View source for Bergen

{{Short description|City and municipality in Vestland, Norway}}
{{About|the city in Norway|other uses|Bergen (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2022}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name               = Bergen
| settlement_type    = [[List of cities in Norway|City]] and [[Municipalities of Norway|municipality]]
| image_skyline      = {{Photomontage
|photo1a =Bergen panorama at night - panoramio (1).jpg
|photo2a =Kong Olav Vs Plass - Flickr - abbilder.jpg
|photo2b =Old town, Bergen (52) (36088314170).jpg
|photo3a =Norwegian national day at Bryggen with Ulriken in the horizon.jpg
|photo3b =Bergen Sandviken, Norway at night.jpg
|photo4a =Fjordsteam 2018 (141836).jpg
|size = 275
|position = center
|spacing = Number indicating width of spacing between the images (default: 1)
|color = Color of spacing between the images (default: black)
|border = Number indicating width of border surrounding the montage (default: 1)
|color_border = Color of border surrounding the montage (default: black)
|text =
|text_background = Color of background behind text (default: #F8F8FF)
|foot_montage = 
}}
| imagesize          = 260px
| image_caption      = 
| image_flag         = Flag of Bergen, Norway.svg
| flag_size          = 
| image_shield       = Bergen våpen.svg
| shield_size        = 
| map_caption        = Location of Bergen
| pushpin_map        = Norway#Vestland#Europe
| pushpin_relief     = 1
| subdivision_type   = Country
| subdivision_name   = {{flag|Norway}}
| subdivision_type1  = [[List of regions of Norway|Region]]
| subdivision_name1  = [[Western Norway]]
| subdivision_type2  = [[Counties of Norway|County]]
| subdivision_name2  = [[Vestland]]
| subdivision_type3  = [[Districts of Norway|District]]
| subdivision_name3  = [[Midhordland]]
| subdivision_type4  = [[List of municipalities of Norway|Municipality]]
| subdivision_name4  = Bergen
| leader_title1      = Governing mayor
| leader_name1       = [[Christine B. Meyer]] ([[Conservative Party (Norway)|H]])
| leader_title       = [[List of mayors of Bergen|Mayor]]
| leader_name        = Marit Warncke ([[Conservative Party (Norway)|H]])
| established_title  = Established
| established_date   = before 1070
| area_footnotes     = 
| area_total_km2     = 464.71
| area_land_km2      = 444.99
| area_water_km2     = 19.72
| area_urban_km2     = 94.03
| area_metro_km2     = 2755
| population_footnotes = 
| population_density_km2 = auto
| area_water_percent = 4.2
| population_as_of   = 1 January 2024
| population_total   = 294,029
| population_metro   = 469,238
| population_density_metro_km2 = auto
| population_demonym = Bergenser/Bergensar
| demographics_type2 = GDP
| demographics2_footnotes = <ref>{{Cite web |title=Gross domestic product (GDP) at current market prices by metropolitan regions |url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/met_10r_3gdp/default/table?lang=en |website=ec.europa.eu}}</ref>
| demographics2_title1 = [[List of cities in Norway|City]] and [[Municipalities of Norway|municipality]]
| demographics2_info1 = €36.569 billion (2021)
| coordinates        = {{coord|60|23|22|N|5|19|48|E|region:NO|display=inline,title}}
| elevation_min_m    = 0
| elevation_max_m    = 987
| area_code          = ([[+47]]) 5556
| postal_code_type   = Postal code
| postal_code        = 5003–5268 (P.O.box 5802–5899)
| website            = {{URL|https://www.bergen.kommune.no}}
| module             = {{Infobox kommune
| child = yes
| name                = Bergen Municipality
| official_name       = Bergen kommune
| native_name         = 
| native_name_lang    = 
| other_name          = 
| idnumber            = 4601
| image_skyline       = 
| county              = Vestland
| district            = Midhordland
| capital             = Bergen
| demonym             = 
| language            = Neutral
| coatofarms          = Bergen våpen.svg
| established         = 1 January 1838
| preceded            = none
}}
}}

'''Bergen''' ({{IPA|no|ˈbæ̀rɡən|-|Bergen.ogg}}, {{IPA|no|ˈbæ̂ʁgæn|local|generic=yes}}) is a city and [[municipalities of Norway|municipality]] in [[Vestland]] county on the [[Western Norway|west coast]] of [[Norway]]. Bergen is the [[list of towns and cities in Norway|second-largest]] city in Norway after the capital [[Oslo]]. 

In May 2025, the population was 294,029, according to Statistics Norway.<ref name="Pop2021Q1">{{Cite web |date=19 May 2021 |title=01222: Population and changes during the quarter, by region, contents and quarter |url=https://www.ssb.no/en/statbank/table/01222/tableViewLayout1/ |access-date=21 May 2025 |publisher=SSB|language=nb}}</ref> The municipality covers {{convert|465|km2}} and is on the peninsula of [[Bergenshalvøyen]]. The city centre and northern neighbourhoods are on [[Byfjorden (Hordaland)|Byfjorden]], 'the city fjord'. The city is surrounded by mountains, causing Bergen to be called the "city of [[Seven Mountains, Bergen|seven mountains]]". Many of the extra-municipal suburbs are on islands. Bergen is the administrative centre of Vestland county.  The city consists of eight boroughs: [[Arna, Bergen|Arna]], [[Bergenhus]], [[Fana, Bergen|Fana]], [[Fyllingsdalen]], [[Laksevåg]], [[Ytrebygda]], [[Årstad, Bergen|Årstad]], and [[Åsane]].

Trading in Bergen may have started as early as the 1020s. According to tradition, the city was founded in 1070 by King [[Olaf III of Norway|Olav Kyrre]] and was named Bjørgvin, 'the green meadow among the mountains'. It served as Norway's capital in the 13th century, and from the end of the 13th century became a [[Kontor|bureau city]] of the [[Hanseatic League]]. Until 1789, Bergen enjoyed exclusive rights to mediate trade between [[Northern Norway]] and abroad, and it was the largest city in Norway until the 1830s when it was overtaken by the capital, Christiania (now known as [[Oslo]]). What remains of the quays, [[Bryggen]], is a World Heritage Site. The city was hit by numerous fires over the years. The [[Bergen School of Meteorology]] was developed at the [[Geophysical Institute, University of Bergen|Geophysical Institute]] starting in 1917, the [[Norwegian School of Economics]] was founded in 1936, and the [[University of Bergen]] in 1946. From 1831 to 1972, Bergen was its own [[counties of Norway|county]]. In 1972 the municipality absorbed four surrounding municipalities and became a part of Hordaland county.

The city is an international centre for aquaculture, shipping, the offshore petroleum industry and subsea technology, and a national centre for higher education, media, tourism and finance. [[Bergen Port]] is Norway's busiest in terms of both freight and passengers, with over 300 cruise ship calls a year bringing nearly half a million passengers to Bergen,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Heggemsnes |first=Nils |date=26 September 2012 |title=Bergen Havn |url=https://snl.no/Bergen_havn |access-date=8 January 2016 |website=Store norske leksikon |language=nb}}</ref> a number that has doubled in 10 years.<ref name="Port of Bergen">{{Cite web |date=2016 |title=Cruisestatistikk |url=http://bergenhavn.no/cruise/cruisestatistikk/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150526145406/http://bergenhavn.no/cruise/cruisestatistikk/ |archive-date=26 May 2015 |access-date=8 January 2016 |website=Cruise |publisher=Port of Bergen |language=nb}}</ref> Almost half of the passengers are German or British.<ref name="Port of Bergen" /> The city's main football team is [[SK Brann]] and a unique tradition of the city is the [[buekorps]],  which are traditional marching neighbourhood youth organisations. Natives speak a distinct dialect, known as [[Bergensk]]. The city features [[Bergen Airport, Flesland]] and [[Bergen Light Rail]], and is the terminus of the [[Bergen Line]]. Four large bridges connect Bergen to its suburban municipalities.

Bergen has a mild winter climate, though with significant precipitation. From December to March, Bergen can, in rare cases, be up to {{convert|20|C-change}} warmer than Oslo, even though both cities are at about 60° North. In summer however, Bergen is several degrees cooler than Oslo due to the same maritime effects. The Gulf Stream keeps the sea relatively warm, considering the latitude, and the mountains protect the city from cold winds from the north, north-east and east.

==History==
{{For timeline}}

[[File:Scoleus.jpg|thumb|left|Hieronymus Scholeus's impression of Bergen. The drawing was made {{Circa|1580}} and was published in an atlas with drawings of many different cities (''{{lang|la|Civitaes orbis terrarum}}'').<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brekke |first=Nils Georg |title=Kulturhistorisk vegbok Hordaland |publisher=Hordaland Fylkeskommune |year=1993 |isbn=82-7326-026-7 |location=Bergen |language=no}}</ref>]]

The city of Bergen was traditionally thought to have been founded by king [[Olaf III of Norway|Olav Kyrre]], son of [[Harald III of Norway|Harald Hardråde]] in 1070{{spaces}}AD,<ref name="omkomm">{{Cite web |last=Elisabeth Farstad |year=2007 |title=Om kommunen |url=http://www.bergen.kommune.no/aktuelt/omkommunen |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071005165817/http://www.bergen.kommune.no/aktuelt/omkommunen |archive-date=5 October 2007 |access-date=16 September 2007 |publisher=Bergen kommune |language=nb}}</ref> four years after the Viking Age in England ended with the [[Battle of Stamford Bridge]]. Modern research has, however, discovered that a trading settlement had already been established in the 1020s or 1030s.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hella |first=Asle |date=2004-06-07 |title=Bergens historie må skrives om |url=https://www.nrk.no/nyheter/distrikt/hordaland/1.201637 |work=[[NRK]] |language=nb}}</ref>

Bergen gradually assumed the function of capital of Norway in the early 13th century, as the first city where a rudimentary central administration was established. The city's cathedral was the site of the first royal coronation in Norway in the 1150s, and continued to host royal coronations throughout the 13th century. [[Bergenhus fortress]] dates from the 1240s and guards the entrance to the harbour in Bergen. The functions of the capital city were lost to [[Oslo]] during the reign of King [[Haakon V of Norway|Haakon V]] (1299–1319).

During the 14th century, North German merchants, who had already been present in substantial numbers since the 13th century, founded one of the four ''{{lang|de|[[Kontor]]e}}'' of the [[Hanseatic League]] at [[Bryggen]] in Bergen. The principal export traded from Bergen was dried cod from the northern Norwegian coast,<ref name="codmr">{{Cite web |last=Marguerite Ragnow |year=2007 |title=Cod |url=http://bell.lib.umn.edu/Products/cod.html |access-date=14 August 2007}}</ref> which started {{Circa|1100|lk=no}}. The city was granted a monopoly for trade from the north of Norway by King [[Håkon Håkonsson]] (1217–1263).<ref name="Stockfish">{{Cite news |last=Tom R. Hjertholm |date=16 December 2013 |title=- Tørrfisken vender hjem |work=Bergensavisen}}</ref> [[Stockfish]] was the main reason that the city became one of North Europe's largest centres for trade.<ref name="Stockfish" /> By the late 14th century, Bergen had established itself as the centre of the trade in Norway.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Alf Ragnar Nielssen |date=1 January 1950 |title=Indigenous and Early Fisheries in North-Norway |url=http://www.stm.unipi.it/Clioh/tabs/libri/1/12-Nielssen(6).pdf |url-status=dead |journal=The Sea in European History |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327043202/http://www.stm.unipi.it/Clioh/tabs/libri/1/12-Nielssen%286%29.pdf |archive-date=27 March 2009 |access-date=22 July 2009}}</ref> The [[Hanseatic League|Hanseatic]] merchants lived in their own separate quarter of the town, where [[Middle Low German]] was used, enjoying [[exclusive right]]s to trade with the northern fishermen who each summer sailed to Bergen.<ref name="riksarkivethansa">{{Cite web |last=Anette Skogseth Clausen |title=7. oktober 1754 – fra et hanseatisk kontor til et norsk kontor med hanseater |url=http://www.riksarkivet.no/bergen/publikasjoner/artiklar/andre/kontoret.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015160831/http://riksarkivet.no/bergen/publikasjoner/artiklar/andre/kontoret.html |archive-date=15 October 2007 |access-date=9 October 2007 |publisher=Arkivverket |language=nb}}</ref> The Hansa community resented Scottish merchants who settled in Bergen, and on 9 November 1523 several Scottish households were targeted by German residents.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Østby Pedersen |first=Nina |url=https://brill.com/view/book/9789047407157/B9789047407157_s010.xml |title=Scottish Communities Abroad in the Early Modern Period |publisher=Brill |year=2005 |editor-last=Grosjean |editor-first=Alexia |pages=136–168 |chapter=Scottish Immigration to Bergen in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries |doi=10.1163/9789047407157_010 |isbn=978-90-474-0715-7 |editor-last2=Murdoch |editor-first2=Steve}}</ref> Today, Bergen's old quayside, [[Bryggen]], is on [[UNESCO]]'s list of [[World Heritage Site]]s.<ref name="unescolist">{{Cite web |last=UNESCO |year=2007 |title=World Heritage List |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/59 |access-date=14 August 2007}}</ref> [[File:BergenHordalandNorwayVagen.jpg|thumb|left|A historic [[photochrom]] of Bergen near the end of the 19th century. Visible are [[Bergen Cathedral]] (''Domkirken'') in the bottom left corner, [[Holy Cross Church, Bergen|Holy Cross Church]] in the middle, the bay ([[Vågen, Bergen|Vågen]]) with its many boats and the [[Bergenhus Fortress]] to the right of the opening of Vågen.]]

