenlander(s)
adjective: Greenlandic |
Natural hazards | rockslides, avalanches | continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the island |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, titanium, pyrites, nickel, fish, timber, hydropower | coal, iron ore, lead, zinc, molybdenum, gold, platinum, uranium, fish, seals, whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas |
Net migration rate | 1.73 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -8.37 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 411 km; gas 6,199 km; oil 2,213 km; oil/gas/water 746 km; unknown (oil/water) 38 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Center Party [Aslaug Marie HAGA]; Christian People's Party [Dagfinn HOYBRATEN]; Coastal Party [Roy WAAGE]; Conservative Party [Erna SOLBERG]; Labor Party [Jens STOLTENBERG]; Liberal Party [Lars SPONHEIM]; Progress Party [Carl I. HAGEN]; Socialist Left Party [Kristin HALVORSEN] | Atassut Party (Solidarity, a conservative party favoring continuing close relations with Denmark) [Augusta SALLING]; Demokratiit [Per BERTHELSEN]; Inuit Ataqatigiit or IA (Eskimo Brotherhood, a leftist party favoring complete independence from Denmark rather than home rule) [Josef MOTZFELDT]; Issituup (Polar Party) [Nicolai HEINRICH]; Kattusseqatigiit (Candidate List, an independent right-of-center party with no official platform [leader NA]; Siumut (Forward Party, a social democratic party advocating more distinct Greenlandic identity and greater autonomy from Denmark) [Hans ENOKSEN] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 4,593,041 (July 2005 est.) | 56,375 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.4% (2005 est.) | -0.02% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Borg Havn, Bergen, Mo i Rana, Molde, Mongstad, Narvik, Oslo, Sture | Sisimiut |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM at least 650, shortwave 1 (1998) | AM 5, FM 12, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Railways | total: 4,077 km
standard gauge: 4,077 km 1.435-m gauge (2,518 km electrified) (2004) |
- |
Religions | Church of Norway 85.7%, Pentecostal 1%, Roman Catholic 1%, other Christian 2.4%, Muslim 1.8%, other 8.1% (2004) | Evangelical Lutheran |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.17 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female total population: 1.12 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern in all respects; one of the most advanced telecommunications networks in Europe
domestic: Norway has a domestic satellite system; moreover, the prevalence of rural areas encourages the wide use of cellular mobile systems instead of fixed-wire systems international: country code - 47; 2 buried coaxial cable systems; 4 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - NA Eutelsat, NA Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), and 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Norway shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and Sweden) (1999) |
general assessment: adequate domestic and international service provided by satellite, cables and microwave radio relay; totally digitalized in 1995
domestic: microwave radio relay and satellite international: country code - 299; satellite earth stations - 12 Intelsat, 1 Eutelsat, 2 Americom GE-2 (all Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3.343 million (2002) | 26,000 (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4,163,400 (2003) | 16,747 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 360 (plus 2,729 repeaters) (1995) | 1 publicly-owned station, some local low-power stations, and three AFRTS (US Air Force) stations (1997) |
Terrain | glaciated; mostly high plateaus and rugged mountains broken by fertile valleys; small, scattered plains; coastline deeply indented by fjords; arctic tundra in north | flat to gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow, mountainous, barren, rocky coast |
Total fertility rate | 1.78 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.41 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.3% (2004 est.) | 10% (2000 est.) |