Editing Tromsø (section)

==History==
{{see also|Tromsø (city)#History}}
The area has been inhabited since the end of the last [[ice age]]. Archeological excavations in [[Tønsvika]], have turned up artefacts and remains of buildings estimated to be 9,000 to 10,000 years old.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-07-27 |title=Unike steinalderfunn |url=http://www.nrk.no/nordnytt/unike-steinalderfunn-1.7729694 |access-date=2013-08-21 |publisher=nrk.no |language=nb |archive-date=16 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140416115604/http://www.nrk.no/nordnytt/unike-steinalderfunn-1.7729694 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Nikel |first=David |title=Norway |publisher=Hachette Book Group |isbn=978-1-64049-051-2 |edition=2nd |location=Norway |publication-date=April 2019 |page=326 |language=en |chapter=Tromsø and the high north |quote=Archaeological excavations show the area around Tromsø has been inhabited since the Stone Age, with evidence of buildings up to 10,000 years old found.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Grydeland |first1=Sven Erik |url=https://munin.uit.no/handle/10037/6159 |title=Bergli på Tromsøya: Bosetting fra eldre steinalder og tidlig metalltid |last2=Arntzen |first2=Johan Eilertsen |publisher=[[University of Tromsø]] |year=2014 |isbn=978-82-7142-058-1 |series=TROMURA, Fellesserie nr. 41 |location=Tromsø |trans-title=Bergli on Tromsøya: Settlement from the Stone Age and Early Metal Age |type=Research report}}</ref>

===Middle Ages: a fortress on the frontier===
[[File:Tromso burial.JPG|thumb|left|[[Tromsø Burial|Hoard]] of [[Viking art|Viking]] jewellery found in Tromsø dating from 7–8th Centuries AD now in the British Museum.<ref>{{Cite web |title=British Museum - Collection online - Search: Tromso |url=https://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/search.aspx?place=31638&plaA=31638-3-1 |access-date=9 June 2014 |website=British Museum |archive-date=16 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116060522/https://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/search.aspx?place=31638&plaA=31638-3-1 |url-status=live }}</ref>]]
The area's rich [[Norsemen|Norse]] and [[Sami people|Sámi]] heritage is well documented. The Norse chieftain [[Ohthere from Hålogaland|Ohthere]], who lived during the 890s, is assumed to have inhabited the southernmost reaches of today's Tromsø municipality. He described himself as living "furthest to the North of all Norwegians" with areas north of this being populated by Sámi.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2009-08-18 |title=Ottar fortalte om det ukjente "Norge" - Magasinet |url=http://www.dagbladet.no/magasinet/2007/12/04/520192.html |access-date=2012-02-16 |publisher=Dagbladet.no |archive-date=5 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110805080837/http://www.dagbladet.no/magasinet/2007/12/04/520192.html |url-status=live }}</ref> An Icelandic source (''Rimbegla'') from the 12th century also describes the fjord [[Malangen (fjord)|Malangen]] in the south of today's Tromsø