In 1349, the [[Black Death]] was brought to Norway by an English ship arriving in Bergen.<ref name="14thBD">{{Cite book |last=Carl Hecker |first=Justus Friedrich |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WYpLLDoMTxQC&pg=PA18 |title=The Black Death in the Fourteenth Century |year=1833}}</ref> Later outbreaks occurred in 1618, 1629 and 1637, on each occasion taking about 3,000 lives.<ref>{{Cite book |title=The National Cyclopaedia of Useful Knowledge |publisher=Charles Knight |year=1847 |editor-last=Knight |editor-first=Charles |volume=III |location=London |page=211}}</ref> In the 15th century, the city was attacked several times by the [[Victual Brothers]],<ref name="avikinghist">{{Cite book |last=Downing Kendrick |first=Thomas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3Z8NgXgRytUC&q=victual+brothers+bergen&pg=PA142 |title=A History of the Vikings |publisher=Courier Corporation |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-486-43396-7 |page=142 |author-link=T. D. Kendrick}}</ref> and in 1429 they succeeded in burning the royal castle and much of the city. In 1665, the city's harbour was the site of the [[Battle of Vågen]], when an English naval flotilla attacked a Dutch merchant and treasure fleet supported by the city's garrison. Accidental fires sometimes got out of control, and one in 1702 reduced most of the town to ashes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The fire of 1702 |url=https://kulturpunkt.org/article/875/ |access-date=3 May 2023 |website=kulturpunkt.org |publisher=[[Bergen City Museum]]}}</ref>

Throughout the 15th and 16th centuries, Bergen remained one of the largest cities in [[Scandinavia]], and it was Norway's biggest city until the 1830s,<ref name="attentretti">{{Cite web |title=Innvandring 1600–2000, Arkivenes dag 2002 |url=http://www.arkivverket.no/webfelles/sab/innvandring/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021206093817/http://www.arkivverket.no/webfelles/sab/innvandring/index.html |archive-date=6 December 2002 |access-date=9 October 2007 |publisher=Arkivverket |language=nb}}</ref> being overtaken by the capital city of [[Oslo]]. From around 1600, the Hanseatic dominance of the city's trade gradually declined in favour of Norwegian merchants (often of Hanseatic ancestry), and in the 1750s, the ''{{lang|de|Kontor}}'', or major trading post of the Hanseatic League, finally closed. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Bergen was involved in the [[Atlantic slave trade]]. Bergen-based slave trader [[Jørgen Thormøhlen]], the largest shipowner in Norway, was the main owner of the [[slave ship]] ''Cornelia'', which made two slave-trading voyages in 1673 and 1674 respectively; he also developed the city's industrial sector, particularly in the neighbourhood of [[Møhlenpris]], which is named after him.<ref name="nbl">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Jørgen Thormøhlen |encyclopedia=[[Norsk biografisk leksikon]] |publisher=Kunnskapsforlaget |location=Oslo |url=https://nbl.snl.no/Jørgen_Thormøhlen |last=Fossen |first=Anders Bjarne |editor-last=[[Knut Helle|Helle, Knut]] |language=Norwegian |accessdate=21 October 2014}}</ref> Bergen retained its monopoly of trade with northern Norway until 1789.<ref name="histnor">{{Cite web |last=Ivan Kristoffersen |author-link=Ivan Kristoffersen |year=2003 |title=Historien om Norge i nord |url=http://www.regjeringen.no/nb/dep/ud/dok/NOU-er/2003/NOU-2003-32/10.html?id=373172 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080328031006/http://www.regjeringen.no/nb/dep/ud/dok/NOU-er/2003/NOU-2003-32/10.html?id=373172 |archive-date=28 March 2008 |access-date=9 October 2007 |publisher=Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs |language=no}}</ref> The Bergen stock exchange, the ''{{lang|no|Bergen børs}}'', was established in 1813.

=== Modern history ===
[[File:Vista general d'un carrer amb gent passejant-hi i les vies del ferrocarril.jpeg|thumb|Bergen in 1909]]
[[File:Bergen, carrer de Sant Joan.jpeg|thumb|Bergen in 1909]]
Bergen was separated from Hordaland as a county of its own in 1831.<ref name="distriktsinnd">{{Cite web |title=Distriktsinndeling og navn |url=http://www.regjeringen.no/nb/dep/fad/dok/Veiledninger_og_brosjyrer/1995/Fylkesmannboka/4-Fylkesmannsembetene/43-Distriktsinndeling-og-navn.html?id=464957 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080328030818/http://www.regjeringen.no/nb/dep/fad/dok/Veiledninger_og_brosjyrer/1995/Fylkesmannboka/4-Fylkesmannsembetene/43-Distriktsinndeling-og-navn.html?id=464957 |archive-date=28 March 2008 |access-date=16 September 2007 |publisher=Fornyings- og administrasjonsdepartementet |language=no}}</ref> It was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see {{lang|no|[[formannskapsdistrikt]]}}). The [[rural municipality]] of {{lang|no|[[Bergen landdistrikt]]}} was merged with Bergen on 1 January 1877. The rural municipality of [[Årstad, Bergen|Årstad]] was merged with Bergen on 1 July 1915.<ref name="kommuneendringer">{{Cite book |last=Jukvam |first=Dag |url=http://www.ssb.no/emner/00/90/rapp_9913/rapp_9913.pdf |title=Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen |publisher=[[Statistics Norway|Statistisk sentralbyrå]] |year=1999 |isbn=9788253746845 |language=no}}</ref>

During World War II, Bergen was occupied on the first day of the German invasion on 9 April 1940, after a brief fight between German ships and the Norwegian [[coastal artillery]]. The [[Norwegian resistance movement]] groups in Bergen were [[Osvald Group|Saborg]], [[Milorg]], ''"{{lang|no|[[Theta (SIS radio group)|Theta-gruppen]]}}"'', [[Sivorg]], ''{{lang|no|[[Stein-organisasjonen]]}}'' and the Communist Party.<ref name="Prosjektbeskrivelse">{{Cite news |last1=Jenny Heggsvik |last2=Lars Borgersrud |author-link2=Lars Borgersrud |last3=August Rathke |last4=Egil Christophersen |last5=Ole-Jacob Abraham |title=Prosjektbeskrivelse for det historiske forskningsprosjektet SABORG I BERGEN |url=http://www.fagforbundet.no/file.php?id=11179 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313131238/http://www.fagforbundet.no/file.php?id=11179 |archive-date=13 March 2017 |access-date=30 November 2018}}</ref> On 20 April 1944, during the German occupation, the Dutch cargo ship ''{{lang|nl|[[Voorbode]]}}'' anchored off the [[Bergenhus Fortress]], loaded with over 120 tons of explosives, and blew up, killing at least 150 people and damaging historic buildings. The city was subject to some Allied [[strategic bombing|bombing raids]], aimed at German naval installations in the harbour. Some of these caused Norwegian civilian casualties numbering about 100.

Bergen is also well known in Norway for the [[Isdal Woman]] ({{langx|no|Isdalskvinnen}}), an unidentified person who was found dead at Isdalen ("Ice Valley") on 29 November 1970.<ref>{{Cite web |last=NRK |date=21 November 2017 |title=The Isdalen Mystery |url=https://www.nrk.no/isdal/en/ |access-date=25 June 2019 |website=NRK |language=nb-NO}}</ref> The unsolved case encouraged international speculation over the years and it remains one of the most profound mysteries in recent Norwegian history.<ref>{{Cite news |last=McCarthy |first=Marit Higraff and Neil |date=25 June 2019 |title=Death in Ice Valley: New clues in a Norwegian mystery |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/stories-48736937 |access-date=25 June 2019 |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref name="BT">{{Cite news |last=Tønder |first=Finn Bjørn |date=26 November 2002 |title=Viktig nyhet om Isdalskvinnen |trans-title=Important news about Isdal Woman |url=http://www.bt.no/nyheter/lokalt/Viktig-nyhet-om-Isdalskvinnen-2405382.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110140937/http://www.bt.no/nyheter/lokalt/Viktig-nyhet-om-Isdalskvinnen-2405382.html |archive-date=10 November 2013 |access-date=21 October 2012 |work=Bergens Tidende |language=no}}</ref>

The rural municipalities of [[Arna, Bergen|Arna]], [[Fana, Bergen|Fana]], [[Laksevåg]], and [[Åsane]] were merged with Bergen on 1 January 1972. The city lost its status as a separate county on the same date,<ref name="styringssystembk">{{Cite web |last=Bergen Kommune |year=2007 |title=Styringssystemet i Bergen kommune |url=http://byfjellene.no/bystyre_/ekstern/Styringssystemet_korrektur_fra_kommuneforlaget.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080227085411/http://byfjellene.no/bystyre_/ekstern/Styringssystemet_korrektur_fra_kommuneforlaget.pdf |archive-date=27 February 2008 |access-date=14 August 2007 |language=no}}</ref> and Bergen is now a [[list of municipalities of Norway|municipality]], in the county of [[Vestland]].

===Fires===
The city's history is marked by numerous great fires. In 1198, the {{lang|no|[[Bagler]]}} faction set fire to the city in connection with a battle against the {{lang|no|[[Birkebeiner]]}} faction during the civil war. In 1248, {{lang|no|Holmen}} and {{lang|no|Sverresborg}} burned, and 11 churches were destroyed. In 1413 another fire struck the city, and 14 churches were destroyed. In 1428 the city was plundered by the [[Victual Brothers]], and in 1455, [[Hanseatic League|Hanseatic]] merchants were responsible for burning down [[Munkeliv Abbey]]. In 1476, {{lang|no|Bryggen}} burned down in a fire started by a drunk trader. In 1582, another fire hit the city centre and {{lang|no|Strandsiden}}. In 1675, 105 buildings burned down in {{lang|no|Øvregaten}}. In 1686 another great fire hit {{lang|no|Strandsiden}}, destroying 231 city blocks and 218 boathouses. The greatest fire in history was in 1702, when 90% of the city was burned to ashes. In 1751, there was a great fire at {{lang|no|Vågsbunnen}}. In 1756, yet another fire at {{lang|no|Strandsiden}} burned down 1,500 buildings, and further great fires hit {{lang|no|Strandsiden}} in 1771 and 1901. In 1916, 300 buildings [[Bergen fire of 1916|burned down]] in the city centre including the [[Swan pharmacy]], the oldest pharmacy in Norway, and in 1955 parts of {{lang|no|Bryggen}} burned down.

===Toponymy===
Bergen is pronounced in English {{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|ɜːr|g|ən}} or {{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|ɛər|g|ən}} and in [[Norwegian language|Norwegian]] {{IPA|no|ˈbæ̀rɡn̩||Bergen.ogg}} (in [[Bergensk|the local dialect]] {{IPA|no|ˈbæ̂ʁɡɛn|generic=yes|}}). The [[Old Norse]] forms of the name were {{lang|non|Bergvin}} {{IPA|non|ˈberɡˌwin|}} and {{lang|non|Bjǫrgvin}} {{IPA|non|ˈbjɔrɡˌwin|}} (and in [[Icelandic language|Icelandic]] and [[Faroese language|Faroese]] the city is still called {{lang|is|Björgvin}}). The first element is {{wikt-lang|non|berg}} (n.) or {{lang|non|bjǫrg}} (n.), which translates as 'mountain(s)'. The last element is {{wikt-lang|non|vin}} (f.), which means a new settlement where there used to be a pasture or meadow.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brekke |first=Nils Georg |title=Kulturhistorisk vegbok Hordaland |publisher=Hordaland Fylkeskommune |year=1993 |isbn=82-7326-026-7 |location=Bergen |page=252 |language=no}}</ref> Bergen is often called "the city among the seven mountains". The playwright [[Ludvig Holberg]], inspired by the [[seven hills of Rome]], decided that his home town must be blessed with a corresponding seven mountains, though locals debate which seven they are.

In 1918, there was a campaign to reintroduce the Norse form ''{{lang|non|Bjørgvin}}'' as the name of the city. This was turned down – but as a compromise, the name of the [[diocese]] was changed to ''{{lang|no|[[Diocese of Bjørgvin|Bjørgvin bispedømme]]}}''.<ref name="bispedoeme">{{Cite web |year=2004 |title=Bjørgvin bispedøme |url=http://www.scandion.no/article/archive/826/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071226020759/http://www.scandion.no/article/archive/826/ |archive-date=26 December 2007 |access-date=10 October 2007 |publisher=Scandion.no |language=no}}</ref>

==Geography==
[[File:TettstedetBergen.jpg|thumb|left|Bergen: Urban areas ([[Statistics Norway]])]]
Bergen occupies most of the peninsula of [[Bergenshalvøyen]] in the [[districts of Norway|district]] of [[Midthordland]] in mid-western Hordaland. The municipality covers an area of {{convert|465|km2|0|abbr=off}}. Most of the urban area is on or close to a fjord or bay, although the urban area has several mountains. The city centre is surrounded by the [[Seven Mountains, Bergen|Seven Mountains]], although there is disagreement as to which of the nine mountains constitute these. [[Ulriken]], [[Fløyen]], [[Løvstakken]] and [[Damsgårdsfjellet]] are always included as well as three of [[Lyderhorn]], [[Sandviksfjellet]], [[Blåmanen]], [[Rundemanen]] and [[Kolbeinsvarden]].<ref name="syvendehm">{{Cite web |last=Gunhild Agdesteen |year=2007 |title=I den syvende himmel |url=http://www.bt.no/kuriosa/article380762.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930041155/http://www.bt.no/kuriosa/article380762.ece |archive-date=30 September 2007 |access-date=14 August 2007 |website=Bergens Tidende |language=no}}</ref> [[Gullfjellet]] is Bergen's highest mountain, at {{convert|987|m}} [[above mean sea level]].<ref name="wcpeaks">{{Cite web |title=Norwegian Mountains: Gullfjellstoppen |url=http://www.westcoastpeaks.com/Peaks/gullfjellstoppen.html |access-date=8 September 2007}}</ref> Bergen is far enough north that during clear nights at the solstice, there is borderline civil daylight in spite of the sun having set.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sunrise and sunset times in Bergen, June |url=https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/norway/bergen?month=6 |access-date=4 July 2023 |publisher=Timeanddate.com}}</ref>

Bergen is sheltered from the North Sea by the islands [[Askøy]], [[Holsnøy]] (the municipality of [[Meland]]) and [[Sotra]] (the municipalities of [[Fjell]] and [[Sund, Norway|Sund]]). Bergen borders the municipalities [[Alver (municipality)|Alver]] and [[Osterøy]] to the north, [[Vaksdal]] and [[Samnanger]] to the east, [[Os, Hordaland|Os]] ([[Bjørnafjorden (municipality)|Bjørnafjorden]]) and [[Austevoll]] to the south, and [[Øygarden]] and [[Askøy]] to the west.

{{wide image|BERGEN PANORAMA.jpg|650px|View of the city from Mt. Ulriken in 2008}}

==Climate==
[[File:Bergen vågsallmenningen rain.jpg|thumb|left|Bergen on a rainy day]]
Bergen has a [[Temperateness|temperate]] [[oceanic climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]]: ''Cfb'', [[Trewartha climate classification|Trewartha]]: ''Dolk''), with mild summers and cool winters.
Rainfall is plentiful in all seasons, along with intermittent snowfall during winter, which often melts quickly. The exceptionally plentiful precipitation that defines the city is caused by [[orographic lift]], sometimes causing more than two months of consecutive rainy days.<ref name="nedboersrekord">{{Cite web |last=ANB-NTB |year=2007 |title=Stopp for nedbørsrekord |url=http://www.siste.no/Innenriks/var_og_uvar/article2537456.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015155849/http://www.siste.no/Innenriks/var_og_uvar/article2537456.ece |archive-date=15 October 2007 |access-date=9 October 2007 |publisher=siste.no |language=no}}</ref> The city is therefore considered the rainiest city in Europe, although it is not the wettest "place" on the continent.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Meze-Hausken |first=Elisabeth |date=October 2007 |title=Seasons in the sun—weather and climate front-page news stories in Europe's rainiest city, Bergen, Norway |journal=International Journal of Biometeorology |volume=52 |issue=1 |pages=17–31 |bibcode=2007IJBm...52...17M |doi=10.1007/s00484-006-0064-5 |issn=1432-1254 |pmid=17245564 |s2cid=29081365 |hdl-access=free |hdl=1956/2114}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Europe and the United Kingdom Average Yearly Annual Precipitation |url=https://www.eldoradoweather.com/forecast/climate/climate-maps/europe-annual-precip-map.html |access-date=12 March 2019 |website=eldoradoweather.com}}</ref>

Bergen's weather is much warmer than the city's latitude (60.4° N) might suggest. Temperatures below −10&nbsp;°C (14&nbsp;°F) are rare. Summer temperatures sometimes reach the upper 20s, although temperatures over 30{{spaces}}°C were previously only seen a few days each decade. The growing season in Bergen is exceptionally long for its latitude, more than 200 days. Its mild winters and proximity to the Gulf Stream provide the city with a [[Hardiness zone|plant hardiness zone]] of 8b and 9a depending on location; this zone is much more common below 50°N even in Europe, with cities as far south as [[Bordeaux]], [[Thessaloniki]] and [[Istanbul]] falling into this category. The average date for the last overnight freeze (low below {{convert|0|°C|1|abbr=on}}) in spring is April 4<ref>{{Cite web |date=4 May 2012 |title=Siste frostnatt om våren |url=https://www.yr.no/artikkel/siste-frostnatt-om-varen-1.8119060}}</ref> and average date for first freeze in autumn is November 7<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 September 2013 |title=Første frostnatt |url=https://www.yr.no/artikkel/forste-frostnatt-1.11261900}}</ref> giving a frost-free season of 216 days.

