The University of Oslo, until 1939 named the Royal Frederick University, is the oldest university in Norway, located in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. Until 1 January 2016 it was the largest Norwegian institution of higher education in terms of size, now surpassed only by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. The Academic Ranking of World Universities has ranked it the 58th best university in the world and the third best in the Nordic countries. In 2015, the Times Higher Education World University Rankings ranked it the 135th best university in the world and the seventh best in the Nordics. While in its 2016, Top 200 Rankings of European universities, the Times Higher Education listed the University of Oslo at 63rd, making it the highest ranked Norwegian university.
The history of Jews in Norway dates back to the 1400s. Although there were very likely Jewish merchants, sailors and others who entered Norway during the Middle Ages, no efforts were made to establish a Jewish community. Through the early modern period, Norway, still devastated by the Black Death, was ruled by Denmark from 1536 to 1814 and then by Sweden until 1905. In 1687, Christian V rescinded all Jewish privileges, specifically banning Jews from Norway, except with a special dispensation. Jews found in the kingdom were jailed and expelled, and this ban persisted until 1851.
Jewish studies is an academic discipline centered on the study of Jews and Judaism. Jewish studies is interdisciplinary and combines aspects of history, Middle Eastern studies, Asian studies, Oriental studies, religious studies, archeology, sociology, languages, political science, area studies, women's studies, and ethnic studies. Jewish studies as a distinct field is mainly present at colleges and universities in North America.
Religion in Norway is dominated by Lutheran Christianity, with 68.7% of the population belonging to the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Norway in 2019. The Catholic Church is the next largest Christian church at 3.1%. The unaffiliated make up 18.3% of the population. Islam is followed by 3.4% of the population.
The German occupation of Norway began on 9 April 1940. In 1942, there were at least 2,173 Jews in Norway. At least 775 of them were arrested, detained and/or deported. More than half of the Norwegians who died in camps in Germany were Jews. 742 Jews were murdered in the camps and 23 Jews died as a result of extrajudicial execution, murder and suicide during the war, bringing the total of Jewish Norwegian dead to at least 765, comprising 230 complete households.
Prior to the deportation of individuals of Jewish background to the concentration camps there were at least 2,173 Jews in Norway. During the Nazi occupation of Norway 772 of these were arrested, detained, and/or deported, most of them sent to Auschwitz. 742 were murdered in the camps, 23 died as a result of extrajudicial execution, murder, and suicide during the war. Between 28 and 34 of those deported survived their continued imprisonment. The Norwegian police and German authorities kept records of these victims, and so, researchers were able to compile information about the deportees.
SS Donau was a Norddeutscher Lloyd refrigerated cargo ship. In the Second World War the Kriegsmarine used it as a transport ship between Germany and Norway. She became known as the "slave ship" after the SS and Gestapo transported 540 Jews from Norway to Stettin, from where they were taken by train to Auschwitz. Only nine of those deported on the Donau survived.
Knut Rød was a Norwegian police officer responsible for the arrest, detention and transfer of Jewish men, women and children to SS troops at Oslo harbor. For these and other actions related to the Holocaust in Norway, Rød was acquitted in two highly publicized trials during the legal purge in Norway after World War II that remain controversial to this day. The trials and their outcome have since been dubbed the "strangest trial in post-war Norway."
Antisemitism in contemporary Norway deals with antisemitic incidents and attitudes encountered by Jews, either individually or collectively, in Norway since World War II. The mainstream Norwegian political environment has strongly adopted a platform that rejects antisemitism. However, individuals often privately hold antisemitic views. Currently, there are about 1,400 Jews in Norway, in a population of 5.3 million.
Guri Hjeltnes is a Norwegian journalist and historian. Having mainly researched Norwegian World War II history during her career, she is a professor of journalism at the BI Norwegian Business School since 2004. She has also spent considerable time as a journalist and commentator, currently in Verdens Gang. She became director of the Center for Studies of the Holocaust and Religious Minorities in 2012.
Carl Fredriksens Transport was the code name for an operation during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany to help Jews and other persecuted Norwegians escape persecution, deportation, and murder in death camps.
The National Criminal Investigation Service, commonly known as Kripos, is a special agency of the Norwegian Police Service. Based at Bryn in Oslo and established in 1959, it is a national unit that works with organized and serious crime. It both works as an assisting unit for police districts, with special focus on technical and tactical investigation, and is responsible on its own for organized crime. It acts as the center for international police cooperation, including participation in Interpol and Europol. It is subordinate to the National Police Directorate. Kripos represents four percent of the Norwegian police force, with nearly 500 employees.
Villa Grande is the name of a property on Bygdøy in Oslo, Norway. The main building is located on top of a hill, raised above the surrounding residential buildings.
The Oslo Jewish Museum aims at informing about Jews in Norway. It was established as a foundation in 2003, supported by the Det mosaiske trossamfunn and Oslo City Museum.
Herman Kahan was a Romanian-born Norwegian businessman, rabbi, author, and Holocaust survivor.
Riseberga Abbey, was a Cistercian nunnery in Sweden, in operation from circa 1180 until 1534. It was located near Fjugesta in Närke. It had the right to appoint the vicar of the Edsberg parish, which was under the jurisdiction of the abbey. The ruins of the buildings are preserved, and the Amphitheatre of the abbey are presently used as a Sylvan theater.
The 22 July Information Centre is a Norwegian governmental information centre dedicated to the 22 July 2011 terrorist attacks in Norway, in Oslo and at Utøya. The centre in Oslo, Norway was opened on 22 July 2015, at the ground floor of the H block of the Regjeringskvartalet. It is primarily intended to disseminate information regarding the terrorist attacks and the process of reconstructing a government building complex in Oslo.
The National Legion was a short-lived fascist political party in Norway led by Karl Meyer, in existence from 1927–28.
While the constitution of Norway establishes that the King of Norway must be Evangelical-Lutheran, it also establishes that all individuals have the right to exercise their religion. The government's policies generally support the free practice of religion in the country, and it provides funding to religious organizations and anti-discrimination programs on a regular basis. According to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the Norwegian police, religiously motivated hate speech is prevalent, particularly online, and primarily targeting the Muslim and Jewish communities.
