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Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the
capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...
and most populous city of
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
. It constitutes both a
county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
and a
municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality ...
. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater
urban area An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities, ...
had a population of in 2019, and the metropolitan area had an estimated population of in 2021. During the
Viking Age The Viking Age () was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonizing, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. It followed the Migration Period The ...
the area was part of
Viken Viken may refer to: * Viken, Scandinavia, a historical region *Viken (county), a Norwegian county established in 2020 * Viken, Sweden, a bimunicipal locality in Skåne County, Sweden * Viken (lake), a lake in Sweden, part of the part of the Göta c ...
. Oslo was founded as a city at the end of the Viking Age in 1040 under the name Ánslo, and established as a ''kaupstad'' or trading place in 1048 by
Harald Hardrada Harald Sigurdsson (; – 25 September 1066), also known as Harald III of Norway and given the epithet ''Hardrada'' (; modern no, Hardråde, roughly translated as "stern counsel" or "hard ruler") in the sagas, was King of Norway from 1046 to ...
. The city was elevated to a
bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
in 1070 and a capital under
Haakon V of Norway Haakon V Magnusson (10 April 1270 – 8 May 1319) ( non, Hákon Magnússon; no, Håkon Magnusson, label= Modern Norwegian) was king of Norway from 1299 until 1319. Biography Haakon was the younger surviving son of Magnus the Lawmender, Ki ...
around 1300.
Personal union A personal union is the combination of two or more State (polity), states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, would involve the constituent states being to some e ...
s with Denmark from 1397 to 1523 and again from 1536 to 1814 reduced its influence. After being destroyed by a fire in 1624, during the reign of
King Christian IV Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian monar ...
, a new city was built closer to
Akershus Fortress Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress ha ...
and named Christiania in honour of the king. It became a
municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality ...
(''
formannskapsdistrikt () is the name for Norwegian local self-government districts that were legally enacted on 1 January 1838. This system of municipalities was created in a bill approved by the Parliament of Norway and signed into law by King Carl Johan on 14 Janua ...
'') on 1 January 1838. The city functioned as the capital of Norway during the 1814–1905
union between Sweden and Norway Sweden and Norway or Sweden–Norway ( sv, Svensk-norska unionen; no, Den svensk-norske union(en)), officially the United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway, and known as the United Kingdoms, was a personal union of the separate Monarchy, kingdoms ...
. From 1877, the city's name was spelled Kristiania in government usage, a spelling that was adopted by the municipal authorities in 1897. In 1925, the city, after incorporating the village retaining its former name, was renamed Oslo. In 1948 Oslo merged with
Aker Aker may refer to: Places * Aker, Norway, a geographic area in Oslo and a former municipality in Norway * Vestre Aker, a district of Oslo within former Aker municipality * Nordre Aker, a district of Oslo within former Aker municipality * Aker Br ...
, a municipality which surrounded the capital and which was 27 times larger, thus creating the modern, much larger Oslo municipality. Oslo is the
economic An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with t ...
and
governmental A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
centre of Norway. The city is also a hub of Norwegian trade, banking, industry and shipping. It is an important centre for maritime industries and maritime trade in Europe. The city is home to many companies within the maritime sector, some of which are among the world's largest shipping companies, shipbrokers and maritime insurance brokers. Oslo is a pilot city of the Council of Europe and the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
intercultural cities programme. Oslo is considered a global city and was ranked "Beta World City" in studies carried out by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network in 2008. It was ranked number one in terms of quality of life among European large cities in the European Cities of the Future 2012 report by ''fDi'' magazine. A survey conducted by
ECA International ECA International provides data, software services, consultancy and training to help companies manage compensation and benefits for international workers moving around the world on a short-term, long-term or permanent basis. The company offers ...
in 2011 placed Oslo as the second most expensive city in the world for living expenses after
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
. In 2013 Oslo tied with the Australian city of
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...
as the fourth most expensive city in the world, according to the
Economist Intelligence Unit The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) is the research and analysis division of the Economist Group, providing forecasting and advisory services through research and analysis, such as monthly country reports, five-year country economic forecasts, ...
(EIU)'s Worldwide Cost of Living study. Oslo was ranked as the 24th most liveable city in the world by Monocle magazine. Oslo's population was increasing at record rates during the early 2000s, making it the fastest growing major
city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be de ...
in Europe at the time. This growth stems for the most part from international
immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, a ...
and related high birth rates, but also from intra-national migration. By 2010 the immigrant population in the city was growing somewhat faster than the
Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...
population, and in the city proper this had become more than 25% of the total population if the children of immigrant parents are included.


Urban region

The municipality of Oslo has a population of as of 31 March 2022. The urban area extends beyond the boundaries of the municipality into the surrounding
county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
of
Viken Viken may refer to: * Viken, Scandinavia, a historical region *Viken (county), a Norwegian county established in 2020 * Viken, Sweden, a bimunicipal locality in Skåne County, Sweden * Viken (lake), a lake in Sweden, part of the part of the Göta c ...
(municipalities of
Asker Asker ( no, Asker), properly called Askerbygda in Norwegian, is a district and former municipality in Akershus, Norway. From 2020 it is part of the larger administrative municipality Asker, Viken (also known as Greater Asker) in Viken count ...
,
Bærum Bærum () is a municipality in the Greater Oslo Region in Norway that forms an affluent suburb of Oslo on the west coast of the city. Bærum is Norway's fifth largest municipality with a population of 128,760 (2021). It is part of the electora ...
,
Lillestrøm Lillestrøm is a municipality in Viken county. It is located in the traditional district of Romerike. With a population of 85,757 inhabitants, it is the fourth most populated municipality in Viken. It was founded on 1 January 2020 as a merger ...
,
Enebakk Enebakk is a municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the Follo traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Kirkebygda. The parish of ''Enebak'' was established as a municipa ...
,
Rælingen Rælingen is a village and municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Fjerdingby. Rælingen was separated from the municip ...
,
Lørenskog is a municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. A suburb of Oslo, it is part of the Oslo urban area and the traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Lørenskog. Lørenskog was sepa ...
,
Nittedal Nittedal is a municipality and city in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rotnes. The parish of ''Nitedal'' was established as a ...
,
Gjerdrum Gjerdrum () is a municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike. Gjerdrum borders the municipalities of Nannestad, Nittedal, and Ullensaker, and Lillestrøm. The administrative centre of the m ...
,
Nordre Follo ''Nordre'' (Northern), formerly known as ''Haramsnytt'' (The Haram News), is a local Norwegian newspaper c