Extreme temperatures are also quite rare in the city. The highest temperature ever recorded was {{convert|33.4|°C|°F|abbr=on}} on 26 July 2019,<ref>{{Cite news |date=26 July 2019 |title=Nå er 33,4 den nye varmerekorden i Bergen |url=https://www.bt.no/nyheter/lokalt/i/QoE3rA/Na-er-33_4-den-nye-varmerekorden-i-Bergen |access-date=26 July 2019 |work=[[Bergens Tidende]] |language=no}}</ref> beating the previous record from 2018 at {{convert|32.6|°C|°F|abbr=on}} degrees, and the lowest was {{convert|-16.3|°C|°F|abbr=on}} in January 1987.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bjørbæk |first=G |title=Norsk vær i 110 år |publisher=N.W. DAMM & Sønn |year=2003 |isbn=8204086954 |page=260}}</ref>

The city is quite cloudy year round, although old sunshine hours data might have caused an underestimate of sunshine hours, due to the city's mountainside location.<ref name="soltimer Bergen">{{Cite web |date=10 February 2017 |title=Over 1600 soltimer i Bergen i fjor trass i elendig vær i skoleferien |url=http://www.arstadposten.no/2017/02/10/1600-soltimer-bergen-fjor-trass-elendig-vaer-skoleferien/}}</ref> A new sun recorder was established at [[Bergen Airport, Flesland]] (a location with less terrain obscuring the sun) in December 2015, and this recorded an average of 1,596 hours of sun annually during 2016–2022.<ref name="Arstadposten">{{Cite web |date=22 February 2022 |title=Årstadposten – Nytt fra Årstad siden 1993 |url=https://www.arstadposten.no/2023/11/30/naer-80-soltimer-i-bergen-i-november-dobbelt-sa-mange-som-normalen/ |access-date=24 February 2024 |publisher=Arstadposten.no}}</ref>

{{Weather box
|location = Bergen - Florida 1991-2020 normals (12 m, extremes 1957–present, sunshine 2016–2024 (Bergen Airport, Flesland))
|metric first = y
|single line = y
|Jan record high C= 16.2
|Feb record high C= 13.5 
|Mar record high C= 17.2
|Apr record high C= 25.5
|May record high C= 31.2
|Jun record high C= 30.3
|Jul record high C= 33.4
|Aug record high C= 30.7
|Sep record high C= 28.6
|Oct record high C= 23.8
|Nov record high C= 17.9
|Dec record high C= 14.2
|year record high C= 33.4
|Jan avg record high C= 9.6
|Feb avg record high C= 9.2
|Mar avg record high C= 12.1
|Apr avg record high C= 18
|May avg record high C= 23.1
|Jun avg record high C= 25.1
|Jul avg record high C= 27.2
|Aug avg record high C= 26.2
|Sep avg record high C= 22
|Oct avg record high C= 17.5
|Nov avg record high C= 13
|Dec avg record high C= 10.4
|year avg record high C=
|Jan high C = 4.7
|Feb high C = 4.9
|Mar high C = 6.9
|Apr high C = 11.1
|May high C = 15
|Jun high C = 17.7
|Jul high C = 19.6
|Aug high C = 19.4
|Sep high C = 16.1
|Oct high C = 11.7
|Nov high C = 7.6
|Dec high C = 5.3
|year high C = 
|Jan mean C= 2.6
|Feb mean C= 2.3
|Mar mean C= 3.8
|Apr mean C= 7.2
|May mean C= 10.7
|Jun mean C= 13.6
|Jul mean C= 15.6
|Aug mean C= 15.4
|Sep mean C= 12.6
|Oct mean C= 8.6
|Nov mean C= 5.3
|Dec mean C= 3.1
|year mean C = 
|Jan low C = 0.6
|Feb low C = 0.1
|Mar low C = 1.3
|Apr low C = 3.9
|May low C = 6.9
|Jun low C = 10.1
|Jul low C = 12.4
|Aug low C = 12.4
|Sep low C = 9.9
|Oct low C = 6.1
|Nov low C = 3.1
|Dec low C = 1
|year low C = 
|Jan avg record low C= -6.1
|Feb avg record low C= -6.1
|Mar avg record low C= -4.5
|Apr avg record low C= -1.2
|May avg record low C= 1.8
|Jun avg record low C= 5.6
|Jul avg record low C= 8.2
|Aug avg record low C= 8
|Sep avg record low C= 4.4
|Oct avg record low C= 0.1
|Nov avg record low C= -3.2
|Dec avg record low C= -5.7
|year avg record low C= -8.7
|Jan record low C= -16.3
|Feb record low C= -13.4
|Mar record low C= -12
|Apr record low C= -5.4
|May record low C= -0.1
|Jun record low C= 1.7
|Jul record low C= 5.6
|Aug record low C= 5.3
|Sep record low C= -0.1
|Oct record low C= -4.7
|Nov record low C= -9.5
|Dec record low C= -13.7	
|year record low C=
|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation mm = 256.3
|Feb precipitation mm = 209.5
|Mar precipitation mm = 201.7
|Apr precipitation mm = 140.6
|May precipitation mm = 108.5
|Jun precipitation mm = 132.3
|Jul precipitation mm = 157.5
|Aug precipitation mm = 207.9
|Sep precipitation mm = 248.1
|Oct precipitation mm = 268.1
|Nov precipitation mm = 275.1
|Dec precipitation mm = 289.9
|year precipitation mm = 
|unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm
|Jan precipitation days = 19.2
|Feb precipitation days = 17.4
|Mar precipitation days = 17.6
|Apr precipitation days = 14.1
|May precipitation days = 13.0
|Jun precipitation days = 13.3
|Jul precipitation days = 15.2
|Aug precipitation days = 16.6
|Sep precipitation days = 18.1
|Oct precipitation days = 18.5
|Nov precipitation days = 18.5
|Dec precipitation days = 19.3
|year precipitation days = 
|Jan humidity=79.1
|Feb humidity=77.7
|Mar humidity=74.1
|Apr humidity=69.4
|May humidity=68.7
|Jun humidity=72.5
|Jul humidity=75.6
|Aug humidity=76.8
|Sep humidity=77.9
|Oct humidity=78.5
|Nov humidity=79.2
|Dec humidity=80.7
| Jan sun = 31.8
| Feb sun = 64.4
| Mar sun = 119.2
| Apr sun = 218.7
| May sun = 251.9
| Jun sun = 233.5
| Jul sun = 203.1
| Aug sun = 174.2
| Sep sun = 134.3
| Oct sun = 84.2
| Nov sun = 46.2
| Dec sun = 13.4
| year sun =
| Jan percentsun = 15
| Feb percentsun = 25
| Mar percentsun = 33
| Apr percentsun = 50
| May percentsun = 47
| Jun percentsun = 41
| Jul percentsun = 36
| Aug percentsun = 36
| Sep percentsun = 35
| Oct percentsun = 27
| Nov percentsun = 21
| Dec percentsun = 7
| year percentsun =
|source=Seklima<ref name = "Seklima">seklima.met.no</ref>
}}

{{Weather box|collapsed=yes
|location = Bergen Airport Flesland 1991-2020 (48 m)
|metric first = y
|single line = y
|Jan high C = 4.2
|Feb high C = 4.1
|Mar high C = 5.8
|Apr high C = 9.7
|May high C = 13.3
|Jun high C = 16
|Jul high C = 18.1
|Aug high C = 18
|Sep high C = 15.1
|Oct high C = 10.9
|Nov high C = 7.1
|Dec high C = 4.8
|year high C = 
|Jan mean C= 2.4
|Feb mean C= 2.1
|Mar mean C= 3
|Apr mean C= 6.1
|May mean C= 9.5
|Jun mean C= 12.3
|Jul mean C= 14.5
|Aug mean C= 14.5
|Sep mean C= 12
|Oct mean C= 8.1
|Nov mean C= 4.8
|Dec mean C= 2.6
|year mean C = 
|Jan low C = 0.6
|Feb low C = 0.1
|Mar low C = 1.3
|Apr low C = 2.9
|May low C = 6
|Jun low C = 9.1
|Jul low C = 11.6
|Aug low C = 11.7
|Sep low C = 9.3
|Oct low C = 5.5
|Nov low C = 2.4
|Dec low C = 0.3
|year low C = 
|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation mm = 204
|Feb precipitation mm = 168
|Mar precipitation mm = 165
|Apr precipitation mm = 110
|May precipitation mm = 88
|Jun precipitation mm = 100
|Jul precipitation mm = 121
|Aug precipitation mm = 175
|Sep precipitation mm = 208
|Oct precipitation mm = 230
|Nov precipitation mm = 241
|Dec precipitation mm = 219
|year precipitation mm =
|source 1 = NOAA (temperatures)<ref>{{Cite web |title= Index of /Archive/Arc0216/0253808/1.1/Data/0-data/Region-6-WMO-Normals-9120/Norway/CSV|url=https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/1.1/data/0-data/Region-6-WMO-Normals-9120/Norway/CSV/?C=D;O=A}}</ref>
|source 2 = Yr (precipitation)<ref>{{Cite web |title= Historiske værdata for Flesland som graf - Siste 13 måneder|url=https://www.yr.no/nb/historikk/graf/5-50500/Norge/Vestland/Bergen/Flesland}}</ref>
}}

{{Weather box|collapsed=yes
|location = Bergen Airport Flesland 1981-2010 (48 m, sunshine 1961-1990)
|metric first = y
|single line = y
|Jan record high C= 16.9
|Feb record high C= 13.5 
|Mar record high C= 17.2
|Apr record high C= 22.5
|May record high C= 31.2
|Jun record high C= 29.9
|Jul record high C= 33.4
|Aug record high C= 31.0
|Sep record high C= 27.1
|Oct record high C= 23.8
|Nov record high C= 17.9
|Dec record high C= 13.9
|year record high C= 33.4
|Jan high C = 3.9
|Feb high C = 3.9
|Mar high C = 5.6
|Apr high C = 9.4
|May high C = 13.3
|Jun high C = 16.1
|Jul high C = 17.8
|Aug high C = 17.8
|Sep high C = 14.4
|Oct high C = 10.6
|Nov high C = 6.7
|Dec high C = 4.4
|year high C = 
|Jan mean C= 1.4
|Feb mean C= 1.4
|Mar mean C= 2.8
|Apr mean C= 5.8
|May mean C= 9.5
|Jun mean C= 12.5
|Jul mean C= 14.5
|Aug mean C= 14.5
|Sep mean C= 11.4
|Oct mean C= 8.1
|Nov mean C= 4.2
|Dec mean C= 1.9
|year mean C = 
|Jan low C = 0.6
|Feb low C = 0.1
|Mar low C = 0.3
|Apr low C = 2.2
|May low C = 5.6
|Jun low C = 8.9
|Jul low C = 11.1
|Aug low C = 11.1
|Sep low C = 8.3
|Oct low C = 5.6
|Nov low C = 1.7
|Dec low C = 0.6
|year low C = 
|Jan record low C= -16.3
|Feb record low C= -13.4
|Mar record low C= -12.0
|Apr record low C= -5.5
|May record low C= -0.1
|Jun record low C= 0.8
|Jul record low C= 2.5
|Aug record low C= 2.5
|Sep record low C= 0.0
|Oct record low C= -5.5
|Nov record low C= -10.0
|Dec record low C= -13.0	
|year record low C= -16.3
|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation mm = 225.5
|Feb precipitation mm = 169.4
|Mar precipitation mm = 188.8
|Apr precipitation mm = 144.5
|May precipitation mm = 110.8
|Jun precipitation mm = 111.6
|Jul precipitation mm = 157.0
|Aug precipitation mm = 189.7
|Sep precipitation mm = 272.7
|Oct precipitation mm = 257.5
|Nov precipitation mm = 296.1
|Dec precipitation mm = 223.9
|year precipitation mm = 2347.6
|unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm
|Jan precipitation days = 19.1
|Feb precipitation days = 16.4
|Mar precipitation days = 17.3
|Apr precipitation days = 14.0
|May precipitation days = 12.8
|Jun precipitation days = 12.7
|Jul precipitation days = 14.5
|Aug precipitation days = 15.9
|Sep precipitation days = 17.0
|Oct precipitation days = 19.1
|Nov precipitation days = 18.1
|Dec precipitation days = 18.5
|year precipitation days = 
|Jan humidity=78
|Feb humidity=76
|Mar humidity=73
|Apr humidity=72
|May humidity=72
|Jun humidity=76
|Jul humidity=77
|Aug humidity=78
|Sep humidity=79
|Oct humidity=79
|Nov humidity=78
|Dec humidity=79

|Jan sun = 19
|Feb sun = 56
|Mar sun = 94
|Apr sun = 147
|May sun = 186
|Jun sun = 189
|Jul sun = 167
|Aug sun = 144
|Sep sun = 86
|Oct sun = 60
|Nov sun = 27
|Dec sun = 12

| Jan percentsun = 9
| Feb percentsun = 22
| Mar percentsun = 25
| Apr percentsun = 34
| May percentsun = 35
| Jun percentsun = 34
| Jul percentsun = 30
| Aug percentsun = 30
| Sep percentsun = 22
| Oct percentsun = 19
| Nov percentsun = 12
| Dec percentsun = 6
| year percentsun =

|source 1 = NOAA (temperatures)<ref>{{Cite web |title=NOAA stats – Bergen |url=http://meteo-climat-bzh.dyndns.org/listenormale-1981-2010-1-p159.php |access-date=30 December 2019 |publisher=NOAA}}</ref> NOAA (humidity and sunshine)<ref name="NOAA">{{Cite web |title=BERGEN – FLORIDA Climate Normals: 1961–1990 |url=ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG_VI/NO/01317.TXT |access-date=16 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010154812/ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG_VI/NO/01317.TXT |archive-date=2017-10-10 |url-status=dead |publisher=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration}}</ref>
|source 2 = Voodoo Skies for extremes<ref>{{Cite web |title=Voodoo Skies – Bergen Monthly Temperature weather history |url=http://voodooskies.com/weather/norway/bergen/monthly/temperature |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161101101758/http://voodooskies.com/weather/norway/bergen/monthly/temperature |archive-date=1 November 2016 |access-date=6 September 2015}}</ref> Naturen<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Mamen |first=J |year=2008 |title=Dypdykk i klimadatabasen. Rekorder og kuriositeter fra Meteorologisk institutts klimaarkiv |journal=Naturen |page=250 |number=6}}</ref>
|date=September 2015}}

