Editing Norway (section)

=== Administrative divisions ===
{{Main|Administrative divisions of Norway|Counties of Norway|Municipalities of Norway|List of towns and cities in Norway}}
{{See also|Sápmi (area)}}
[[File:Fylkesinndeling2024 original.webp|thumb|upright=0.9|A municipal and regional reform: "From 14 June 2022, the Storting decided the following division of counties."]]
Norway, a [[unitary state]], is divided into fifteen first-level administrative [[county|counties]] (''fylke'').<ref>{{cite web | title=Fylkesinndelingen fra 2024 | publisher=regjeringen.no | date=5 July 2022 | url=https://www.regjeringen.no/no/tema/kommuner-og-regioner/kommunestruktur/fylkesinndelingen-fra-2024/id2922222/ | language=nb | access-date=11 January 2024 | archive-date=17 March 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230317094243/https://www.regjeringen.no/no/tema/kommuner-og-regioner/kommunestruktur/fylkesinndelingen-fra-2024/id2922222/ | url-status=live }}</ref> The counties are administered through directly elected [[County municipality (Norway)|county councils]] who elect the [[County mayor|County Mayor]]. Additionally, the [[Norwegian Royal Family|King]] and government are represented in every county by a [[County governor (Norway)|County Governor]] ({{langx|no|statsforvalteren}}).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.norway.org/aboutnorway/society/political/local/ |title=Local Government |publisher=Norway.org |date=10 June 2009 |access-date=27 January 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100611231520/http://www.norway.org/aboutnorway/society/political/local/ |archive-date=11 June 2010}}</ref> The counties are then sub-divided into 357 second-level municipalities ({{langx|no|kommuner}}), which in turn are administered by directly elected [[Municipal council (Norway)|municipal council]], headed by a mayor and a small executive cabinet. The capital of [[Oslo]] is considered both a county and a municipality. Norway has two integral overseas territories out of mainland: [[Jan Mayen]] and [[Svalbard]], the only developed island in the archipelago of the same name, located far to the north of the Norwegian mainland.<ref>{{cite web |title=An Introduction to Norway » Government & Politics |url=https://www.lifeinnorway.net/about-norway/government/ |website=Life in Norway |date=5 February 2017 |access-date=8 March 2021 |archive-date=16 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230816180642/https://www.lifeinnorway.net/about-norway/government/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

There are 108 settlements that have [[List of towns and cities in Norway|town/city]] status in Norway (the Norwegian word {{lang|no|by}} is used to represent these places and that word can be translated as either town or city in English). Cities/towns in Norway were historically designated by the King and used to have special rules and privileges under the law. This was changed in the late 20th century, so now towns/cities have no special rights and a municipality can designate an urban settlement as a city/town. Towns and cities in Norway do not have to be large. Some cities have over a million residents such as Oslo, while others are much smaller such as [[Honningsvåg]] with about 2,200 residents. Usually, there is only one town within a municipality, but there are some municipalities that have more than one town within it (such as [[Larvik Municipality]] which has the [[Larvik (town)|town of Larvik]] and the town of [[Stavern]].<ref name="byer-norge">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Byer i Norge |encyclopedia=[[Store norske leksikon]] |publisher=[[Kunnskapsforlaget]] |url=https://snl.no/byer_i_Norge |date=8 April 2024 |editor-last=Thorsnæs |editor-first=Geir |language=no |accessdate=1 July 2024}}</ref>

==== Dependencies of Norway ====
{{Main|Dependencies of Norway}}

There are three [[Antarctica|Antarctic]] and [[Subantarctic]] [[dependent territory|dependencies]]: [[Bouvet Island]], [[Peter I Island]], and [[Queen Maud Land]]. On most maps, there was an unclaimed area between Queen Maud Land and the [[South Pole]] until 12 June 2015 when Norway formally annexed that area.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Rapp|first1=Ole Magnus|title=Norge utvider Dronning Maud Land helt frem til Sydpolen|journal=Aftenposten|url=http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/iriks/Norge-utvider-Dronning-Maud-Land-helt-frem-til-Sydpolen-8168779.html|access-date=22 September 2015|date=21 September 2015|location=Oslo, Norway|language=no|quote=…formålet med anneksjonen var å legge under seg det landet som til nå ligger herreløst og som ingen andre enn nordmenn har kartlagt og gransket. Norske myndigheter har derfor ikke motsatt seg at noen tolker det norske kravet slik at det går helt opp til og inkluderer polpunktet.|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304061346/http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/iriks/Norge-utvider-Dronning-Maud-Land-helt-frem-til-Sydpolen-8168779.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:Norway (+overseas), administrative divisions - english.svg|center|thumb|upright=2.5|Norway and its overseas administrative divisions]]