Norway, officially Kingdom of Norway (in Norwegian, Kongeriket Norge), constitutional monarchy in northern Europe, occupying the western and northern portions of the Scandinavian Peninsula. It is bordered on the north by the Barents Sea, an arm of the Arctic Ocean, on the north-east by Finland and Russia, on the east by Sweden, on the south by the Skagerrak Strait and the North Sea, and on the west by the Atlantic Ocean, which in Norway is also called the Norwegian Sea. Norway's deeply indented and glaciated coastline measures about 21,925 km (13,624 mi) including all the fiords and offshore islands. The passageway between the screen of more than 150,000 offshore islands-known locally as the skerry guard-and the mainland is naturally protected. "Norway" means "northern way", which reflects the importance of the sheltered coastal waters in linking the many small fiord and valley communities that are otherwise separated by rugged mountains. Norway has an area of 323,877 sq km (125,016 sq mi). Oslo is Norway's capital and largest city.

Population
        4,369,957
        (1996 estimate)
Population Density
        13 persons/sq km
        (35 people/sq mi)
        (1996 estimate)
Urban/Rural Breakdown
        75%Urban
        25%Rural
Largest Cities
        Oslo483,401
        Bergen221,717
        Trondheim142,927
        Stavanger103,590
        (1995 estimate)
Ethnic Groups
        98%Norwegian
        2%Other
        including Finns, Sami (Lapps), Danes, Americans, Britons, 
        Swedes, and Pakistanis
Languages
Official Language
        Norwegian (Bokmål and Nynorsk dialects)
Other Languages
        Sami
Religions
        89%Norwegian Evangelical
        Lutheranism
        11%Other
        including Pentecostalism and other Protestant denominations