Norway's geography
The Kingdom of Norway consists of the western and
northern parts of the Scandinavian peninsula as well as the
northern territories of Jan Mayen and the Svalbard archipelago,
Bouvet Island, Peter I Island, and Queen Maud Land in the
southern hemisphere. Europe’s sixth largest country in terms of
land mass, Norway is sparsely populated and ranks only 28th in
terms of population. The length of Norway’s mainland coast,
including fjords and bays, exceeds 20 000 km.
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To the east, Norway shares borders with
Sweden, Finland and Russia, and is otherwise surrounded by sea. Only a small
percentage of Norway’s land area is suitable for productive agriculture or
forestry, but the country is richly endowed with natural resources,
including petroleum, natural gas, various ores, fish, timber and hydropower.
These resources, particularly in the offshore sector, have helped Norway to
develop into one of the world’s richest countries per capita. This is partly
due to the country’s proximity to the important markets of Western Europe
and its easy access to energy, widespread industrialization, political
stability and high educational standards. Post World War 2 an active policy
of social distribution has been implemented as a means of sharing the
increase in national wealth. This policy has led to overall income
equalization independent of place, gender, age or profession, and has helped
to create a financially and socially cohesive society.
The name Norway is thought to mean “Path to the North”. |