municipality as a border between Norse and Sámi coastal settlements during that part of the Middle Ages, however, Archaeological finds show that the Vikings have been present on the main island itself. In a burial/settlement near today's airport, a sword and other combat tools have been found, as well as household tools typical for the Norwegians <ref>{{Cite web |title=Langnes Søndre, Gravminne |url=https://www.kulturminnesok.no/kart/?q=&am-county=&lokenk=location&am-lok=&am-lokdating=&am-lokconservation=&am-enk=&am-enkdating=&am-enkconservation=&bm-county=&cp=1&bounds=69.66907403972955,18.90995442867279,69.66743753984545,18.914889693260193&zoom=18&id=59900 |publisher=Riksantikvaren |language=no |access-date=20 February 2023 |archive-date=26 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230226205957/https://www.kulturminnesok.no/kart/?q=&am-county=&lokenk=location&am-lok=&am-lokdating=&am-lokconservation=&am-enk=&am-enkdating=&am-enkconservation=&bm-county=&cp=1&bounds=69.66907403972955,18.90995442867279,69.66743753984545,18.914889693260193&zoom=18&id=59900 |url-status=live }}</ref> In addition, one of Northern Norway's largest Viking treasures is found on the island itself.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Klimaveien 55, Funnsted |url=https://www.kulturminnesok.no/kart/?q=&am-county=&lokenk=location&am-lok=&am-lokdating=&am-lokconservation=&am-enk=&am-enkdating=&am-enkconservation=&bm-county=&cp=1&bounds=69.67475234962642,18.938568234443665,69.6731162874666,18.943503499031067&zoom=18&id=108560 |publisher=Riksantikvaren |language=no |access-date=20 February 2023 |archive-date=26 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230226205957/https://www.kulturminnesok.no/kart/?q=&am-county=&lokenk=location&am-lok=&am-lokdating=&am-lokconservation=&am-enk=&am-enkdating=&am-enkconservation=&bm-county=&cp=1&bounds=69.67475234962642,18.938568234443665,69.6731162874666,18.943503499031067&zoom=18&id=108560 |url-status=live }}</ref> There has also been extensive Sámi settlement on the coast south of this 'border' as well as scattered Norse settlements north of Malangen—for example, both Sámi and Norse Iron Age (0–1050 AD) remains have been found on southern [[Kvaløya (Tromsø)|Kvaløya]].<ref name="regjeringen.no">{{Cite web |date=3 December 2007 |title=2 Samisk tilstedeværelse... |url=http://www.regjeringen.no/nb/dep/jd/dok/nouer/2007/nou-2007-14/67.html?id=584636 |access-date=2012-02-16 |publisher=regjeringen.no |archive-date=9 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141009180750/http://www.regjeringen.no/nb/dep/jd/dok/nouer/2007/nou-2007-14/67.html?id=584636 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Sør-Kvaløya - fornminner — Kulturminneaaret 2009 |url=http://loype.kulturminneaaret2009.no/kulturminneloyper/soer-kvaloeya-fornminner |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120501010953/http://loype.kulturminneaaret2009.no/kulturminneloyper/soer-kvaloeya-fornminner |archive-date=1 May 2012 |access-date=2012-02-16 |publisher=Loype.kulturminneaaret2009.no |language=no}}</ref>

