Country name:
conventional long form: Kingdom of Norway
conventional short form: Norway
local long form: Kongeriket Norge
local short form: Norge
etymology: derives from the Old Norse words "nordr" and "vegr" meaning "northern way" and refers to the long coastline of western Norway

Government type:
parliamentary constitutional monarchy

Capital:
name: Oslo
geographic coordinates: 59 55 N, 10 45 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

Administrative divisions:
18 counties (fylker, singular - fylke); Akershus, Aust-Agder, Buskerud, Finnmark, Hedmark, Hordaland, More og Romsdal, Nordland, Oppland, Oslo, Ostfold, Rogaland, Sogn og Fjordane, Telemark, Troms, Trondelag, Vest-Agder, Vestfold

Dependent areas:
Bouvet Island, Jan Mayen, Svalbard

Independence:
7 June 1905 (declared the union with Sweden dissolved); 26 October 1905 (Sweden agreed to the repeal of the union)

National holiday:
Constitution Day, 17 May (1814)

Constitution:
history: drafted spring 1814, adopted 16 May 1814, signed by Constituent Assembly 17 May 1814
amendments: proposals submitted by members of Parliament or by the government within the first three years of Parliament's four-year term; passage requires two-thirds majority vote of a two-thirds quorum in the next elected Parliament; amended over 400 times, last in 2015 (2016)

Legal system:
mixed legal system of civil, common, and customary law; Supreme Court can advise on legislative acts

International law organization participation:
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship:
citizenship by birth: no
citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Norway
dual citizenship recognized: no
residency requirement for naturalization: 7 years

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
[see also: Suffrage country ranks ]

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 Erna SOLBERG (since 16 October 2013)
cabinet: State Council appointed by the monarch, approved by Parliament
elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; following parliamentary elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the monarch with the approval of the parliament

Legislative branch:
description: unicameral Parliament or Storting (169 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms)
elections: last held on 11 September 2017 (next to be held in September 2021)
election results: percent of vote by party - Ap 27.4%, H 25%, FrP 15.2%, SP 10.3%, SV 6%, V 4.4%, KrF 4.2%, MDG 3.2%, R 2.4%, other/invalid 1.9%; seats by party - Ap 49, H 45, FrP 27, SP 19, SV 11, V 8, KrF 8, MDG 1, R 1

Judicial branch:
highest court(s): Supreme Court or Hoyesterett (consists of the chief justice and 18 associate justices)
judge selection and term of office: justices appointed by the monarch (King in Council) upon the recommendation of the Judicial Appointments Board; justice retirement mandatory at age 70
subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal or Lagmensrett; regional and district courts; Conciliation Boards; ordinary and special courts; note - in addition to professionally trained judges, elected lay judges sit on the bench with professional judges in the Courts of Appeal and district courts

Political parties and leaders:
Center Party or Sp [Trygve Slagsvold VEDUM] Christian Democratic Party or KrF [Knut Arild HAREIDE] Conservative Party or H [Erna SOLBERG] Green Party or MDG [Rasmus HANSSON and Une Aina BASTHOLM] Labor Party or Ap [Jonas Gahr STORE] Liberal Party or V [Trine SKEI GRANDE] Progress Party or FrP [Siv JENSEN] Socialist Left Party or SV [Audun LYSBAKKEN]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise or NHO [Tore ULSTEIN, Kristin SKOGEN LUND] Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions or LO [Hans-Christian GABRIELSEN]
other: environmental groups; media; digital privacy movements

International organization participation:
ADB (nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CD, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EFTA, EITI (implementing country), ESA, FAO, FATF, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD (partners), IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMISS, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Kare Reidar AAS (since 17 September 2013)
chancery: 2720 34th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 333-6000
FAX: [1] (202) 459-3990
consulate(s) general: Houston, New York, San Francisco

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires James P. DEHART (since 12 January 2017)
embassy: Morgedalsvegen 36, 0378 Oslo;
mailing address: PSC 69, Box 1000, APO AE 09707
telephone: [47] 21-30-85-40
FAX: [47] 22-44-33-63, 22-56-27-51

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); the colors recall Norway's past political unions with Denmark (red and white) and Sweden (blue)

National symbol(s):
lion; national colors: red, white, blue

National anthem:
name: "Ja, vi elsker dette landet" (Yes, We Love This Country)
lyrics/music: lyrics/music: Bjornstjerne BJORNSON/Rikard NORDRAAK
note: adopted 1864; in addition to the national anthem, "Kongesangen" (Song of the King), which uses the tune of "God Save the Queen," serves as the royal anthem