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Oslo is the capital city of Norway. The population of the city proper is 541,822 (as of April 1, 2006). [1] The metropolitan area extends into the surrounding coun

ty of Akershus, with a total population of 825,105[2] (as of January 1st, 2006, according to Statistics Norway), with a current annual growth exceeding 15,000 (in 2005 Oslo and Akershus had a growth of 15,472 according to Statistics Norway), a number which is only expected to keep rising steadily making Oslo one of the fastest growing cities in Europe[citation needed].

Greater Oslo Region has a population of about 1.3 million, and close to 1,7 million people live in the Oslofjord region which sprawls out from Oslo on both sides of the fjord of which the city center of Oslo is situated at the end of, giving the urban zone or region more or less a U shape although it sprawls in all directions.

About 22 % of the population of Oslo are immigrants. The urban municipality (bykommune) of Oslo and county (fylke) is the same entity. Of Oslo's total area, 115 km² is built-up and 7 km² is agricultural. The open areas within the built-up zone amounts to 22 km².

Oslo occupies an arc of land at the northernmost end of the Oslofjord. The fjord, which is nearly bisected by the Nesodden peninsula opposite Oslo, lies to the south; in all other directions Oslo is surrounded by green hills and mountains. There are 40 islands within the city limits, the largest being Malmøya (0.56 km²), and scores more around the Oslofjord. Oslo has 343 lakes, the largest being Maridalsvannet (3.91 km²).

This is also a main source of drinking water for large parts of Oslo. The highest point is Kirkeberget, at 629 m. Although the city's population is small compared to most European capitals, it occupies an unusually large land area. Its boundaries encompass many parks and open areas, giving it an airy and often very green appearance.

Oslo usually has the warmest summers in Norway. The warmest temperature ever recorded is 35°C on July 21 1901, and the coldest temperature recorded is -27.9°C in February 1871.

The meaning of the name Oslo has been the subject of much debate. It is certainly derived from Old Norse, and was in all probability the name of a large farm at the site of the first settlements in Bjørvika.

The last component has been positively identified as the Old Norse word 'ló', meaning 'level meadow' or 'plain'. During the Middle Ages the name was initially spelled 'Ásló', later 'Ósló'. The earlier spelling suggests that the first component 'ás' refers either to the Ekeberg ridge southeast of the town ('ås' in modern Norwegian), or to the Norse homonym meaning 'god' or 'divinity'. The most likely interpretations would therefore be 'the meadow beneath the ridge' or 'the meadow of the gods'. Both are equally plausible.

According to the Norse sagas, Oslo was founded around 1048 by king Harald Hardråde. Recent archaeological research has uncovered Christian burials from before 1000, evidence of a preceding urban settlement. This called for the celebration of Oslo's millennium in 2000.

It has been regarded as the capital city since the reign of Håkon V (1299-1319), who was the first king to reside permanently in the city. He also started the construction of the Akershus Fortress. A century later Norway was the weaker part in a personal union with Denmark, and Oslo's role was reduced to that of provincial administrative centre, with the kings residing in Copenhagen. The fact that the University of Oslo was founded as late as 1811 had an adverse effect on the development of the nation.

When I was young, the capital of Norway was not called Oslo. It was called Christiania. But somewhere along the line, the Norwegians decided to do away with that pretty name and call it Oslo instead. -- Roald Dahl, Boy.

Oslo was destroyed by fire in 1624, and was rebuilt at a new site across the bay, near Akershus Fortress, by king Christian IV of Norway and given the name Christiania (later, 1878-1924, Kristiania). The original name of Oslo was restored in 1925. But long before this, Christiania had started to regain its stature as a centre of commerce and culture in Norway.

In 1814 Christiania once more became a real capital when the union with Denmark was dissolved. Many landmarks were built in the 19th century, including the Royal Palace (1825-1848), Stortinget (the Parliament) (1861-1866), the University, Nationaltheatret and the Stock Exchange. Among the world-famous artists who lived here during this period were Henrik Ibsen, Edvard Munch, Knut Hamsun and Sigrid Undset (the latter two were awarded the Nobel Prize for literature). In 1850, Oslo also overtook Bergen and became the most populous city in the country.

Oslo's centrality in the political, cultural and economical life of Norway continues to be a source of considerable controversy and friction. Numerous attempts at decentralisation has not appreciably changed this during the last century. While continuing to be the main cause of the depopulation of the Norwegian countryside, any form of development is almost always opposed by neighbors, and as a consequence the growth of a modern urban landscape has all but stopped. Specifically, the construction of highrises in the city centre has been met with skepticism. It is projected, however, that the city will need some 20,000 additional apartments before 2020, forcing the difficult decision of whether to build tall or the equally unpopular option of sprawling out.

A marked reluctance to encourage the growth of the city for fear of causing further depletion of the traditional farming and fishing communities has led to several successive bursts of construction both in infrastructure and building mass, as the authorities kept waiting in vain for the stream of people to diminish. Neoclassical city apartments built in the 1850s to 1900s dotted with remnants of "Christian Quart"'s renaissance grid dominate the architecture around the city centre, except where slums were demolished in the 1960's to construct modernist concrete and glass lowrises, now generally regarded as embarrassing eyesores. Indeed, as the old buildings prove very expensive to maintain properly, the city as a whole is not usually considered beautiful, even by most of its own residents.

While most of the forests and lakes surrounding Oslo are in private hands, there is great public support for not developing it. Parts of Oslo suffer from congestion, yet it is the only European capital where people live with the wilderness literally in their back yard, or with access to a suburban train line that allows the city's many hikers and long-distance skiers to simply step off the train and start walking or skiing.

The city was once referred to as Tigerstaden (City of Tigers) by the author Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson around 1870. This name has over the years achieved an almost official status, to the extent the 1000 year jubilee was celebrated by a row of tiger sculptures around the City Hall. (A derogatory pun is Tiggerstaden (City of beggars), referring to the notable presence of beggars in the city centre). A harsh picture of the city was drawn by Knut Hamsun in his novel Sult (Hunger) from 1890 (cinematised in 1966 by Henning Carlsen).