Kunnskapsforlaget
Encyclopedia
Kunnskapsforlaget is a Norwegian
publishing company based in Oslo
that concentrates on encyclopedia
s, encyclopedic books, textbook
s, and dictonaries
. The company, created in 1975, is owned by Gyldendal Norsk Forlag
and Aschehoug
(50% each).
Kunnskapsforlaget's best-known product is Store norske leksikon
(SNL), the only remaining Norwegian paper encyclopedia. The decline in sales of paper-based encyclopedias around the turn of the century hit Kunnskapsforlaget hard, but a fourth edition of SNL was finally secured by a grant of NOK
10 million from the Fritt Ord foundation in 2003. The fourth edition was completed i 2005, and consists of 16 volumes, a total of 12,000 pages and 280,000 entries. SNL has been available online since 2000 and has several hundred thousand subscribers (private and institutional). The number of online articles is about 150,000.
Apart from encyclopaedias, Kunnskapsforlaget's most important products are dictionaries. Serving the Norwegian market, they publish a multitude of bilingual dictionaries, and some monolingual Norwegian dictionaries and thesauruses. Their main second language is English (for which they (as at 2009) offer 13 different paper dictionaries). Other languages: Swedish, Finnish, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Persian, Portuguese, Greek, Polish, Chinese. In 2004 they opened the online dictionary site Ordnett
. Originally with only a few dictionaries (Norwegian and English) it now has 28 dictionaries in five languages (Norwegian, English, German, French, Spanish). The business model is annual subscriptions, although they offer a large, free Norwegian dictionary (Norsk Ordbok).
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...
publishing company based in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
that concentrates on encyclopedia
Encyclopedia
An encyclopedia is a type of reference work, a compendium holding a summary of information from either all branches of knowledge or a particular branch of knowledge....
s, encyclopedic books, textbook
Textbook
A textbook or coursebook is a manual of instruction in any branch of study. Textbooks are produced according to the demands of educational institutions...
s, and dictonaries
Dictionary
A dictionary is a collection of words in one or more specific languages, often listed alphabetically, with usage information, definitions, etymologies, phonetics, pronunciations, and other information; or a book of words in one language with their equivalents in another, also known as a lexicon...
. The company, created in 1975, is owned by Gyldendal Norsk Forlag
Gyldendal Norsk Forlag
Gyldendal Norsk Forlag, commonly referred to as Gyldendal, is one of the largest Norwegian publishing houses .-Gyldendal Norsk Forlag AS:Gyldendal Norsk Forlag AS was founded in 1925...
and Aschehoug
Aschehoug
H. Aschehoug & Co , commonly known as Aschehoug, is one of the largest independent publishing companies in Norway. -History:...
(50% each).
Kunnskapsforlaget's best-known product is Store norske leksikon
Store norske leksikon
Store norske leksikon, abbreviated SNL, is currently the second most comprehensive contemporary Norwegian language encyclopedia. The SNL was created in 1978 when the two publishing houses Aschehoug and Gyldendal merged their encyclopedias and created the company Kunnskapsforlaget. The name...
(SNL), the only remaining Norwegian paper encyclopedia. The decline in sales of paper-based encyclopedias around the turn of the century hit Kunnskapsforlaget hard, but a fourth edition of SNL was finally secured by a grant of NOK
Norwegian krone
The krone is the currency of Norway and its dependent territories. The plural form is kroner . It is subdivided into 100 øre. The ISO 4217 code is NOK, although the common local abbreviation is kr. The name translates into English as "crown"...
10 million from the Fritt Ord foundation in 2003. The fourth edition was completed i 2005, and consists of 16 volumes, a total of 12,000 pages and 280,000 entries. SNL has been available online since 2000 and has several hundred thousand subscribers (private and institutional). The number of online articles is about 150,000.
Apart from encyclopaedias, Kunnskapsforlaget's most important products are dictionaries. Serving the Norwegian market, they publish a multitude of bilingual dictionaries, and some monolingual Norwegian dictionaries and thesauruses. Their main second language is English (for which they (as at 2009) offer 13 different paper dictionaries). Other languages: Swedish, Finnish, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Persian, Portuguese, Greek, Polish, Chinese. In 2004 they opened the online dictionary site Ordnett
Ordnett
Ordnett is a Norwegian online dictionary service, published and maintained by Kunnskapsforlaget, a privately held publishing house. Ordnett offers access to 27 dictionaries, covering 5 languages. This makes it the largest, commercially available dictionary database i Norway...
. Originally with only a few dictionaries (Norwegian and English) it now has 28 dictionaries in five languages (Norwegian, English, German, French, Spanish). The business model is annual subscriptions, although they offer a large, free Norwegian dictionary (Norsk Ordbok).