Census in Norway
Encyclopedia
The census in Norway began in 1801 as part of a census of the whole of the Kingdom of Denmark.
On February 1, 1801, the first nominative lists of the whole population, in principle, counting all men and women, were gathered in the Kingdom of Denmark
, including Iceland
, the Faroe Islands
, and Norway
.
Earlier censuses taken in the 1660s and in 1701 had only included men or were limited to the production of statistics and left few nominative census manuscripts, as was the case in 1769. Unfortunately, the new and impoverished Norwegian state reverted to the numeric census from 1815 to 1855, but decennial nominative censuses have been taken since 1865. Therefore, a high proportion of 19th and 20th century Norwegians have been listed by name in at least one census.
Another reason for avoiding census
taking was more political, involving local versus centralized control over the population. In a more or less feudal society, the local leaders knew most of their subjects, making it necessary for central bureaucracies to work with them when levying taxes or conscripting soldiers. Taking a census meant enabling the central authorities to work more directly with the population at the household or individual level, thereby passing a considerable amount of control and power from local to central authorities.
Denmark
pioneered by taking its last questionnaire-based census in 1970. It stopped taking censuses entirely in 1981 after basing the last one on registers only. Finland
followed the suit with a register-based census in 1990, although it has decided to continue the questionnaire-based practice. Norway proceeded more cautiously, sending out housing and individual forms to a sample of the population in 1990. The density of the sample depended on the number of inhabitants in each municipality. Statistics Norway
organized its last questionnaire-based census in 2001, with forms being used only for questions about the domicile.4 From a continuously updated population register and a number of other registers with unique identification numbers, a linked, cross-sectional data file (like a census), in principle, can be constructed as often as needed—weekly or annually. Claiming that the 1981 Danish census was the first in the world based on registers is, however, only true if we add register and computer-based. Basing census taking on longitudinal registers is nothing new. From the beginning of Swedish census taking in 1860 until 1945, the cross-sectional lists of the entire Swedish population were created every decade by parish priests on the basis of catechismal records (husforhorslangder).
On February 1, 1801, the first nominative lists of the whole population, in principle, counting all men and women, were gathered in the Kingdom of Denmark
Kingdom of Denmark
The Kingdom of Denmark or the Danish Realm , is a constitutional monarchy and sovereign state consisting of Denmark proper in northern Europe and two autonomous constituent countries, the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic and Greenland in North America. Denmark is the hegemonial part, where the...
, including Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, the Faroe Islands
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, along with Denmark proper and Greenland...
, and Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
.
Earlier censuses taken in the 1660s and in 1701 had only included men or were limited to the production of statistics and left few nominative census manuscripts, as was the case in 1769. Unfortunately, the new and impoverished Norwegian state reverted to the numeric census from 1815 to 1855, but decennial nominative censuses have been taken since 1865. Therefore, a high proportion of 19th and 20th century Norwegians have been listed by name in at least one census.
Another reason for avoiding census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
taking was more political, involving local versus centralized control over the population. In a more or less feudal society, the local leaders knew most of their subjects, making it necessary for central bureaucracies to work with them when levying taxes or conscripting soldiers. Taking a census meant enabling the central authorities to work more directly with the population at the household or individual level, thereby passing a considerable amount of control and power from local to central authorities.
Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
pioneered by taking its last questionnaire-based census in 1970. It stopped taking censuses entirely in 1981 after basing the last one on registers only. Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
followed the suit with a register-based census in 1990, although it has decided to continue the questionnaire-based practice. Norway proceeded more cautiously, sending out housing and individual forms to a sample of the population in 1990. The density of the sample depended on the number of inhabitants in each municipality. Statistics Norway
Statistics Norway
Statistics Norway is the Norwegian statistics bureau. It was established in 1876.Relying on a staff of about 1,000, Statistics Norway publish about 1,000 new statistical releases every year on its web site. All releases are published both in Norwegian and English...
organized its last questionnaire-based census in 2001, with forms being used only for questions about the domicile.4 From a continuously updated population register and a number of other registers with unique identification numbers, a linked, cross-sectional data file (like a census), in principle, can be constructed as often as needed—weekly or annually. Claiming that the 1981 Danish census was the first in the world based on registers is, however, only true if we add register and computer-based. Basing census taking on longitudinal registers is nothing new. From the beginning of Swedish census taking in 1860 until 1945, the cross-sectional lists of the entire Swedish population were created every decade by parish priests on the basis of catechismal records (husforhorslangder).