The first church on the island of Tromsøya was erected in 1252. ''Ecclesia Sanctae Mariae de Trums juxta paganos'' ("The Church of Saint Mary in Troms near the Heathens"—the nominal "heathens" being the Sámi), was built during the reign of [[Haakon IV of Norway|King Hákon Hákonarson]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Diplomatarium Norvegicum b.1 nr.112, the Papal letter (in Latin) first referring to ''Troms'' |url=http://www.dokpro.uio.no/perl/middelalder/diplom_vise_tekst.prl?b=114&s=100&str=sancte%20Marie%20de%20Trums%20%20iuxta%20paganos |access-date=2012-11-22 |publisher=Dokpro.uio.no |archive-date=17 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151017011840/http://www.dokpro.uio.no/perl/middelalder/diplom_vise_tekst.prl?b=114&s=100&str=sancte%20Marie%20de%20Trums%20%20iuxta%20paganos |url-status=live }}</ref> At the time, it was the northernmost church in the world. Around the same time a turf [[defensive wall|rampart]] was built to protect the area against raids from [[Karelia]] and Russia.

Tromsø was not just a Norwegian outpost in an area mainly populated by the Sámi, but also a frontier city towards Russia; the [[Novgorod republic|Novgorod state]] had the right to tax the Sámi along the coast to [[Lyngen Peninsula|Lyngstuva]] and inland to the [[Skibotn|Skibotn River]] or possibly the [[Målselva|Målselv River]], whereas Norway was allowed to tax areas east to - and including - the [[Kola Peninsula]].<ref name="regjeringen.no" /> During the next five hundred years Norway's border with Russia and the limits of Norwegian settlement would be pushed eastwards to [[Sør-Varanger Municipality]], making Tromsø lose its character as a "frontier town".<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Emma |date=2020-04-06 |title=The History of Tromsø |url=https://thehiddennorth.com/the-history-of-tromso/ |access-date=2024-04-30 |website=The Hidden North |language=en-US |archive-date=7 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230507215518/https://thehiddennorth.com/the-history-of-tromso/ |url-status=live }}</ref>{{Self-published inline|date=April 2024|certain=y}}

===1700s and 1800s: the "Paris of the north"===
During the 17th century, while Denmark–Norway was solidifying its claim to the northern coast of [[Scandinavia]], the [[redoubt]] ''Skansen'' was built. Despite only being home to around 80 people, Tromsø was issued its city charter on 20 June 1794 by [[Christian VII of Denmark|King Christian VII]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tromsø tollsteddistrikt |url=https://www.arkivportalen.no/contributor/no-a1450-09000000108675 |access-date=20 February 2021 |publisher=Tromsø City Archive |language=Norwegian |archive-date=14 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210514215246/https://www.arkivportalen.no/contributor/no-a1450-09000000108675 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Historie |url=http://www.gamlebyenskansen.no/historie/ |access-date=20 February 2021 |publisher=Gamlebyen Skansen |language=Norwegian}}</ref> This coincided with, and was a direct consequence of, the abolition of the city of [[Bergen]]'s centuries-old monopoly on the trade in cod. Tromsø quickly rose in importance. The [[Diocese of Hålogaland]] was created in 1804, with the first bishop being [[Mathias Bonsak Krogh]].<ref name="haalogaland">{{Cite web |title=Biskoper i Hålogaland bispedømme 1804-1952 |url=http://www.kirken.no/nord-haalogaland/tekstsider.cfm?id=110781 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071009035803/http://www.kirken.no/nord-haalogaland/tekstsider.cfm?id=110781 |archive-date=9 October 2007 |access-date=3 November 2011 |website=Den Norske Kirke}}</ref> The city was established as a municipality 1 January 1838 (see [[formannskapsdistrikt]] law).

Arctic hunting, from [[Novaya Zemlya]] to Canada, started up around 1820. By 1850, Tromsø was the major centre of Arctic hunting, overtaking the former centre of [[Hammerfest]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=12 February 2024 |title=Russian and Norwegian hunting and trapping |url=https://www.unis.no/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/summary04.pdf |access-date=7 March 2024 |website=The University Centre in Svalbard |archive-date=8 February 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240208072227/https://www.unis.no/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/summary04.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":1" /> Tromsø had trading contacts with both Central Europe and Russia (specifically [[Arkhangelsk]]) during this time, the latter of which resulted in the development of the pidgin language [[Russenorsk]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Minaeva |first1=Tatiana S. |last2=Karelin |first2=Vladimir A. |date=2020-03-21 |title=Языковые контакты поморов с норвежцами в ходе экспедиций на Шпицберген во второй половине XVIII — первой половине XIX вв. |trans-title=Language contacts between Pomors and Norwegians during expeditions to Svalbard in the second half of the 18th — first half of the 19th centuries |url=http://arcticandnorth.ru/article_index_years.php?ELEMENT_ID=343736 |language=ru |journal=Arctic and North |volume=38 |pages=120–121 |doi=10.37482/issn2221-2698.2020.38.140 |doi-access=free |access-date=15 June 2024 |archive-date=15 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615185533/https://arcticandnorth.ru/article_index_years.php?ELEMENT_ID=343736 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Denzel |first=Markus A. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E7tqEAAAQBAJ&dq=Chapter+5+From+Arkhangelsk+to+C%C3%A1diz+%E2%80%93+Marine+Insurance+Rates+for+Destinations+in+the+Atlantic'&pg=PA119 |title=The Hamburg Marine Insurance, 1736–1859 |date=2022-04-11 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-51026-5 |pages=131–132 |language=en}}</ref>

