Government

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

etymology: the medieval name was spelt "Aslo"; the as component refered either to the Ekeberg ridge southeast of the town ("as" in modern Norwegian), or to the Aesir (Norse gods); lo refered to "meadow," so the most likely interpretations would have been either "the meadow beneath the ridge" or "the meadow of the gods"; both explanations are considered equally plausible
Administrative divisions

11 counties (fylker, singular - fylke); Agder, Innlandet, More og Romsdal, Nordland, Oslo, Rogaland, Troms og Finnmark, Trondelag, Vestfold og Telemark, Vestland, Viken
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); notable earlier dates: ca. 872 (traditional unification of petty Norwegian kingdoms by HARALD Fairhair); 1397 (Kalmar Union of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden); 1524 (Denmark-Norway); 17 May 1814 (Norwegian constitution adopted); 4 November 1814 (Sweden-Norway union confirmed)
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 2020
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
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 Jonas Gahr STORE (since 14 October 2021); note - Prime Minister Erna SOLBERG resigned on 12 October 2021

cabinet: Council of State 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 list proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms)

elections: last held on 13 September 2021 (next to be held on 30 September 2025)

election results:
percent of vote by party - Ap 26.3%, H 20.5%, SP 13.6%, FrP 11.7%, SV 7.6%, R 4.7%, V 4.6%, MDG 3.9%, KrF 3.8%, PF 0.2%, other 3.1%; seats by party - Ap 48, H 36, SP 28, FrP 21, SV 13, R 8, V 8, , KrF 3, MDG 3, PF 1; composition (as of October 2021) men 93, women 76, percent of women 45%
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; justices can serve until mandatory retirement at age 70

subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal or Lagmennsrett; 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 [Olaug Vervik BOLLESTAD]
Conservative Party or H [Erna SOLBERG]
Green Party or MDG [Une Aina BASTHOLM]
Labor Party or Ap [Jonas Gahr STORE]
Liberal Party or V [Guri MELBY]
Patient Focus or PF [Irene OJALA]
Progress Party or FrP [Sylvi LISTHAUG]
Red Party or R [Bjonar MOXNES]
Socialist Left Party or SV [Audun LYSBAKKEN]