==Cityscape==
{{Infobox UNESCO World Heritage Site
| image         = Bryggen, Bergen, Noruega, 2019-09-08, DD 115-117 PAN.jpg
| image_upright = 1.2
| caption       = Bryggen in Bergen, built after 1702
| location      = Bergen Municipality, Bergen, Norway
| criteria      = {{UNESCO WHS type|(iii)}}(iii)
| ID            = 59
| year          = 1979
| area          = {{convert|1.196|ha|sqft|abbr=on}}
| website       = {{URL|www.stiftelsenbryggen.no}}
| locmapin      = Norway
| map_caption   = 
}}
[[File:Night view from Mount Floyen - Bergen, Norway.jpg|thumb|left|Night view of Bergen from Mount [[Fløyen]]]]

The city centre of Bergen lies in the west of the municipality, facing the fjord of [[Byfjorden (Hordaland)|Byfjorden]]. It is among a group of mountains known as the [[Seven Mountains, Bergen|Seven Mountains]], although the number is a matter of definition. From here, the urban area of Bergen extends to the north, west and south, and to its east is a large mountain massif. Outside the city centre and the surrounding neighbourhoods (i.e. [[Årstad, Bergen|Årstad]], inner [[Laksevåg]] and [[Sandviken, Norway|Sandviken]]), the majority of the population lives in relatively sparsely populated residential areas built after 1950. While some are dominated by [[apartment|apartment building]]s and modern [[terraced house]]s (e.g. [[Fyllingsdalen]]), others are dominated by [[single-family detached home|single-family home]]s.<ref name="bl27">{{Cite encyclopedia |year=1994 |title=Bergen |encyclopedia=[[Bergen Byleksikon]] |publisher=Kunnskapsforlaget |location=Oslo |last=Hagen Hartvedt |first=Gunnar |edition=1st |pages=27 |isbn=82-573-0485-9}}</ref>

[[File:Bergen,Norway (14858093371).jpg|thumb|right|View of the city centre with [[Torgallmenningen]]]]
The oldest part of Bergen is the area around the bay of Vågen in the city centre. Originally centred on the bay's eastern side, Bergen eventually expanded west and southwards. Few buildings from the oldest period remain, the most significant being [[St Mary's Church, Bergen|St Mary's Church]] from the 12th century. For several hundred years, the extent of the city remained almost constant. The population was stagnant, and the city limits were narrow.<ref name="bl23">{{Cite encyclopedia |year=1994 |title=Bergen |encyclopedia=Bergen Byleksikon |publisher=Kunnskapsforlaget |location=Oslo |last=Hagen Hartvedt |first=Gunnar |edition=1st |pages=23 |isbn=82-573-0485-9}}</ref> In 1702, seven-eighths of the city burned. Most of the old buildings of Bergen, including Bryggen (which was rebuilt in a mediaeval style), were built after the fire. The fire marked a transition from [[tar]] covered houses, as well as the remaining [[log home|log house]]s, to painted and some brick-covered wooden buildings.<ref name="bl25">{{Cite encyclopedia |year=1994 |title=Bergen |encyclopedia=Bergen Byleksikon |publisher=Kunnskapsforlaget |location=Oslo |last=Hagen Hartvedt |first=Gunnar |edition=1st |pages=25 |isbn=82-573-0485-9}}</ref>

[[File:Marienkirche in Bergen 01.jpg|thumb|upright|left|[[St Mary's Church, Bergen|St Mary's Church]]]]
The last half of the 19th century saw a period of rapid expansion and modernisation. The fire of 1855 west of [[Torgallmenningen]] led to the development of regularly sized city blocks in this area of the city centre. The city limits were expanded in 1876, and [[Nygård, Norway|Nygård]], [[Møhlenpris]] and [[Sandviken, Norway|Sandviken]] were urbanized with large-scale construction of city blocks housing both the poor and the wealthy.<ref name="bt_nygaardshøyden">{{Cite news |last=Østerbø |first=Kjell |date=23 September 2007 |title=Da rike og fattige fikk sine strøk |url=http://www.bt.no/lokalt/bergen/article413890.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080625091158/http://www.bt.no/lokalt/bergen/article413890.ece |archive-date=25 June 2008 |access-date=18 December 2008 |work=Bergens Tidende |language=no}}</ref> Their architecture is influenced by a variety of styles; [[historicism (art)|historicism]], [[classicism]] and [[Art Nouveau]].<ref name="bl2526">{{Cite encyclopedia |year=1994 |title=Bergen |encyclopedia=Bergen Byleksikon |publisher=Kunnskapsforlaget |location=Oslo |last=Hagen Hartvedt |first=Gunnar |edition=1st |pages=25–26 |isbn=82-573-0485-9}}</ref> The wealthy built villas between Møhlenpris and Nygård, and on the side of Mount Fløyen; these areas were also added to Bergen in 1876. Simultaneously, an urbanization process was taking place in [[Solheimsviken]] in Årstad, at that time outside the Bergen municipality, centred on the large industrial activity in the area.<ref name="bl2627">{{Cite encyclopedia |year=1994 |title=Bergen |encyclopedia=Bergen Byleksikon |publisher=Kunnskapsforlaget |location=Oslo |last=Hagen Hartvedt |first=Gunnar |edition=1st |pages=26–27 |isbn=82-573-0485-9}}</ref> The workers' homes in this area were poorly built, and little remains after large-scale redevelopment in the 1960s–1980s.

[[File:Kong Oscars gate, Bergen 2018.jpg|thumb|[[Kong Oscars gate]]]]
After Årstad became a part of Bergen in 1916, a development plan was applied to the new area. Few city blocks akin to those in Nygård and Møhlenpris were planned. Many of the worker class built their own homes, and many small, detached apartment buildings were built. After World War II, Bergen had again run short of land to build on, and, contrary to the original plans, many large apartment buildings were built in [[Landås]] in the 1950s and 1960s. Bergen acquired [[Fyllingsdalen]] from [[Fana (municipality)|Fana]] municipality in 1955. Like similar areas in Oslo (e.g. [[Lambertseter]]), Fyllingsdalen was developed into a modern suburb with large apartment buildings, [[Tower block|mid-rise]]s, and some single-family homes, in the 1960s and 1970s. Similar developments took place beyond Bergen's city limits, for example in [[Loddefjord]].<ref name="bl961">{{Cite encyclopedia |year=1994 |title=Bergen |encyclopedia=Bergen Byleksikon |publisher=Kunnskapsforlaget |location=Oslo |last=Hagen Hartvedt |first=Gunnar |edition=1st |pages=9–61 |isbn=82-573-0485-9}}</ref> 
[[File:06.05.25 16 Fra Nordnes i Bergen.JPG|thumb|View from the Nordnes part of Bergen]]
At the same time as [[New town|planned city]] expansion took place inside Bergen, its extra-municipal suburbs also grew rapidly. Wealthy citizens of Bergen had been living in Fana since the 19th century, but as the city expanded it became more convenient to settle in the municipality. Similar processes took place in [[Åsane]] and Laksevåg. Most of the homes in these areas are detached [[Terraced house|row house]]s,{{clarify|reason=row houses are attached, by definition|date=April 2020}} single family homes or small apartment buildings.<ref name="bl961" /> After the surrounding municipalities were merged with Bergen in 1972, expansion has continued in largely the same manner, although the municipality encourages condensing near commercial centres, future [[Bergen Light Rail]] stations, and elsewhere.<ref name="bt_fortetting1">{{Cite news |last=Mæland |first=Pål Andreas |date=16 May 2008 |title=Nå kommer slangen til Paradis |url=http://www.bt.no/lokalt/bergen/article564560.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130112052521/http://www.bt.no/lokalt/bergen/article564560.ece |archive-date=12 January 2013 |access-date=18 December 2008 |work=[[Bergens Tidende]] |language=no}}</ref><ref name="bt_fortetting2">{{Cite news |last=Røyrane |first=Eva |date=9 May 2007 |title=Bergen bygges tettere |url=http://bt.no/forbruker/husoghjem/article361530.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110807100820/http://www.bt.no/forbruker/husoghjem/article361530.ece |archive-date=7 August 2011 |access-date=18 December 2008 |work=[[Bergens Tidende]] |language=no}}</ref>

As part of the modernisation wave of the 1950s and 1960s, and due to damage caused by World War II, the [[Local government|city government]] ambitiously planned redevelopment of many areas in central Bergen. The plans involved demolition of several neighbourhoods of wooden houses, namely [[Nordnes]], Marken, and Stølen. None of the plans was carried out in its original form; the Marken and Stølen redevelopment plans were discarded and that of Nordnes only carried out in the area that had been most damaged by war. The city council of Bergen had in 1964 voted to demolish the entirety of Marken, however, the decision proved to be highly controversial and the decision was reversed in 1974. Bryggen was under threat of being wholly or partly demolished after the fire of 1955, when a large number of the buildings burned to the ground. Instead of being demolished, the remaining buildings were restored and accompanied by reconstructions of some of the burned buildings.<ref name="bl961" />

Demolition of old buildings and occasionally whole city blocks is still taking place, the most recent major example being the 2007 razing of Jonsvollskvartalet at Nøstet.<ref name="bt_jonsvoll">{{Cite news |last=Okkenhaug |first=Liv Solli |date=21 April 2007 |title=Rev de siste husene |url=http://www.bt.no/lokalt/bergen/article357421.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070427074218/http://www.bt.no/lokalt/bergen/article357421.ece |archive-date=27 April 2007 |access-date=18 December 2008 |work=[[Bergens Tidende]] |language=no}}</ref>

[[Billboard]]s are banned in the city.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Patowary |first=Kaushik |date=2013-07-20 |title=São Paulo: The City With No Outdoor Advertisements |url=http://www.amusingplanet.com/2013/07/sao-paulo-city-with-no-outdoor.html |work=AmusingPlanet}}</ref>

{{wide image|Brygge Norway 2005-08-18.jpg|1100px|Panorama of the reconstructed Hanseatic buildings of [[Bryggen]], a World Heritage Site}}

==Administration==
{{further|List of mayors of Bergen}}
The municipality has had a [[parliamentary system|parliamentary]] government since 2000. Up until then, Bergen had been governed by the city council ({{lang|no|formannskap}}).<ref name="styring">{{Cite web |title=Styringssystem |url=http://www3.bergen.kommune.no/bystyre_/ekstern/styringssystem.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015152459/http://bergen.kommune.no/bystyre_/ekstern/styringssystem.html |archive-date=15 October 2007 |access-date=9 October 2007 |publisher=Bergen kommune |language=no}}</ref> The government now consists of seven government members called commissioners, and is appointed by the city council, the supreme authority of the city.