In 1848, the teacher training college was also moved from [[Trondenes Municipality]] (near current-day [[Harstad (town)|Harstad]]) to Tromsø, with part of its mission being to educate Sámi scholars - there was a quota ensuring that Sámi gained access.<ref>Statsarkivet i Tromsø 1992: Arkivkatalog TROMSØ OFFENTLIGE LÆRERSKOLE, page 6.</ref> The teacher college was followed by the [[Tromsø Museum]] in 1872,<ref name="tromsoemuseum">{{Cite web |title=Om museet |url=http://uit.no/tmu/152/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071103085936/http://uit.no/tmu/152 |archive-date=3 November 2007 |access-date=2007-11-03 |publisher=Universitet i Tromsø |language=no}}</ref> and the [[Mack Brewery]] in 1877.<ref name="mack">{{Cite web |title=Fra ølvogn til mikrobryggeri |url=http://www.mack.no/index.php?cat=16535 |access-date=2007-11-03 |publisher=Macks Ølbryggeri AS |archive-date=15 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180815055355/http://www.mack.no/index.php?cat=16535 |url-status=live }}</ref>

During the 19th century, Tromsø became known as the "Paris of the North". How this nickname came into being is uncertain, but the reason is generally assumed to be that people in Tromsø appeared far more sophisticated than visitors from the south typically expected.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Destinasjon Tromsø - Facts about Tromsø |url=http://www.destinasjontromso.no/english/useful_info.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111009002440/http://www.destinasjontromso.no/english/useful_info.html |archive-date=9 October 2011 |access-date=2012-11-22 |publisher=Destinasjontromso.no}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Oseid |first=John |title=Tromsø: Norway's Gorgeous Gateway To The North |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnoseid/2019/04/09/tromso-norways-gorgeous-gateway-to-the-north/ |access-date=2024-06-16 |website=Forbes |language=en |archive-date=16 June 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616120217/https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnoseid/2019/04/09/tromso-norways-gorgeous-gateway-to-the-north/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Early 1900s: exploration and war===
[[File:Tromsø 1900.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|left|Photochrom print from Tromsø, 1900]]
By the end of the 19th century, Tromsø had become a major [[Arctic]] trade centre from which many Arctic expeditions originated. Explorers like [[Roald Amundsen]], [[Umberto Nobile]] and [[Fridtjof Nansen]] made use of the know-how in Tromsø on the conditions in the Arctic, and often recruited their crews in the city.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tromsø, Norway - Lindblad Expeditions |url=http://www.expeditions.com/daily-expedition-reports/174193/ |access-date=2019-09-28 |website=www.expeditions.com |language=en |archive-date=28 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190928234635/https://www.expeditions.com/daily-expedition-reports/174193/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Bomann-Larsen |first=Tor |title=Roald Amundsen |date=2006 |publisher=Sutton |isbn=0750943432 |location=Stroud |oclc=69022308}}</ref> The [[Aurora (astronomy)|Northern lights]] observatory was founded in 1927.

