Administrative divisions and elections
Administrative divisions
Statistics relating to the number of administrative units have been included in census publications since 1875. Since 1904 these figures have been revised annually in the Statistical Yearbook. Since 1875 the majority of administrative divisions have also been listed in Norges Statskalender (Norwegian National Yearbook).
Civil divisions
With the introduction of the absolute monarchy in 1660, fiefs were replaced by shires. At that time there were 26 fiefs. The transition led to the amalgamation of certain smaller fiefs, but the main features of the older system were preserved. The lord of the shire was given less authority than the earlier feudal overlord and a more uniform administrative system was created. An edict of 8th February 1671 refers to 12 shires but the number gradually increased to reach 20 by 18661. Since then the only change in the shires, replaced by counties in 1918, was the incorporation of Bergen into Hordaland in 1972, which gave the present number of 19 counties.
Municipalities were introduced in 1838 on the basis of legislation from 1837 relating to aldermen. In 1838 there were 355 rural districts and 37 urban districts. From this total of 392 municipalities in 1838 the number rose to a peak in 1937 of 747 municipalities consisting of 682 rural districts and 65 urban districts. The increase in municipalities was particularly great in rural districts both in the 1860s and during the period from 1890 to 1910, while the growth in the number of urban districts was greatest from 1838 to 1865.
From 1931 onwards the number of municipalities remained relatively stable until the 1960s, when a number of mergers took place, particularly in 1964 and 1965. In 1976 and 1977 several municipalities which had been merged together 10 to 15 years earlier were restored to their previous, separate status. On the other hand, during the period from 1988 to 1994 several towns which were wedged in between rural districts were incorporated into neighbouring municipalities.
Ecclesiastical divisions
A diocese, the area under the jurisdiction of a bishop, is the largest ecclesiastical unit in Norway. Oslo, Bjørgvin (Bergen) and Nidaros (Trondheim) became dioceses during the latter half of the 11th century, while those of Stavanger and Hamar were established in 1125 and 1153, respectively. In 1153 Nidaros was chosen as the archbishop's see. This situation remained unchanged until the Reformation when the archbishop's see was abolished and Hamar was placed under the diocese of Oslo.1 The number of shires was 18 in 1838 and 19 from 1842.
From then on until the 18th century the number of dioceses remained constant, although the Stavanger diocese was removed to Kristiansand in 1682. A fifth diocese to cover Northern Norway was established in 1803, and the dioceses of Hamar and Stavanger were re-established in 1864 and 1925, respectively. The major expansion has come in the post-war period, which has witnessed the establishment of 5 of the present day total of 11 dioceses.
A deanery consists of a number of clerical districts and is administered by a dean. Prior to the Reformation the dean was the bishop's principal representative in local government and could well be a secular person. After the Reformation the position became a purely ecclesiastical one with the dean acting as an intermediary between the bishop and the rest of the clergy. In the middle of the 17th century there were 43 deaneries in Norway.
A clerical district consists of one or more parishes and is administered by a parish priest. A parish represents the smallest ecclesiastical unit, being made up of individual congregations.
Judicial divisions
The Jury Act of 1887 introduced a completely new legal procedure in criminal cases. The county and town courts became new courts of prima instantia and the courts of appeal became new superior courts. In civil cases the county and town courts continued to function as lower courts up until 1927. Conciliation councils were established in the towns in 1795 and in rural districts two years later, their function being to mediate in the majority of civil disputes between private persons. In 1927 conciliation councils were granted the status of courts of justice.
When the Jury Act originally came into force in 1890, 6 Appellate Court districts were established, divided into a total of (17) sub-districts. These divisions have since been subject to many alterations. In 1892 the number of Appellate Court districts was reduced to 5, in 1908 to 4 and in 1934 to only 3. The present division into 5 districts dates from 1st July 1936 when new legal procedures were introduced.
The primary court districts represent the judiciary area of either a county or a town court of prima instantia. These districts were greatly reduced in number during the two decades spanning the turn of the century. Since then the number of primary court districts has varied greatly but in the period since 1959 has undergone a gradual reduction.
Elections
Storting elections
The first official statistics of Storting elections were published in Valgmandsvalgene og Stortingsvalgene 1815-1885 (Electoral College and Storting Elections 1815-1885) (NOS III 219). Some of the figures, notably those relating to elections up to and including 1826, were based on estimates. For these elections we have therefore only statistics for the number of electors and elected representatives. The statistics of the elections in 1888 and 1891 were published in MB, for 1894 and 1897 in NOS Valgmandsvalgene og Stortingsvalgene (Electoral College and Storting Elections), for 1900 and 1903 in NOS Valgtingene og Valgmandstingene (Electoral College and Storting Elections) and from 1906 in NOS Stortingsvalget (Storting Elections). For votes by parties it has due to limitations in the source material not been possible to go further back than 1906 in this publication.
At the last elections there have not been registered turnout by sex.
Municipal council elections and county council elections
Statistics of municipal council elections are available since 1901. The figures for the 1904 election are incomplete. These statistics are published in NOS Kommunevalgene (Municipal Elections). For the period 1934-1963 this publication also contains data on elections of chairmen of municipal councils and elections of mayors. Due to limitations in the primary sources, there have not been printed data older than 1928 for votes by parties in this publi-cation.
From 1975 onwards the elections for the municipal councils and the county councils have been carried out simultaneously. The results are given in NOS Municipal Council Elections and NOS County Council Election, respectively. Official statistics from previous (indirect) county council elections are not available.
At the last elections there have not been registered turnout by sex.
Referenda
In Norway 5 referenda have taken place during the period 1905-1972:
August 1905 - "Yes" or "No" to the dissolution of the union with Sweden.
November 1905 - "Yes" or "No" to the question: "Does the voter agree in the authorization from the Parliament to the Government to ask the Danish prince Carl to be candidate for the position as king of Norway?"
October 1919 - "Yes" or "No" to the question of forbidding by law the manufacture, import and sale of alcoholic drinks.
October 1926 - "For" or "Against" prohibitionism, relating to the existing law forbidding alcoholic drinks.
September 1972 - "Yes" or "No" to the question about Norway's accession to the EC.