The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political [[Political party|party]]. 
{{div col}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 2023
|end                       = 2027
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |title=Kommunestyrevalg 2023 - Vestland |url=https://valgresultat.no/valg/2023/ko/vestland/bergen#seats |access-date=2024-01-21 |publisher=[[Valgdirektoratet]]}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = 
|Total                     = 67
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 13
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 7
|Grønne                    = 4
|Høyre                     = 18
|INP                       = 3
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 2
|Pensjonistpartiet         = 1
|Rødt                      = 3
|Senterpartiet             = 2
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 7
|Venstre                   = 3
|otherparty                = Bergen List
|otherparty_no             = Bergenslisten
|otherparty_number         = 4
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 2019
|end                       = 2023
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |title=Kommunestyrevalg 2019 – Vestland |url=https://valgresultat.no/valg/2019/ko/vestland/bergen#seats |access-date=2 February 2020 |publisher=[[Valgdirektoratet]]}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 67
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 13
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 3
|Grønne                    = 7
|Høyre                     = 14
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 2
|Pensjonistpartiet         = 1
|Rødt                      = 3
|Senterpartiet             = 4
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 6
|Venstre                   = 3
|FNB                       = 11
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 2015
|end                       = 2019
|reference                 = <ref name="ssb valg">{{Cite web |title=Table: 04813: Members of the local councils, by party/electoral list at the Municipal Council election (M) |url=https://www.ssb.no/en/statbank/table/04813/ |publisher=Statistics Norway |language=no}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 73
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 28
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 6
|Høyre                     = 15
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 6
|Senterpartiet             = 1
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 5
|Venstre                   = 6
|Rødt                      = 2
|Grønne                    = 4
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 2011
|end                       = 2015
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |title=Kommunestyrevalg 2011 – Hordaland |url=https://valgresultat.no/valg/2011/ko/hordaland/bergen#seats |access-date=5 February 2020 |publisher=[[Valgdirektoratet]]}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 67
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 19
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 7
|Grønne                    = 1
|Høyre                     = 24
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 4
|Rødt                      = 2
|Senterpartiet             = 1
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 3
|Venstre                   = 5
|otherparty                = City Air List
|otherparty_no             = Byluftlisten
|otherparty_number         = 1
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 2007
|end                       = 2011
|reference                 = <ref name="ssb valg" />
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 67
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 16
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 14
|Høyre                     = 18
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 4
|Pensjonistpartiet         = 1
|Rødt                      = 3
|Senterpartiet             = 2
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 5
|Venstre                   = 4
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 2003
|end                       = 2007
|reference                 = <ref name="ssb valg" />
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 67
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 15
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 12
|Høyre                     = 18
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 4
|Pensjonistpartiet         = 3
|Rød_Valgallianse          = 4
|Senterpartiet             = 1
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 8
|Venstre                   = 2
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1999
|end                       = 2003
|reference                 = <ref name="ssb valg" />
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 67
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 20
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 13
|Høyre                     = 14
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 7
|Pensjonistpartiet         = 1
|Rød_Valgallianse          = 4
|Senterpartiet             = 1
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 5
|Venstre                   = 2
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1995
|end                       = 1999
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1996 |title=Kommunestyrevalget 1995 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_c342.pdf |access-date=20 February 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo-Kongsvinger}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 85
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 24
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 14
|Høyre                     = 19
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 9
|Senterpartiet             = 3
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 5
|Venstre                   = 6
|Pensjonistpartiet         = 1
|Rød_Valgallianse          = 4
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1991
|end                       = 1995
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1993 |title=Kommunestyrevalget 1991 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_c057.pdf |access-date=20 February 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo-Kongsvinger}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 85
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 30
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 10
|Høyre                     = 16
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 7
|Pensjonistpartiet         = 3
|Rød_Valgallianse          = 2
|Senterpartiet             = 4
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 10
|Venstre                   = 3
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1987
|end                       = 1991
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1988 |title=Kommunestyrevalget 1987 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_b765.pdf |access-date=20 February 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo-Kongsvinger}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 85
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 29
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 17
|Høyre                     = 22
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 7
|Rød_Valgallianse          = 1
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 5
|DLF/V                     = 4
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1983
|end                       = 1987
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1984 |title=Kommunestyrevalget 1983 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_b450.pdf |access-date=20 February 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo-Kongsvinger}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 85
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 30
|DLF                       = 1
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 9
|Høyre                     = 27
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 8
|Rød_Valgallianse          = 1
|Senterpartiet             = 1
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 5
|Venstre                   = 3
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1979
|end                       = 1983
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1979 |title=Kommunestyrevalget 1979 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_b093.pdf |access-date=20 February 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 85
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 26
|DLF                       = 1
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 4
|Høyre                     = 35
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 9
|Rød_Valgallianse          = 1
|Senterpartiet             = 1
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 3
|Venstre                   = 5
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1975
|end                       = 1979
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1977 |title=Kommunevalgene 1975 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_a769.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 85
|Fremskrittspartiet        = 2
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 29
|DLF                       = 5
|Høyre                     = 28
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 11
|Senterpartiet             = 2
|Sosialistisk_Venstreparti = 5
|Venstre                   = 3
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1971
|end                       = 1975
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1973 |title=Kommunevalgene 1972 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_a457.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 85
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 33
|Høyre                     = 20
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 7
|NKP                       = 3
|Senterpartiet             = 3
|Sosialistisk_Folkeparti   = 4
|Venstre                   = 15
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1967
|end                       = 1971
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1967 |title=Kommunevalgene 1967 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_a214.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo |volume=I}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 77
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 36
|Høyre                     = 20
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 5
|NKP                       = 1
|Sosialistisk_Folkeparti   = 3
|Venstre                   = 12
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1963
|end                       = 1967
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1964 |title=Kommunevalgene 1963 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_xii_138.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 77
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 37
|Høyre                     = 22
|NKP                       = 1
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 4
|Sosialistisk_Folkeparti   = 2
|Venstre                   = 11
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1959
|end                       = 1963
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1960 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1959 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_xii_022.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 77
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 34
|Høyre                     = 20
|NKP                       = 4
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 7
|Venstre                   = 12
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1955
|end                       = 1959
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1957 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1955 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_xi_252.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 77
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 34
|NKP                       = 6
|Høyre                     = 18
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 7
|Venstre                   = 12
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1951
|end                       = 1955
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1952 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1951 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_xi_120.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 76
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 35
|NKP                       = 6
|Høyre                     = 15
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 7
|Venstre                   = 13
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1947
|end                       = 1951
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1948 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1947 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_x_165.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 76
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 25
|NKP                       = 13
|Høyre                     = 14
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 7
|Venstre                   = 16
|Local_Lists               = 1
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1945
|end                       = 1947
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1947 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1945 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_x_133.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 76
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 24
|NKP                       = 21
|Høyre                     = 11
|Kristelig_Folkeparti      = 6
|Venstre                   = 12
|Local_Lists               = 2
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1937
|end                       = 1941* 
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1938 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1937 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_ix_133.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 76
|Høyre                     = 13
|Frisinnede_Venstre        = 5
|Venstre                   = 17
|Avholdspartiet            = 7
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 27
|NKP                       = 7
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1934
|end                       = 1937 
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1935 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1934 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_ix_057.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 76
|Høyre                     = 10
|Frisinnede_Venstre        = 9
|Venstre                   = 13
|Avholdspartiet            = 8
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 27
|NKP                       = 9
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1931
|end                       = 1934 
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1932 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1931 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_viii_186.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 76
|Høyre                     = 13
|Frisinnede_Venstre        = 13
|Venstre                   = 14
|Avholdspartiet            = 4
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 21
|NKP                       = 11
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1928
|end                       = 1931 
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1929 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1928 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_viii_093.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 76
|H/FV                      = 22
|Venstre                   = 11
|Avholdspartiet            = 6
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 21
|NKP                       = 16
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1925
|end                       = 1928 
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1926 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1925 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_vii_192.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 76
|H/FV                      = 26
|Venstre                   = 9
|Avholdspartiet            = 6
|SDA                       = 8
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 2
|NKP                       = 22
|otherparty                = Homeowners' list
|otherparty_no             = Huseiere liste
|otherparty_number         = 3
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1922
|end                       = 1925
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1923 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1922 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_vii_078.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 76
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 28
|SDA                       = 6
|H/FV                      = 26
|Venstre                   = 5
|Avholdspartiet            = 6
|Local_Lists               = 5
|}}
{{Kommunestyre table
|name                      = Bergen
|city                      = yes
|start                     = 1919
|end                       = 1922
|reference                 = <ref>{{Cite web |date=1920 |title=Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1919 |url=https://www.ssb.no/a/histstat/nos/nos_vi_189.pdf |access-date=11 May 2020 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå |language=no |location=Oslo}}</ref>
|collapsed                 = yes
|Total                     = 76
|Arbeiderpartiet           = 24
|Høyre                     = 28
|Venstre                   = 7
|Frisinnede_Venstre        = 3
|Avholdspartiet            = 8
|Local_Lists               = 6
|}}
{{div col end}}

===Boroughs===
[[File:Bergen boroughs.png|thumb|right|Boroughs of Bergen]]
Bergen is divided into eight boroughs,<ref name="bydeler">{{Cite web |last=Statistics Norway |year=2004 |title=Bydeler i Oslo, Bergen, Stavanger og Trondheim |url=http://www.ssb.no/kommuner/bydeler.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070903012141/http://www.ssb.no/kommuner/bydeler.html |archive-date=3 September 2007 |access-date=14 August 2007 |language=no}}</ref> as seen on the map to the right. Clockwise, starting with the northernmost, the boroughs are [[Åsane]], [[Arna, Bergen|Arna]], [[Fana, Bergen|Fana]], [[Ytrebygda]], [[Fyllingsdalen]], [[Laksevåg]], [[Årstad, Bergen|Årstad]] and [[Bergenhus]]. The city centre is in [[Bergenhus]]. Parts of Fana, Ytrebygda, Åsane and Arna are not part of the Bergen urban area, explaining why the municipality has approximately 20,000 more inhabitants than the urban area.<ref>{{Cite web |last=says |first=suNeil |date=29 October 2019 |title=The History of Bergen |url=https://www.lifeinnorway.net/history-of-bergen/ |access-date=14 August 2020 |website=Life in Norway |language=en-US}}</ref>

Local borough administrations have varied since Bergen's expansion in 1972. From 1974, each borough had a politically chosen administration. From 1989, Bergen was divided into 12 health and social districts, each locally administered. From 2000 to 2004, the former organizational form with eight politically chosen local administrations was again in use and from 2008 through to 2010, a similar form existed where the local administrations had less power than previously.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lokaldemokratiets utvikling 1814 – 2014 |url=https://www.bergen.kommune.no/omkommunen/avdelinger/byradsavd-for-klima-kultur-og-naring/2435/article-114765 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160819185132/https://www.bergen.kommune.no/omkommunen/avdelinger/byradsavd-for-klima-kultur-og-naring/2435/article-114765 |archive-date=19 August 2016 |access-date=10 June 2016 |website=Bergen kommune |language=nb}}</ref>

[[File:FyllingsdalenBorettslag1.jpg|thumb|right|Apartment buildings in Fyllingsdalen in 2008]]

[[File:EidsvågsnesetSentrum.jpg|thumb|Bergen seen from [[Eidsvåg, Bergen|Eidsvågneset]]]]

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Borough
!Population<ref>{{Cite web |date=1 January 2024 |title=Bergen kommune - Folketall per 1. januar 2024 |url=https://www.bergen.kommune.no/omkommunen/fakta-om-bergen/befolkning/folketall-per-1-januar-2024 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616055022/https://www.bergen.kommune.no/omkommunen/fakta-om-bergen/befolkning/folketall-per-1-januar-2024 |archive-date=16 June 2024 |access-date=16 June 2024 |publisher=Bergen kommune}}</ref>
!%
!Area (km<sup>2</sup>)
!%
!Density<br />(/km<sup>2</sup>)
|- style="text-align:right;"
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Arna, Bergen|Arna]]
|14,020
|4.9
|102.44
|22.0
|123
|- style="text-align:right;"
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Bergenhus]]<sup>1</sup>
|43,218
|14.8
|26.58
|5.7
|4.415
|- style="text-align:right;"
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Fana, Bergen|Fana]]
|44,600
|14.8
|159.70
|34.3
|239
|- style="text-align:right;"
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Fyllingsdalen]]
|30,614
|11.1
|18.84
|4.0
|1.530
|- style="text-align:right;"
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Laksevåg]]
|40,646
|14.8
|32.72
|7.0
|1.173
|- style="text-align:right;"
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Ytrebygda]]
|31,676
|9.9
|39.61
|8.5
|649
|- style="text-align:right;"
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Årstad, Bergen|Årstad]]<sup>2</sup>
|42,673
|14.5
|14.78
|3.2
|4.440
|- style="text-align:right;"
| style="text-align:left;"| [[Åsane]]
|44,233
|15.2
|71.01
|15.2
|556
|- style="text-align:right;"
| style="text-align:left;"| Not stated
|260
|
|
|
|
|- style="text-align:right;" class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:left;"| '''Total'''
|'''291,940'''
|'''100'''
|'''465.68'''
|'''100'''
|'''559'''
|}
(Pertaining to the table above: The acreage figures include fresh water and uninhabited mountain areas, except: <br />
<sup>1</sup> 1 The borough Bergenhus is {{convert|8.73|km2|abbr=on}}, the rest is water and uninhabited mountain areas.<br />
<sup>2</sup> 2 The borough Årstad is {{convert|8.47|km2|abbr=on}}, the rest is water and uninhabited mountain areas.)

'''Former borough: Sentrum'''<br />
Sentrum (literally, "Centre") was a borough (with [[Bergenhus#Sentrum|the same name as a present-day neighbourhood]]). The borough was numbered ''01'', and its perimeter was from [[Store Lungegårdsvann]] and Strømmen along [[Puddefjorden]] around [[Nordnes]] and over to Skuteviken, up [[Fløyen|Mt. Fløyen]] east of Langelivannet, on to Skansemyren and over Forskjønnelsen to Store Lungegårdsvann, south of the railroad tracks.<ref name="Bergen byleksikon">{{Cite web |first1=Gunnar Hagen |last1=Hartvedt |first2=Norvall |last2=Skreien |orig-date=25 January 2001 |title=Bergen byleksikon |url=http://www.bergenbyarkiv.no/bergenbyleksikon/arkiv/1424243 |edition=3 |year=2009}}</ref>

The population of the (now defunct) borough, numbered in 1994 more than 18,000 people.<ref name="Bergen byleksikon" />

==Demographics==
{{Historical populations
|footnote = '''''Source''': [http://www.ssb.no/english/subjects/02/02/folkendrhist_en/tables/tab/1201.html Statistics Norway].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Microsoft Word - FOB-Hefte.doc |url=http://www.ssb.no/fob/kommunehefte/1201/fob_1201_tabeller.pdf |access-date=7 July 2009 |language=no}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Tabell 6 Folkemengde per 1. januar, etter fylke og kommune. Registrert 2009. Framskrevet 2010–2030, alternativ MMMM |url=http://www.ssb.no/emner/02/03/folkfram/arkiv/tab-2009-06-11-06.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120118194211/http://www.ssb.no/emner/02/03/folkfram/arkiv/tab-2009-06-11-06.html |archive-date=18 January 2012 |access-date=7 July 2009 |publisher=Ssb.no |language=no}}</ref> '''Note''': The municipalities of [[Arna, Bergen|Arna]], [[Fana, Bergen|Fana]], [[Laksevåg]] and [[Åsane]] were merged with Bergen 1 January 1972.''
|shading = off
|1769|18827
|1801|24136
|1815|23123
|1825|28195
|1835|31525
|1845|33145
|1855|37015
|1865|42994
|1875|54436
|1890|72879
|1900|94485
|1910|104224
|1920|118490
|1930|129118
|1946|153446
|1950|162381
|1960|185822
|1970|209066
|1980|207674
|1990|212944
|2001|232989
|2011|260392
|2021|285601}}

{{As of|2019|12|alt=As of the start of 2022}}, the municipality had a population of 286,930,<ref name="Pop2021Q1" /> making the population density 599 people per km<sup>2</sup>. Urban areas outside the city limits, as defined by [[Statistics Norway]], consist of [[Indre Arna]] (6,536 residents on 1 January 2012), [[Fanahammeren]] (3,690), [[Ytre Arna]] (2,626), [[Hylkje]] (2,277) and [[Espeland]] (2,182).<ref name="ssbpop">{{Cite web |year=2012 |title=Urban settlements. Population and area, by municipality. 1 January 2012 |url=http://www.ssb.no/a/english/kortnavn/beftett_en/tab-2012-09-06-01-en.html |access-date=31 January 2014 |publisher=Statistics Norway}}</ref>

{| style="float: left; margin: 1em;" class="wikitable"
|+ Minorities (first and second generation) in Bergen by country of origin, 1 January 2024<ref>{{Cite web |title=09817: Innvandrere og norskfødte med innvandrerforeldre, etter landbakgrunn, statistikkvariabel, år og region |url=https://www.ssb.no/statbank/table/09817/ |access-date=7 August 2024 |publisher=Statistisk sentralbyrå (Statistics Norway) |language=no}}</ref>
|-
! style="background:#efefef;"|Ancestry
! style="background:#efefef;"|Number
|-
|'''Total'''||'' 58,175''
|-
|{{flag|Poland}}||6,755
|-
|{{flag|Ukraine}}||2,384
|-
|{{flag|Lithuania}}||2,151
|-
|{{flag|Syria}}||2,064
|-
|{{flag|Somalia}}||2,010
|-
|{{flag|Iraq}}||1,904
|-
|{{flag|Eritrea}}||1,769
|-
|{{flag|Germany}}||1,691
|-
|{{flag|India}}||1,509
|-
|{{flag|Romania}}||1,415

|}

As of 2007, people of [[Norwegians|Norwegian]] origin (those who have two parents born in Norway) make up 84.5% of Bergen's residents. In addition, 8.1% were [[Immigrant generations|first]] or second generation immigrants of Western background and 7.4% were first or second generation immigrants of non-Western background.<ref name="ssbtall" /> The population grew by 4,549 people in 2009, a growth rate of 1.8%. Ninety-six percent of the population lives in urban areas. As of 2002, the average [[gross income]] for men above the age of 17 is 426,000 [[Norwegian krone]] (NOK), the average gross income for women above the age of 17 is NOK{{spaces}}238,000, with the total average gross income being NOK{{spaces}}330,000.<ref name="ssbtall">{{Cite web |title=SSB: Tall om Bergen kommune |url=http://www.ssb.no/kommuner/hoyre_side.cgi?region=1201 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071001031834/http://www.ssb.no/kommuner/hoyre_side.cgi?region=1201 |archive-date=1 October 2007 |access-date=1 October 2007 |publisher=Statistics Norway |language=no}}</ref> In 2007, there were 104.6 men for every 100 women in the age group of 20–39.<ref name="ssbtall" /> 22.8% of the population were under 17{{spaces}}years of age, while 4.5% were 80 and above.