When Germany invaded Norway in 1940, Tromsø served briefly as the seat of the Norwegian government. General [[Carl Gustav Fleischer]] arrived in Tromsø on 10 April 1940 after flying in terrible conditions from Vadsø. From Tromsø he issued orders for total civilian and military mobilisation and declared Northern Norway a theatre of war. Fleischer's strategic plan was to first wipe out the German forces at [[Narvik (town)|Narvik]] and then transfer his division to [[Nordland]] to meet a German advance from [[Trøndelag]]. The Germans eventually captured all of Norway, after allied support had been withdrawn, although they encountered fierce resistance from the [[Finnmark]]-based [[Alta Battalion]] at Narvik. Tromsø escaped the war unscathed, although the [[German battleship Tirpitz|German battleship ''Tirpitz'']] was sunk by [[RAF]] bombers<ref>{{Cite web |date=17 February 2011 |title=Lost heroes of the 'Tirpitz' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/tirpitz_heroes_01.shtml#eight |access-date=21 August 2018 |website=BBC History |publisher=BBC |archive-date=10 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220410201757/https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/tirpitz_heroes_01.shtml#eight |url-status=live }}</ref> during [[Operation Catechism]] off the Tromsøy island on 12 November 1944, killing close to 1,000 German sailors.<ref>{{Cite web |title=World War II Database |url=https://ww2db.com/ship_spec.php?ship_id=95 |access-date=21 August 2018 |archive-date=21 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180821223406/https://ww2db.com/ship_spec.php?ship_id=95 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>617 Squadron - The Operational Record Book 1943 - 1945 {{Cite web |title=617 Squadron - The Operational Record Book 1943 – 1945 |url=http://www.dambusters.org.uk/docs/recordbook.pdf|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101206073909/http://www.dambusters.org.uk/docs/recordbook.pdf |archive-date=2010-12-06 |access-date=2008-08-04}} http://www.dambusters.org with additional information by Tobin Jones; Binx Publishing, Pevensey House, Sheep Street, Bicester. OX26 6JF. Acknowledgement is given to [[HMSO]] as holders of the copyright on the Operational Record Book</ref>

[[File:Tirpitz altafjord 2.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|The [[German battleship Tirpitz|German battleship ''Tirpitz'']] was bombed and sunk by the RAF off Tromsø island in 1944.]]
At the end of the war, the city received thousands of refugees from [[Finnmark]] county and the northern areas of [[Troms]] - areas which had been devastated by German forces using [[scorched earth]] tactics in expectation of a [[Red Army]] [[Petsamo–Kirkenes Offensive|offensive]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Derry, T.K. |title=A History of Modern Norway: 1814—1972 |publisher=Clarendon Press, Oxford |year=1972 |isbn=0-19-822503-2}}</ref>

===Late 1900s{{spaced ndash}}today: rapid expansion===
Expansion after World War II has been rapid. The rural [[Tromsøysund Municipality]] and [[Ullsfjord Municipality]], and most of [[Hillesøy Municipality]], were merged with Tromsø on 1 January 1964, creating today's Tromsø municipality and almost tripling Tromsø's population - from 12,430 to 32,664.<ref name="ssbpop">{{Cite web |year=2007 |title=1902 Tromsø. Population 1 January and population changes during the year. 1951- |url=http://www.ssb.no/english/subjects/02/02/folkendrhist_en/tables/tab/1902.html |access-date=2007-11-03 |publisher=Statistics Norway |archive-date=7 November 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071107101824/http://www.ssb.no/english/subjects/02/02/folkendrhist_en/tables/tab/1902.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In addition, the population growth has been strong, with at times more than 1,000 new '''Tromsøværinger''' (residents of Tromsø) annually. The population of Tromsø municipality today is 68,239, and the urban area, Norway's ninth most populous, is home to 58,486 people.<ref name="ssb">{{Cite web |last=Statistics Norway |date=1 January 2011 |title=Urban settlements. Population and area, by municipality. |url=http://www.ssb.no/emner/02/01/10/beftett/tab-2011-06-17-02.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111125213911/http://www.ssb.no/emner/02/01/10/beftett/tab-2011-06-17-02.html |archive-date=25 November 2011}}</ref> This excludes most of the city's students, however, who often do not change their address when moving to Tromsø.

A major development was the opening of [[Tromsø Airport]] in 1964, situated on the main island, and in 1972 the [[University of Tromsø]] was opened, at the time one of four universities in Norway and the only one serving the northern half of the country. A local teacher's college and museum were eventually incorporated into the university. The [[Norwegian Polar Institute]] was moved to Tromsø from [[Oslo]] in 1998. More recently, the university has expanded further through two mergers, first with University College Tromsø in 2009 and then with University College Finnmark in 2013.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The story of UiT |url=https://en.uit.no/om/historie#dok539223 |access-date=15 July 2023 |archive-date=15 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230715190800/https://en.uit.no/om/historie#dok539223 |url-status=live }}</ref>