Placenames on maps and in registers in Norway

1
Place-names on maps and in registers in Norway

• Nils Jørgen Gaasvik

2
Official map series

• 1 5 000 economic land maps
• 1 50 000 land maps
• 1 50 000 sea charts
• 1 250 000 land maps
• 1 500 000 land maps
• 1 2000 000 land maps
• Estimate 1000 000 different place-names

3
The Place-Names Act

• Passed 1990
• Amended 2005
• The Act
• gives rules for official place-names in general
• gives special rules for the use of place-names in
  multilingual areas
• gives rules for laying down the spelling of
  place-names (Norwegian, Saami and Kven)
• established a regional name consultancy service
  (secretariat and consultants for Norwegian, Saami
  and Kven place-names)
• established a national place-names register
• established an appeal board

4
The Central Place-Names Register (SSR)

• SSR is a place-names data base which contains
  place-names from these products
• 150 000 land maps all place-names
• 1250 000 land maps all place-names
• N500 Map Data and N2000 Map Data place-names
  selected by editors
• Digital sea charts all place-names
• Economic land maps all place-names will be
  registered. Not completed.
• 1000 000 different place-names on these products
• 700 000 different place-names are registered in
  SSR

5
Languages

• Norwegian language 673 000 place-names
• Saami languages
• North Saami 20 496 place-names
• Lule Saami 1 293 place-names
• South Saami 1 575 place-names
• Kven language 2 010 place-names

6
Names Consultancy Service

• Norwegian names
• Oslo
• Bergen
• Trondheim
• Tromsø
• Saami names
• Guovdageaidnu - Kautokeino
• Kven names
• Alta

7
Names Consultancy Services
Kven Alta
Northern Norway Tromsø
Saami Kautokeino
Mid Norway Trondheim
Eastern and Southern Norway Oslo
Western Norway Bergen
8
Regional place-names offices
Northern Norway Vadsø
Mid Norway Trondheim
Eastern Norway Hamar
Western Norway Bergen
Southern Norway Kristiansand
9
An updated digital place-names data base

• makes place-names procedure and administration
  easier
• makes use of official spelling of place-names
  easier
• makes international co-operation on place-names
  possible