Culture in Norway
Culture in Norway is not very different from the United States, but there is a greater focus on social etiquette and politeness. Also, like the United States, the vast majority of the population speaks one language; Norwegian.
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In Norway, women are equally respected in business and generally receive equal pay. In addition marriage is not a perquisite to starting family or living together.
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Religion
Before around the year 1000, Norway was mostly dominated by Norse mythology. Rather than being based on a religious community, Norse mythology focused on actions rather than faith. Emphasis was placed on pleasing the gods through sacrifices, mostly animal sacrifices rather than human ones. Around the year 1000, Norway became Christian. Today, Norway enjoys religious freedom and the Evangelical Lutheran religion is no longer the state religion, although it is still the major religion in Norway and the royal family must be part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church.
FoodThe food in Norway is very unique and diverse with traditional food items such as cured or smoked salmon, whale steak and the Fiskepudding. Becuase of the many fjords found in Norway and its long coastline, Norway is one of the worlds biggest exporters of fish. Also, this means that many of the traditional foods there are made from the high quality fish found there.
Each year in late August their is the Norwegian Food Festival which celebrates all of these foods and many other unique dishes. |
FolkloreOne of the most important part of Norwegian culture is its folklore. Many of Norway's folklore involves trolls, elves and witches among many other non-human characters. The physical features of Norway influenced the folklore a lot with many stories about trolls and elves that live in the forests of Norway.
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