Bergstad or Bergstaden is an old classification for a

mining town A mining community, also known as a mining town or a mining camp, is a community that houses miners. Mining communities are usually created around a mine or a quarry. Historical mining communities Australia * Ballarat, Victoria * Bendig ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. In the past, a ''bergstad'' had its own laws, so-called mountain laws. Today, the town of Røros is the only remaining ''bergstad'' in Norway. Before 1683, the mountain laws in Norway followed those from the

Electorate of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony ( or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356 to 1806 initially centred on Wittenberg that came to include areas around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. It was a ...

which were enacted in the 14th century. On 23 June 1683, the Kingdom of Denmark-Norway enacted their own mountain laws which authorized later royal ordinances and mountain privileges for ''bergstad'' in Norway. In Norway, only

Kongsberg Kongsberg () is a historical mining town and municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. The city is located on the river Numedalslågen at the entrance to the valley of Numedal. Kongsberg has been a centre of silver mining, arms production and fo ...

and

Røros Røros may refer to: Places * Røros Municipality, a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway * Røros (town), a town within Røros Municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway * Røros Church, a church in Røros Municipality in Trøndelag county, No ...

were ever given the status of ''bergstad'' under the law. In 1802, the ''bergstad'' of Kongsberg was granted formal town status as a

kjøpstad A (historically ''kjøbstad'', ''kjöbstad'', or ''kaupstad'', from ) is an old Scandinavian term for a "market town" in Denmark–Norway for several hundred years. Kjøpstads were places of trade and exporting materials (e.g. timber, flour, iron ...

. Since then, the town of Røros is the only ''bergstad'' in Norway.

Røros Municipality ( Norwegian) or is a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Røros. Some of the villages in Røros include Brekken, Glåmos, Feragen, Galåa, and Hitterdalen. The municip ...

considered designating the mining town as a regular city (like many other places in Norway) but the municipal council concluded that it was more unique to still present itself as a ''bergstad'' mining town rather than as a city. Bergstaden Røros and surrounding areas are a

UNESCO world heritage site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

References

{{reflist Market towns Cities and towns in Norway Mining communities History of mining