The immigrant population (those with two foreign-born parents) in Bergen, includes 42,169 individuals with backgrounds from more than 200 countries representing 15.5% of the city's population (2014). Of these, 50.2% have background from Europe, 28.9% from Asia, 13.1% from Africa, 5.5% from Latin America, 1.9% from North America, and 0.4% from Oceania. The immigrant population in Bergen in the period 1993–2008 increased by 119.7%, while the ethnic Norwegian population grew by 8.1% during the same period. The national average is 138.0% and 4.2%. The immigrant population has thus accounted for 43.6% of Bergen's population growth and 60.8% of Norway's population growth during the period 1993–2008, compared with 84.5% in Oslo.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Statistics Norway |url=http://statbank.ssb.no/statistikkbanken/Default_FR.asp?PXSid=0&nvl=true&PLanguage=0&tilside=selecttable/hovedtabellHjem.asp&KortnavnWeb=innvbef |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120526191822/http://statbank.ssb.no/statistikkbanken/Default_FR.asp?PXSid=0&nvl=true&PLanguage=0&tilside=selecttable/hovedtabellHjem.asp&KortnavnWeb=innvbef |archive-date=26 May 2012 |access-date=4 January 2012 |publisher=Stat Bank}}</ref>

The immigrant population in Bergen has changed a lot since 1970. As of 1 January 1986, there were 2,870 people with a non-Western immigrant background in Bergen. In 2006, this figure had increased to 14,630, so the non-Western immigrant population in Bergen was five times higher than in 1986. This is a slightly slower growth than the national average, which has sextupled during the same period. Also in relation to the total population in Bergen, the proportion of non-Westerns increased significantly. In 1986, the proportion of the total population in the municipality of non-Western background was 3.6%. In January 2006, people with a non-Western immigrant background accounted for 6 percent of the population in Bergen. The share of Western immigrants has remained stable at around 2% in the period. The number of [[Polish people|Poles]] in Bergen rose from 697 in 2006 to 3,128 in 2010.<ref>[http://www.bt.no/multimedia/archive/00321/Faktaark_321842a.pdf Immigrant population in Bergen]{{dead link|date=January 2012}}</ref>

As of 2022, immigrants of non-Western origin and their children enumerated 30,540, and made up an estimated 11% of Bergen's population. Immigrants of Western origin and their children enumerated 22,954, and made up an estimated 9% of Bergen's population.<ref>{{Cite web |title=09817: Immigrants and Norwegian-born to immigrant parents by immigration category, in total and separately, country background and percentages of the population (M) 2010 - 2023. Statbank Norway |url=https://www.ssb.no/en/system/ |access-date=2023-10-30 |website=SSB |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Immigrants and Norwegian-born to immigrant parents |url=https://www.ssb.no/en/befolkning/innvandrere/statistikk/innvandrere-og-norskfodte-med-innvandrerforeldre |access-date=2023-10-31 |website=SSB |language=en}}</ref>

The [[Church of Norway]] is the largest denomination in Bergen, with 201,006 (79.74%) registered adherents in 2012. Bergen is the seat of the [[Diocese of Bjørgvin]] with [[Bergen Cathedral]] as its centrepiece, while [[St John's Church, Bergen|St John's Church]] is the city's most prominent. As of 2012, the state church is followed by 52,059 irreligious,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bergen Moské størst av trussamfunna i 2009 |url=http://www.fylkesmannen.no/hoved.aspx?m=1166&amid=2913053 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120229163547/http://www.fylkesmannen.no/hoved.aspx?m=1166&amid=2913053 |archive-date=29 February 2012 |access-date=4 January 2012 |publisher=Fylkesmannen.no}}</ref> 4,947 members of various [[Protestantism|Protestant]] [[free church]]es, 3,873 actively registered Catholics,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kommuner med minst 50 katolikker pr. 31.12.2003 — den katolske kirke |url=http://www.katolsk.no/organisasjon/norge/kommun03 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171206215639/http://www.katolsk.no/organisasjon/norge/kommun03 |archive-date=6 December 2017 |access-date=24 May 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Marifjæren |first1=Per |last2=Aarnes |first2=Helle |date=2008-01-13 |title=Polakkene fyller St. Paul |url=https://www.bt.no/nyheter/lokalt/i/Ebrel/polakkene-fyller-st-paul |access-date=2012-01-04 |work=[[Bergens Tidende]] |language=no}}</ref> 2,707 registered Muslims, 816 registered Hindus, 255 registered [[Russian Orthodox Church|Russian Orthodox]] and 147 registered [[Oriental Orthodox Church|Oriental Orthodox]].

==Education==
[[File:Mannskoret Arme Riddere 2018.jpg|thumb|right|The male choir of the [[University of Bergen]] in 2018]]
[[File:Bergen-University-modf.jpg|thumb|right|University Museum of Bergen]]
There are 64 elementary schools,<ref name="barnskoler">{{Cite web |year=2007 |title=Oversikt over barneskoler |url=http://www3.bergen.kommune.no/portal/page?_pageid=74,56541&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&articleId=126&artSectionId=41&menuSectionId=41&sectionId=41 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070905133246/http://www3.bergen.kommune.no/portal/page?_pageid=74%2C56541&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&articleId=126&artSectionId=41&menuSectionId=41&sectionId=41 |archive-date=5 September 2007 |access-date=29 September 2007 |publisher=Bergen kommune |language=no}}</ref> 18 lower secondary schools<ref name="ungdomsskoler">{{Cite web |year=2007 |title=Oversikt over ungdomsskoler |url=http://www3.bergen.kommune.no/portal/page?_pageid=74,56541&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&articleId=117&artSectionId=41&menuSectionId=41&sectionId=41 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070914164527/http://www3.bergen.kommune.no/portal/page?_pageid=74%2C56541&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&articleId=117&artSectionId=41&menuSectionId=41&sectionId=41 |archive-date=14 September 2007 |access-date=29 September 2007 |publisher=Bergen kommune |language=no}}</ref> and 20 upper secondary schools<ref name="hordskoler">{{Cite web |year=2007 |title=Skoleportalen |url=http://utdanning.hfk.no/templates/Page.aspx?id=2055 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070726004255/http://utdanning.hfk.no/templates/Page.aspx?id=2055 |archive-date=26 July 2007 |access-date=29 September 2007 |publisher=Hordaland fylkeskommune |language=no}}</ref> in Bergen, as well as 11 combined elementary and lower secondary schools.<ref name="kombiskoler">{{Cite web |year=2007 |title=Oversikt over kombinerte skoler |url=http://www3.bergen.kommune.no/portal/page?_pageid=74,56541&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&articleId=116&artSectionId=41&menuSectionId=41&sectionId=41 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070905174816/http://www3.bergen.kommune.no/portal/page?_pageid=74%2C56541&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&articleId=116&artSectionId=41&menuSectionId=41&sectionId=41 |archive-date=5 September 2007 |access-date=29 September 2007 |publisher=Bergen kommune |language=no}}</ref> [[Bergen Cathedral School]] is the oldest school in Bergen and was founded by [[Pope Adrian IV]] in 1153.<ref name="byleksikon">{{Cite book |last=Hartvedt |first=Gunnar Hagen |title=Bergen Byleksikon |publisher=Kunnskapsforlaget |year=1994 |isbn=82-573-0485-9}}</ref>

The "[[Bergen School of Meteorology]]" was developed at the [[Geophysical Institute, University of Bergen|Geophysical Institute]] beginning in 1917, the [[Norwegian School of Economics]] was founded in 1936, and the [[University of Bergen]] in 1946.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The University of Bergen is 70 years old |url=https://www.uib.no/en/news/99869/university-bergen-70-years-old |access-date=14 August 2020 |website=University of Bergen |language=en}}</ref>

The University of Bergen has 16,000 students and 3,000 staff, making it the third-largest educational institution in Norway.<ref name="omuib">{{Cite web |title=Om Universitetet i Bergen |url=http://www.uib.no/info/generell/#hva |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060923223345/http://www.uib.no/info/generell/ |archive-date=23 September 2006 |access-date=16 August 2007 |language=no}}</ref> Research in Bergen dates back to activity at [[Bergen Museum]] in 1825, although the university was not founded until 1946. The university has a broad range of courses and research in academic fields and three national centres of excellence, in [[climatology|climate research]], [[petroleum|petroleum research]] and [[medievalism|medieval studies]].<ref name="uibsff">{{Cite web |last=Mia Kolbjørnsen and Hilde Kvalvaag |year=2002 |title=UiB får tre SFF |url=http://nyheter.uib.no/?modus=vis_nyhet&id=120602111405 |access-date=9 October 2007 |publisher=på høyden |language=no}}</ref> The main campus is in the city centre. The university co-operates with [[Haukeland University Hospital]] within medical research. The Chr. Michelsen Institute is an independent research foundation established in 1930 focusing on human rights and development issues.<ref name="cmi">{{Cite web |title=About CMI |url=http://www.cmi.no/about/ |access-date=2 October 2007 |language=no}}</ref>

The [[Western Norway University of Applied Sciences]], which has its main campus in [[Kronstad, Bergen|Kronstad]], has 16,000 students and 1800 staff.<ref name="HVL">{{Cite web |year=2018 |title=Høgskolen på Vestlandet |url=https://www.hvl.no/. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181211011439/https://www.hvl.no/ |archive-date=11 December 2018 |access-date=12 December 2018 |language=no}}</ref> It focuses on professional education, such as teaching, healthcare and engineering. The college was created through amalgamation in 1994; campuses are spread around town but will be co-located at [[Kronstad, Bergen|Kronstad]]. The [[Norwegian School of Economics]] is in outer [[Sandviken]] and is the leading [[business school]] in Norway,<ref name="mim-nhh">{{Cite web |year=2007 |title=FT.com / Business Education / Masters in management |url=http://rankings.ft.com/masters-in-management |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081015080559/http://rankings.ft.com/masters-in-management |archive-date=15 October 2008 |access-date=29 September 2007 |website=[[Financial Times]] |language=no}}</ref> having produced three [[Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences|Economy Nobel Prize]] laureates.<ref name="kydlandprize">{{Cite web |year=2007 |title=The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2004 |url=http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/2004/ |access-date=16 August 2007}}</ref> The school has more than 3,000 students and approximately 400 staff.<ref name="omnhh">{{Cite web |title=Om NHH |url=http://www.nhh.no/no/om-nhh.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202152309/http://www.nhh.no/no/om-nhh.aspx |archive-date=2 February 2014 |access-date=23 January 2014 |language=no}}</ref> Other tertiary education institutions include the [[Bergen School of Architecture]], the [[Bergen National Academy of the Arts]], in the city centre with 300 students,<ref name="khib">{{Cite web |title=Om Kunsthøgskolen i Bergen |url=http://www.khib.no/index.php/khib/organisasjon/om_khib |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071213051453/http://www.khib.no/index.php/khib/organisasjon/om_khib |archive-date=13 December 2007 |access-date=16 August 2007 |language=no}}</ref> and the [[Norwegian Naval Academy]] in Laksevåg. The [[Norwegian Institute of Marine Research]] has been in Bergen since 1900. It provides research and advice relating to ecosystems and aquaculture. It has a staff of 700 people.<ref name="imr">{{Cite web |title=About imr |url=http://www.imr.no/english/about_imr |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080116144616/http://www.imr.no/english/about_imr |archive-date=16 January 2008 |access-date=2 October 2007 |language=no}}</ref>

==Economy==
[[File:Strandgaten sett fra Fortunen, Bergen.jpg|thumb|right|[[Strandgaten, Bergen|Strandgaten]] is a shopping street in Bergen.]]
[[File:Bergen børs 1862.jpg|thumb|The stock exchange. Bergen Børs (est. 1813) erected its new building in 1861–1862; the building was sold in 1967.]]

In August 2004, ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine named the city one of Europe's 14 "secret capitals"<ref name="secretcaps">{{Cite magazine |date=30 August 2004 |title=Europe's Secret Capitals |url=http://www.time.com/time/europe/secret/opener.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040823170931/http://www.time.com/time/europe/secret/opener.html |archive-date=23 August 2004 |access-date=14 August 2007 |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]}}</ref> where Bergen's capital reign is acknowledged within maritime businesses and activities such as [[aquaculture]] and [[Oceanography|marine research]], with the [[Institute of Marine Research]] (IMR) (the second-largest [[oceanography]] research centre in Europe) as a leading institution. Some of the world's largest aquaculture companies, such as [[Mowi]] and [[Lerøy]] are headquartered in the city. Shipowners based in  Bergen control a significant portion of the Norwegian merchant fleet, including shipowners such as [[Wilson (company)|Wilson]], [[Odfjell]] and [[Gearbulk]]. The city has a large presence of financial institutions. Banks [[Sbanken]] and [[Sparebanken Vest]] are headquartered in the city. The Norwegian branches of insurance companies [[Tryg]], [[DNB Livsforsikring]] and [[Nordea Liv]] are headquartered in Bergen, along with a significant presence of marine insurance companies, including [[Norwegian Hull Club]]. A number of banks maintain large corporate banking divisions in connection with shipping and aquaculture in the city.

