Stavanger, Norway

Stavanger, Norway
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vaagen-modf.jpg
Author: Odd Inge Worsøe


Stavanger is the fourth largest city in Norway. Located in Rogaland county, it covers 71 sq km (27.4 sq mi) and has a population of 126,000.

Stavanger is really a city built by petroleum. Although there is evidence of human habitation in the area going back to the Viking Age (around the 8th century), Stavanger remained a small fishing village, where the people worked as fishermen dependent on fishing for sardines, until the 2nd half of the 20th century, when oil was discovered in the North Sea. Since then, it has become the Petroleum Capital of Norway.

Stavanger Old Town, Norway
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Stavanger_%28quartier_traditionnel%29.JPG
Author: Florian Pépellin


The earliest mention of Stavanger was in AD 872. It became a market town by the 12th century. In its early days, it was a religious center, particularly after the Stavanger Cathedral was built in 1100. However its role as a center for the Roman Catholic faith was extinguished with the Protestant Reformation in 1536.

By the late 19th and early 20th century, Stavanger prospered on the fishing and shipbuilding industries. The canning of fish, particularly sardines, became big business here, and can still be glimpsed from the museum devoted to the industry in Stavanger today. However, by the mid 20th century, the cannery business was in decline, just in time as petroleum provided a new lifeline for the town.

St Petri Church, Stavanger
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sankt_Petri_church2.JPG
Author: Helge Høifødt

Visiting Stavanger

Stavanger is just 20 minutes from Sola Airport (SVG), which receives flights from London Heathrow, Glasgow, Frankfurt, Copenhagen, Aberdeen, Warsaw, Gdańsk, and Berlin, among others. From the airport, you can take the shuttle bus to downtown Stavanger.

Alternatively, you can also take the train from Oslo. However, the journey will consume 9 hours.

Sights & Attractions in Stavanger

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Hello and thanks for reading this page. My name is Timothy and my hobby is in describing places so that I can share the information with the general public. My website has become the go to site for a lot of people including students, teachers, journalists, etc. whenever they seek information on places, particularly those in Malaysia and Singapore. I have been doing this since 5 January 2003, for over twenty years already. You can read about me at Discover Timothy. By now I have compiled information on thousands of places, mostly in Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, and I continue to add more almost every day. My goal is to describe every street in every town in Malaysia and Singapore.

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