Editing Market town (section)

=== Norway ===<!-- This section is linked from [[List of cities in Norway]] -->
{{Main|Kjøpstad}}

In [[Norway]], the medieval market town ([[Norwegian language|Norwegian]]: ''kjøpstad'' and ''kaupstad'' from the [[Old Norse]] ''kaupstaðr'') was a town which had been granted commerce privileges by the king or other authorities. The citizens in the town had a [[monopoly]] over the purchase and sale of wares, and operation of other businesses, both in the town and in the surrounding district.

Norway developed market towns at a much later period than other parts of Europe. The reasons for this late development are complex but include the sparse population, lack of urbanisation, no real manufacturing industries and no cash economy.<ref>Holt, R., "Medieval Norway’s urbanizationin a European perspective," in S. Olaffson (ed), ''Den urbane underskog: Stadsbygge i bondeland – ett forskningsfält med teoretiska och metodiska implikationer,'' [The Undercooked Urban Landscape: Urban building in the countryside – research, theory and methodological implications], p. 231-246</ref> The first market town was created in 11th century Norway, to encourage businesses to concentrate around specific towns. King Olaf established a market town at Bergen in the 11th century, and it soon became the residence of many wealthy families.<ref>Sturluson, S. , ''Heimskringla: or, The Lives of the Norse Kings,'' Courier Corp., 2012 p.567; Larsen,L., ''History of Norway'', Princeton University Press, 2015, p.121</ref> [[Import]] and [[export]] was to be conducted only through market towns, to allow oversight of commerce and to simplify the imposition of [[excise taxes]] and [[Customs (tax)|customs duties]]. This practice served to encourage growth in areas which had strategic significance, providing a local economic base for the construction of [[Norwegian Fortresses|fortifications]] and sufficient population to defend the area. It also served to restrict [[Hanseatic League]] merchants from trading in areas other than those designated.

Norway included a subordinate category to the market town, the "small seaport" ([[Norwegian language|Norwegian]] ''lossested'' or ''ladested''), which was a port or harbor with a monopoly to import and export goods and materials in both the port and a surrounding outlying district. Typically, these were locations for exporting timber, and importing grain and goods. Local farm goods and timber sales were all required to pass through merchants at either a small seaport or a market town prior to export. This encouraged local merchants to ensure trading went through them, which was so effective in limiting unsupervised sales ([[smuggling]]) that customs revenues increased from less than 30% of the total tax revenues in 1600 to more than 50% of the total taxes by 1700.

Norwegian "market towns" died out and were replaced by free markets during the 19th century. After 1952, both the "small seaport" and the "market town" were relegated to simple town status.

<gallery>
File:Fish market, Bergen, Norway (LOC).jpg|Fish market, [[Bergen (city)|Bergen]], Norway, c. 1890
File:Tollboden i Porsgrunn.jpeg|Market and customs house, [[Porsgrunn (town)|Porsgrunn]], c. 1891-1910
File:Youngstorget Nytorvet med Møllergata 19 OB.F11527a.jpg|Market square, Youngstorget Nytorvet, c. 1915-20
File:Storfjord, Skibotn, Troms - Riksantikvaren-T441 01 0152.jpg|Norwegian market, [[Skibotn]] in [[Storfjord Municipality]], Troms county, 1917
File:91 Trondheim, Torvet - no-nb digifoto 20150623 00200 bldsa PK16954.jpg|Norwegian Market, c. 1921-35
File:No-nb digibok 2012101006012 0047 1.jpg|Market (illustration), c. 1927
File:Roeros market.jpeg|[[Rørosmartnan|Traditional Winter market]] at [[Røros (town)|Røros]], 2001
File:Tønsberg, Norway (5251993355).jpg|Market, [[Tønsberg]], Norway, 2010
</gallery>