Bergen is the main base for the [[Royal Norwegian Navy]] (at [[Haakonsvern]]) and its [[international airport]] [[Bergen Airport, Flesland|Flesland]] is the main heliport for the Norwegian [[North Sea oil]] and gas industry, from where thousands of offshore workers commute to their work places onboard oil and gas rigs and platforms.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Film Location:Bergen |url=http://www.wnfc.no/index.php?page=gallery&category=3&id=20 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015144302/http://wnfc.no/index.php?page=gallery&category=3&id=20 |archive-date=15 October 2007 |access-date=9 October 2007 |publisher=West Norway Film Commission}}</ref>

Tourism is an important income source for the city. The hotels in the city may be full at times,<ref name="russerne">{{Cite web |last=Lars Kvamme and Ingvild Bruaset |title=Russerne kommer |url=http://www.bt.no/na24/article371611.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015153030/http://www.bt.no/na24/article371611.ece |archive-date=15 October 2007 |access-date=10 October 2007 |publisher=bt.no |language=no}}</ref><ref name="bergensturister">{{Cite web |last=Frode Buanes and Lars Kvamme |year=2006 |title=Sender bergensturister vekk |url=http://www.bt.no/lokalt/bergen/article278593.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015152953/http://www.bt.no/lokalt/bergen/article278593.ece |archive-date=15 October 2007 |access-date=10 October 2007 |publisher=bt.no |language=no}}</ref> due to the increasing number of tourists and conferences. Bergen is recognized as the unofficial capital of the region known as [[Western Norway]], and recognized and marketed as the gateway city to the world-famous [[fjord]]s of Norway, and for that reason, it has become Norway's largest – and one of Europe's largest – [[cruise ship]] ports of call.<ref name="cruisebergen">{{Cite web |last=Bergen Havn |title=Velkommen til Bergen havn – "Inngangen til Fjordene" |url=http://www.bergenhavn.no/cruise.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070718051230/http://www.bergenhavn.no/cruise.asp |archive-date=18 July 2007 |access-date=14 August 2007 |language=no}}</ref>
{{Further|Elprice}}
{{wide image|Nygårdstangen panorama.jpg|1100px|Office buildings in Bergen}}

==Transport==
[[File:New Bergen Airport Flesland with old terminal in the background.jpg|thumb|[[Bergen Airport, Flesland]]]]
[[File:Nygårdsbroen, Bergen storsenter, Amalie Skram etc.jpg|thumb|[[European route E39]] runs through the city]]

=== Air ===
[[Bergen Airport, Flesland]], is {{convert|18|km}} from the city centre, at [[Flesland]].<ref name="visittransport">{{Cite web |title=Transport to Bergen |url=http://www.visitnorway.com/en/Meetings/Destinations/Bergen/Transport-to-Bergen/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120531232631/http://www.visitnorway.com/en/Meetings/Destinations/Bergen/Transport-to-Bergen/ |archive-date=31 May 2012 |access-date=2 May 2012 |publisher=[[Innovation Norway]]}}</ref> In 2013, the [[Avinor]]-operated airport served 6 million passengers. The airport serves as a [[airline hub|hub]] for [[Scandinavian Airlines]], [[Norwegian Air Shuttle]] and [[Widerøe]]; there are direct flights to 20 domestic and 53 international destinations.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Flight Timetables |url=http://www.avinor.no/en/airport/bergen/timetables |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120909225512/http://www.avinor.no/en/airport/bergen/timetables |archive-date=9 September 2012 |access-date=9 April 2012 |publisher=[[Avinor]]}}</ref>

=== Sea ===
[[Bergen Port]], operated by [[Bergen Port Authority]], is the largest [[seaport]] in Norway.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Eliassen |first=Jan I. |date=24 June 2006 |title=Bergen havn holder koken |url=http://www.bt.no/na24/Bergen-havn-holder-koken-1807073.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130810111303/http://www.bt.no/na24/Bergen-havn-holder-koken-1807073.html |archive-date=10 August 2013 |access-date=2 May 2012 |work=[[Bergens Tidende]] |language=no}}</ref>
In 2011, the port saw 264 cruise calls with 350,248 visitors,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cruise ships |url=http://www.bergenhavn.no/index.cfm?id=256072 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130809021355/http://www.bergenhavn.no/index.cfm?id=256072 |archive-date=9 August 2013 |access-date=2 May 2012 |publisher=[[Bergen Port Authority]]}}</ref> In 2009, the port handled 56{{spaces}}million tonnes of cargo, making it the ninth-busiest cargo port in Europe.<ref>{{Cite web |title=World Port Rankings 2009 |url=http://aapa.files.cms-plus.com/PDFs/WORLD%2520PORT%2520RANKINGS%25202009.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150214161214/http://www.google.no/url?sa=t |archive-date=14 February 2015 |access-date=2 May 2012 |publisher=[[American Association of Port Authorities]]}}</ref> There are plans to move the port out of the city centre, but no location has been chosen.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Haga |first=Anders |date=24 June 2006 |title=- Vi har alle vært feige |url=http://www.bt.no/nyheter/lokalt/--Vi-har-alle-vart-feige-2694706.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130810111303/http://www.bt.no/na24/Bergen-havn-holder-koken-1807073.html |archive-date=10 August 2013 |access-date=2 May 2012 |work=[[Bergens Tidende]] |language=no}}</ref> [[Fjord Line]] operates a [[cruiseferry]] service to [[Hirtshals]], Denmark. Bergen is the southern terminus of [[Hurtigruten]], the Coastal Express, which operates with daily services along the coast to [[Kirkenes]].<ref name=visittransport/> Passenger [[catamaran]]s run from Bergen south to [[Leirvik]] and [[Sunnhordland]], and north to [[Sognefjord]] and [[Nordfjord]].<ref name="fjord1ferries">{{Cite web |title=Fjord1 – Ekspressbåter |url=http://www.fjord1.no/default.asp?page=407#scroll |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070827142858/http://www.fjord1.no/default.asp?page=407 |archive-date=27 August 2007 |access-date=16 September 2007 |publisher=Fjord1 |language=no}}</ref>

The port includes three large power connections that allow ships to turn off their engines whilst docked (known as "cold ironing")<ref>{{Cite web |title=BTJ :: Bergen's first cruise ship cold ironing |url=https://baltictransportjournal.com/index.php?id=2216 |access-date=2025-05-19 |website=baltictransportjournal.com}}</ref>

[[File:Bergen station, 2019 (01).jpg|thumb|[[Bergen station|Bergen railway station]]]]
[[File:Bybanen Stadler Variobahn at Byparken, Bergen.jpg|thumb|[[Bybanen]]]]

=== Road ===
The city centre is surrounded by an [[electronic toll collection]] ring using the [[Autopass]] system.<ref name="bbl1">{{Cite journal |last=Gunnar Hagen Hartvedt |year=1994 |title=bompengering |journal=Bergen Byleksikon |pages=119–120}}</ref> The main motorways consist of [[European route E39|E39]], which runs north–south through the municipality, [[European route E16|E16]], which runs eastwards, and [[Norwegian National Road 555|National Road 555]], which runs westwards. There are four major bridges connecting Bergen to neighbouring municipalities: the [[Nordhordland Bridge]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Norwegian Public Roads Administration |author-link=Norwegian Public Roads Administration |year=1994 |title=The Nordhordland Bridge |url=http://www.vegvesen.no/region_vest/prosjekter/nordhordlandsbrua/brosjyre_1994.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060209233657/http://www.vegvesen.no/region_vest/prosjekter/nordhordlandsbrua/brosjyre_1994.pdf |archive-date=9 February 2006}}</ref> the [[Askøy Bridge]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Askøy Bridge |url=http://www.aaj.no/bruer/pdf/Askoy_referanse_eng.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110903023136/http://www.aaj.no/bruer/pdf/Askoy_referanse_eng.pdf |archive-date=3 September 2011 |access-date=2 October 2011 |publisher=[[Aas-Jakobsen]]}}</ref> the [[Sotra Bridge]]<ref>{{Cite book |last=Fjell |first=Ragnvald |title=Sotrabrua |publisher=A/S Sotrabrua |year=1989 |location=Fjell |page=5 |language=no}}</ref> and the [[Osterøy Bridge]]. Bergen connects to the island of [[Bjorøy]] via the subsea [[Bjorøy Tunnel]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jahnsen |first=Jack |title=Fastlandssamband for Bjorøy og Tyssøy |publisher=Fastlandssambandet Tyssøy – Bjorøy |year=2006 |isbn=82-303-0642-7 |location=Straume |language=no}}</ref>

=== Rail ===
[[Bergen Station]] is the terminus of the [[Bergen Line]], which runs {{convert|496|km}} to [[Oslo]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jernbaneverket |url=http://www.jernbaneverket.no/multimedia/archive/01720/Jernbanestatistikk_1720406a.pdf |title=Jernbanestatistikk 2006 |publisher=Jernbaneverket |year=2007 |location=Oslo |page=13 |author-link=Norwegian National Rail Administration |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071217092036/http://www.jernbaneverket.no/multimedia/archive/01720/Jernbanestatistikk_1720406a.pdf |archive-date=17 December 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Vy]] operates express trains to Oslo and the [[Bergen Commuter Rail]] to [[Voss]]. Between Bergen and [[Arna Station]], the train runs about every 30{{spaces}}minutes through the [[Ulriken Tunnel]]; there is no corresponding road tunnel, forcing road vehicles to travel via Åsane or [[Nesttun]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Aagesen |first=Ragnhild |date=21 September 2010 |title=Bergen-Arna |url=http://www.jernbaneverket.no/no/Prosjekter/Prosjekter/Bergen---Arna/Dette-er-Bergen-Arna/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111106015144/http://www.jernbaneverket.no/no/Prosjekter/Prosjekter/Bergen---Arna/Dette-er-Bergen-Arna/ |archive-date=6 November 2011 |access-date=20 September 2011 |language=no}}</ref>

=== Lightrail ===
[[File:Fløybanen - Funicular.JPG|thumb|[[Fløybanen]] is a [[funicular]] which runs up Mount [[Fløyen]]]]
Bergen is one of the smallest cities in Europe to have both [[tram]] and [[trolleybus]] electric urban transport systems simultaneously {{citation needed|date=November 2024}}. Public transport in Hordaland is managed by [[Skyss]], which operates an extensive city bus network in Bergen and to many neighbouring municipalities,<ref>{{Cite web |title=About Skyss |url=http://www.skyss.no/nn-NO/GlobalToppMeny1/English/About-Skyss/Company_information/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120513210831/http://www.skyss.no/nn-NO/GlobalToppMeny1/English/About-Skyss/Company_information/ |archive-date=13 May 2012 |access-date=2 May 2012 |publisher=[[Skyss]]}}</ref> including one route which operates as a trolleybus. [[Trolleybuses in Bergen|The trolleybus system in Bergen]] is the only one still in operation in Norway and one of two trolleybus systems in [[Scandinavia]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Aspenberg |first=Nils Carl |title=Trolleybussene i Norge |publisher=Baneforlaget |year=1996 |location=Oslo |page=96}}</ref>

The modern tram [[Bergen Light Rail]] ({{lang|no|Bybanen}}) opened between the city centre and [[Nesttun]] in 2010,<ref>{{Cite web |year=2010 |title=Signingsferden |url=http://www.bt.no/nyheter/lokalt/bybanen/Signingsferden-1107192.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100626000658/http://www.bt.no/nyheter/lokalt/bybanen/Signingsferden-1107192.html |archive-date=26 June 2010 |access-date=26 June 2010 |language=no}}</ref> extended to [[Rådal]] (Lagunen Storsenter) in 2013 and to the Bergen airport Flesland in 2017.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Melhus |first=Ståle |date=11 September 2009 |title=Vil ha bybane til Flesland i 2015 |url=http://www.fanaposten.no/incoming/article927367.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110724175312/http://www.fanaposten.no/incoming/article927367.ece |archive-date=24 July 2011 |access-date=7 November 2009 |website=[[Fanaposten]] |language=no}}</ref> Extensions to other boroughs may occur later.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rykka, Ann Kristin and Solfrid Torvund |date=13 December 2006 |title=Usamde om bybaneutvidinga |url=http://www.nrk.no/nyheter/distrikt/hordaland/1.1486016 |website=[[Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation]] |language=nn}}</ref> 

[[Fløibanen]] is a [[funicular]] which runs from the city centre to Mount [[Fløyen]] and [[Ulriksbanen]] is an [[aerial tramway]] which runs to Mount [[Ulriken]].

==Culture and sports==
[[File:Mathismarkens.jpg|thumb|The Mathismarkens [[Buekorps]]]]
[[File:KODE 1, Bergen, 2019 (01).jpg|thumb|upright 1|View of the [[West Norway Museum of Decorative Art]], Bergen]]
{{Lang|no|[[Bergens Tidende]]}} (BT) and {{Lang|no|[[Bergensavisen]]}} (BA) are the largest newspapers, with [[newspaper circulation|circulations]] of 87,076 and 30,719 in 2006,<ref name="opplag">{{Cite web |year=2007 |title=Avisenes leser- og opplagstall for 2006 |url=http://mediebedriftene.no/index.asp?id=71672 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927115859/http://mediebedriftene.no/index.asp?id=71672 |archive-date=27 September 2007 |access-date=26 October 2007 |publisher=Mediebedriftenes Landsforening |language=no}}</ref> ''BT'' is a regional newspaper covering all of Vestland, while ''BA'' focuses on metropolitan Bergen. Other newspapers published in Bergen include the Christian national ''[[Dagen (Norwegian newspaper)|Dagen]]'', with a circulation of 8.936,<ref name="opplag" /> and ''[[TradeWinds (newspaper)|TradeWinds]]'', an international shipping newspaper. Local newspapers are ''[[Fanaposten]]'' for Fana, ''[[Sydvesten]]'' for Laksevåg and Fyllingsdalen and ''[[Bygdanytt]]'' for Arna and the neighbouring municipality [[Osterøy]].<ref name="opplag" /> [[TV 2 (Norway)|TV 2]], Norway's largest private television company, is based in Bergen.

The 1,500-seat [[Grieg Hall]] is the city's main cultural venue,<ref name="grieghall">{{Cite web |title=Grieghallen: Floor space and capacity |url=http://www.grieghallen.no/facilities/capacity/?l=en |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071008114051/http://www.grieghallen.no/facilities/capacity/?l=en |archive-date=8 October 2007 |access-date=8 September 2007 |publisher=Grieg Hall}}</ref> and home of the [[Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra]], founded in 1765,<ref name="filhar">{{Cite web |year=2006 |title=Bergen Filharmoniske Orkester |url=http://www.filharmonien.no/ |access-date=16 August 2007 |language=no}}</ref> and the [[Bergen Woodwind Quintet]]. The city also features [[Carte Blanche (Norwegian dance company)|Carte Blanche]], the Norwegian national company of contemporary dance. The annual [[Bergen International Festival]] is the main cultural festival, which is supplemented by the [[Bergen International Film Festival]]. Two internationally renowned composers from Bergen are [[Edvard Grieg]] and [[Ole Bull]]. Grieg's home, [[Troldhaugen]], has been converted to a museum. During the 1990s and early 2000s, Bergen produced a series of successful pop, rock and [[black metal]] artists,<ref name="telle">{{Cite web |last=Ann Kristin Frøystad |year=2003 |title=Telle: – Angrer ingenting |url=http://www.ba.no/puls/article591155.ece |access-date=10 October 2007 |publisher=ba.no |language=no}}</ref> collectively known as the [[Bergen Wave]].<ref name="bb1">{{Cite web |last=Lars Ursin |year=2005 |title=Bløffmakerens guide til Bergensbølgen |url=http://www2.bt.no/bergenpuls/article396707 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20071015152917/http://www.bt.no/bergenpuls/article396707 |archive-date=15 October 2007 |access-date=16 August 2007 |website=Bergens Tidende |language=no}}</ref><ref name="bb2">{{Cite web |last=Lars Ursin |year=2005 |title=Bergensbølgen tørrlagt på Alarm |url=http://www.bt.no/kultur/musikk/article225748.ece |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927185414/http://www.bt.no/kultur/musikk/article225748.ece |archive-date=27 September 2007 |access-date=16 August 2007 |publisher=Bergens Tidende |language=no}}</ref>

