Oslo, capital city of Norway and seat of Oslo County (with which it is coextensive) and of Akershus County. It is on the Aker River, at the head of Oslofjorden, in the southeastern part of the country. Oslo is the largest city, leading seaport, and principal commercial, manufacturing, and cultural center of Norway. Major products include ships, electrical and electronic equipment, chemicals, textiles, processed food, wood and metal items, machinery, and printed materials. Government activities and tourism are also important to the city's economy.
Oslo is predominantly modern in design and architecture and is noted for its many museums, parks, and public statues. In the city are the University of Oslo (1811), which includes museums of paleontology, ethnography, and mineralogy, as well as colleges of architecture, theology, veterinary medicine, fine arts, and music; the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters (1857); the Norwegian Nobel Institute, which helps select the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize; and the National Archives. Other points of interest include the National Gallery, which contains collections of European, especially Norwegian, art; the Oslo Museum of Decorative Art; the Norwegian Folk Museum; Frogner Park, which contains about 150 works by the Norwegian sculptor Gustav Vigeland; the Munch Museum, with paintings by the Norwegian artist Edvard Munch; the Kon-Tiki Museum, with exhibits relating to the voyages of the Norwegian anthropologist and explorer Thor Heyerdahl; Akershus Fortress (1300?); the royal palace (1848); and the Storting (parliament) building.