[[Den Nationale Scene]] is Bergen's main theatre. Founded in 1850, it had [[Henrik Ibsen]] as one of its first in-house playwrights and art directors. Bergen's [[contemporary art]] scene is centred on [[BIT Teatergarasjen]], [[Bergen Kunsthall]], United Sardines Factory (USF) and Bergen Center for Electronic Arts (BEK). Bergen was a [[European Capital of Culture]] in 2000.<ref name="cultcap">{{Cite web |title=European Capitals of Culture 2000–2005 |url=http://ec.europa.eu/culture/eac/other_actions/cap_europ/cap_00_01_02_en.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070127190543/http://ec.europa.eu/culture/eac/other_actions/cap_europ/cap_00_01_02_en.html |archive-date=27 January 2007 |access-date=16 August 2007}}</ref> [[Buekorps]] is a unique feature of Bergen culture, consisting of boys aged from 7 to 21 parading with imitation weapons and [[snare drum]]s.<ref name="Buekorpsene.com">{{Cite web |year=2006 |title=What is a buekorps? |url=http://buekorpsene.com/english/whatisbuekorps.php |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110708103320/http://buekorpsene.com/english/whatisbuekorps.php |archive-date=8 July 2011 |access-date=10 November 2007 |publisher=Buekorpsene.com}}</ref><ref name="Studvest.no">{{Cite web |title=Studenter hestes av buekorps på nettet |url=http://www.studvest.no/nyhende.php?art_id=270 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060821202616/http://studvest.no/nyhende.php?art_id=270 |archive-date=21 August 2006 |access-date=10 November 2007 |publisher=Studvest.no |language=no}}</ref> The city's Hanseatic heritage is documented in the [[Hanseatic Museum and Schøtstuene|Hanseatic Museum]] at Bryggen.<ref name="snl">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Conrad Fredrik von der Lippe |encyclopedia=[[Store norske leksikon]] |publisher=[[Kunnskapsforlaget]] |url=https://www.snl.no/Conrad_Fredrik_von_der_Lippe |date=2023-08-01 |editor-last=Storsletten |editor-first=Ola |language=Norwegian |accessdate=2024-01-22}}</ref>

[[File:SK Brann Bergen gegen FC Salzburg (2025-07-23 CL Qualifikation) 03.jpg|thumb|right|[[Brann Stadion]] in 2025]]
[[SK Brann]] is Bergen's premier [[association football|football]] team; founded in 1908, they have played in the top flight for Norwegian men's football, [[Eliteserien]], for 67 out of 80 seasons since its establishment in [[1937–38 League of Norway|1937]], the second most of any club. The team were the football champions in [[1961–62 Norwegian Main League|1961–1962]], [[1963 Norwegian First Division|1963]], and [[2007 SK Brann season|2007]],<ref name="gulleteheme">{{Cite web |last=Ole Ivar Store |year=2007 |title=- Gratulerer, Brann! |url=http://www.fotball.no/t1.aspx?p=51831&x=1&a=209708 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20080324090203/http://www.fotball.no/t1.aspx?p=51831&x=1&a=209708 |archive-date=24 March 2008 |access-date=22 October 2007 |publisher=Norges Fotballforbund |language=no}}</ref> and reached the quarter-finals of the [[UEFA Cup Winners' Cup|Cup Winners' Cup]] in [[1996–97 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup|1996–1997]]. They have also won the [[Norwegian Football Cup]] seven times, most recently in the [[2022 Norwegian Football Cup|2022 season]]. Brann play their home games at the 16,750-seat [[Brann Stadion]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Fakta om Stadion |url=https://www.brann.no/om-stadion/fakta-om-stadion |website=brann.no |publisher=Sportsklubben Brann}}</ref> [[Åsane Fotball|Åsane]] is the city's second-best team, playing in the [[Norwegian First Division|First Division]] at [[Åsane Arena]]. Now-defunct [[Fyllingen Fotball|Fyllingen]] played in the top flight in [[1990 Tippeligaen|1990]], [[1991 Tippeligaen|1991]] and [[1993 Tippeligaen|1993]]. [[SK Brann Kvinner|Brann]] and [[Åsane Fotball#Åsane Fotball Damer|Åsane]] also play in the women's top flight, [[Toppserien]], along with [[Arna-Bjørnar]]. Brann have won the league twice (once as [[IL Sandviken]]), and the [[Norwegian Women's Cup]] once.

[[Bergen IK]] is the premier men's ice hockey team, playing at [[Bergenshallen]] in the [[Norwegian First Division (ice hockey)|First Division]]. [[Tertnes HE|Tertnes]] play in the [[Postenligaen (women)|Women's Premier Handball League]], and Fyllingen in the Men's Premier Handball League. In athletics, the city is dominated by [[IL Norna-Salhus]], [[IL Gular]] and [[FIK BFG Fana]], formerly also Norrøna IL and [[TIF Viking]]. The [[Bergen Storm]] are an American football team that plays matches at Varden Kunstgress and plays in the second division of the Norwegian league.

[[Bergensk]] is the native dialect of Bergen. It was strongly influenced by [[Low German]]-speaking merchants from the mid-14th to mid-18th centuries. During the [[Denmark–Norway|Dano-Norwegian period]] from 1536 to 1814, Bergen was more influenced by [[Danish language|Danish]] than other areas of Norway. The Danish influence removed the female [[grammatical gender]] in the 16th century, making Bergensk one of very few Norwegian dialects with only two instead of three grammatical genders. The Rs are [[uvular trill]]s, as in French, which probably spread to Bergen some time in the 18th century, overtaking the [[alveolar trill]] in the time span of two to three generations. Owing to an improved [[literacy rate]], Bergensk was influenced by [[Norwegian Bokmål|riksmål]] and bokmål in the 19th and 20th centuries. This led to large parts of the German-inspired [[vocabulary]] disappearing and pronunciations shifting slightly towards East Norwegian.<ref name="slikblevi">{{Cite book |last=Nesse |first=Agnete |title=Slik ble vi bergensere – Hanseatene og bergensdialekten |publisher=Sigma Forlag |year=2003 |isbn=82-7916-028-0}}</ref>

The [[Eurovision Song Contest 1986|1986 edition]] of the [[Eurovision Song Contest]] took place in Bergen. Bergen was the host city for the [[2017 UCI Road World Championships]]. The city is also a member of the [[Creative Cities Network|UNESCO Creative Cities Network]] in the category of gastronomy since 2015.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bergen, City of Gastronomy – Havbyen Bergen |url=http://marin.bergen-chamber.no/en/Bergen-City-of-Gastronomy/ |access-date=3 October 2018 |website=marin.bergen-chamber.no |language=en |archive-date=4 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181004021134/http://marin.bergen-chamber.no/en/Bergen-City-of-Gastronomy/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

{{wide image |Norway Bergen Bryggen during nighttime.jpg|400|Picture of Bryggen from the opposite pier during night time. On the upper right side (hidden by fog) the Fløibanen up to Mt. Fløyen.}}

===Music===
[[File:AURORA, ICA, London (26999106584).jpg|200px|thumb|right|[[Aurora (singer)|Aurora]] performing in [[London]], 2016]]
Bergen has been the home of several notable alternative bands, collectively referred to as the [[Bergen Wave]]. These bands include [[Röyksopp]] and [[Kings of Convenience]] on the small, Bergen-based record label Tellé Records, as well as related side-projects, such as [[The Whitest Boy Alive]], [[Kommode]], and [[Visekongene]] on independent labels. Other internationally well-received artists also originating from Bergen include [[Aurora (singer)|Aurora]], [[Sondre Lerche]], [[Kygo]], [[Boy Pablo]] and [[Alan Walker (music producer)|Alan Walker]].

Bergen is also known as the "[[black metal]] capital of Norway", due to its role in the [[early Norwegian black metal scene]] and the amount of acts to come from the city in the early 1990s. Also the singer Einar Selvik of the band Wardruna was born in Bergen and became famous thanks to the TV series ''[[Vikings (TV series)|Vikings]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2010-05-04 |title=Bergen – the black metal capital |url=https://www.fib.no/en/articles/bergen-the-black-metal-capital/ |access-date=2020-11-21 |publisher=Bergen International Festival |archive-date=16 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116124127/https://www.fib.no/en/articles/bergen-the-black-metal-capital/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Bergen is also the birthplace of composer [[Edvard Grieg]]. The biggest music festival in the city is [[Bergenfest]].

===Street art===
Bergen is considered to be the street art capital of Norway.<ref name="Ba.no">{{Cite web |date=24 March 2010 |title=Gatekunstens hovedstad |url=http://www.ba.no/puls/article5037839.ece |access-date=24 March 2010 |publisher=Ba.no |language=no}}</ref> Famed artist [[Banksy]] visited the city in 2000<ref name="Dagbladet.no">{{Cite web |title=Fikk Banksy-bilder som takk for overnatting |url=http://www.dagbladet.no/nyheter/2008/03/10/529267.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313025045/http://www.dagbladet.no/nyheter/2008/03/10/529267.html |archive-date=13 March 2017 |access-date=10 March 2008 |publisher=Dagbladet.no |language=no}}</ref> and inspired many to start creating street art. Soon after, the city brought up the most famous street artist in Norway: [[DOLK (artist)|Dolk]].<ref name="autogenerated3">{{Cite web |date=8 September 2011 |title=Derfor valgte ikke DOLK Bergen |url=http://www.ba.no/puls/article5726885.ece |access-date=18 September 2011 |publisher=Ba.no |language=no}}</ref><ref name="Bt.no">{{Cite web |title=Populær Dolk selger så det suser |url=http://www.bt.no/bergenpuls/Popular-Dolk-selger-sa-det-suser-2579379.html#.T1OGAfEaND1 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141219010612/http://www.bt.no/bergenpuls/Popular-Dolk-selger-sa-det-suser-2579379.html#.T1OGAfEaND1 |archive-date=19 December 2014 |access-date=8 April 2011 |publisher=Bt.no |language=no}}</ref> His art can still be seen in several places in the city, and in 2009 the city council choose to preserve [[DOLK (artist)|Dolk]]'s work "Spray" with protective glass.<ref name="autogenerated1">{{Cite web |date=26 June 2009 |title=Forsvarer verning av graffiti |url=http://www.ba.no/nyheter/politikk/article4425460.ece |access-date=26 June 2009 |publisher=Ba.no |language=no}}</ref> In 2011, Bergen council launched a plan of action for street art in Bergen from 2011 to 2015 to ensure that "Bergen will lead the fashion for street art as an expression both in Norway and [[Scandinavia]]".<ref name="Bergen.kommune.no">{{Cite web |title=Bergenkommune.no – Graffiti og gatekunst i kulturbyen Bergen – Utredning og handlingsplan for perioden 2011–2015 |url=https://www.bergen.kommune.no/bk/multimedia/archive/00105/Graffiti_og_gatekun_105438a.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130721063318/https://www.bergen.kommune.no/bk/multimedia/archive/00105/Graffiti_og_gatekun_105438a.pdf |archive-date=21 July 2013 |access-date=10 May 2011 |publisher=Bergen.kommune.no |language=no}}</ref>

The Madam Felle (1831–1908) monument in Sandviken, is in honour of a Norwegian woman of German origin, who in the mid-19th century managed, against the will of the council, to maintain a counter of beer. A well-known restaurant of the same name is now elsewhere in Bergen. The monument was erected in 1990 by sculptor Kari Rolfsen, supported by an anonymous donor. Madam Felle, civil name Oline Fell, was posthumously remembered in a popular song, possibly originally a folksong,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Davidsen |first=Knut B. |date=7 December 2002 |title=Var madam Felle Jonnemann sin mor? |trans-title=Was Madam Felle Jonnemann's Mother? |url=http://www.bt.no/nyheter/lokalt/Var-madam-Felle-Jonnemann-sin-mor-2406325.html#.UsJnmbmA2uo |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140101214925/http://www.bt.no/nyheter/lokalt/Var-madam-Felle-Jonnemann-sin-mor-2406325.html#.UsJnmbmA2uo |archive-date=1 January 2014 |access-date=31 December 2013 |work=[[Bergens Tidende]] |publisher=Media Norge, [[Schibsted]] |location=Bergen, Norway |language=nb}}</ref> "Kjenner Dokker Madam Felle?" by [[Lothar Lindtner]] and [[Rolf Berntzen]] on an album in 1977.

==Parks and bathing places==
{{div col}}
===Parks===
*[[Nygårdsparken]]
*[[Nordnes Park|Nordnesparken]]
*Byparken
*Teaterparken
*Meyermarken
*[[Gamlehaugen]]
*Storetveitmarken
*Olsvikparken

===Bathing places===
*[[Kyrkjetangen]]
*Tennebekktjørna
*Helleneset
*[[Nordnes Park|Nordnes Sjøbad]]
*Grønnskjæret
*Hordvikhavn
*Skjoldabukta
*Marineholmen Sandstrand
{{div col end}}

==Media==
{{expand section|date=February 2023}}

===Newspapers===

* [[Arbeidet]] (1893–1949)
* [[Bergens Adressecontoirs Efterretninger]] (1765-1889)
* [[Bergens Aftenblad]] (1880-1942)
* [[Bergens Social-Demokrat]] (1922-1927)
* [[Bergens Stiftstidende]] (1840-1855)
*[[Bergens Tidende]] (1868–)
*[[Bergensavisen]] (1927–)
*[[Bondebladet (newspaper)|Blondebladet]] (1914-1935)
*[[Bygdanytt]] (1951-)
*[[Dagen (Norwegian newspaper)|Dagen]] (1919-)
*[[Fanaposten]] (1978-)
*[[Fjordaposten]] (1923-1940)
*[[Gula Tidend]] (1904-1996)
*[[Morgenavisen]] (1902-1984)
*[[Norge Idag]] (1999-)
*[[Studvest]] (1945-)
*[[Vestlandsbonden]] (1904-1915)

=== Other Publications ===

* [[Bergen Byleksikon]], Encyclopedia of Bergen
* [[Naturen]], Science magazine
* [[Samtiden]], Political and literary magazine
* [[Urda (journal)]], Former history magazine
* [[Vi over 60]], Magazine for over 60s

=== TV Channels ===

* [[Bergen Student-TV]], Student television channel
* [[TV 2 Direkte]], TV channel based in Bergen

==Neighbourhoods==
The traditional neighbourhoods of Bergen include [[Bryggen]], Eidemarken, Engen, Fjellet, [[Kalfaret]], Ladegården, [[Løvstakksiden]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Et liv uten filter |url=http://www.bt.no/meninger/kronikk/Et-liv-uten-filter-3069576.html#.UxV-fYVN-xo |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140306174209/http://www.bt.no/meninger/kronikk/Et-liv-uten-filter-3069576.html#.UxV-fYVN-xo |archive-date=6 March 2014 |access-date=14 December 2015}}</ref> Marken, [[Minde, Bergen|Minde]], [[Møhlenpris]], [[Nordnes]], [[Nygård, Norway|Nygård]], Nøstet, [[Sandviken, Norway|Sandviken]], Sentrum, Skansen, Skuteviken, Strandsiden, Stølen, [[Sydnes]], [[Verftet]], Vågsbunnen, Wergeland,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Frykter spredning av narkomiljøet |url=http://www.bt.no/nyheter/lokalt/Frykter-spredning-av-narkomiljoet-2969871.html#.Ujq4htK9VPA |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130920145224/http://www.bt.no/nyheter/lokalt/Frykter-spredning-av-narkomiljoet-2969871.html#.Ujq4htK9VPA |archive-date=20 September 2013 |access-date=14 December 2015}}</ref> and Ytre Sandviken.

===''Grunnkretser''===
The various addresses in Bergen, each belong to one of the various ''[[grunnkrets]]''.

==International relations==
Each year Bergen sells the [[Christmas tree]] seen in [[Haymarket, Newcastle|Newcastle's Haymarket]] as a sign of the ongoing friendship between the sister cities, which were connected by a [[Newcastle–Bergen–Stavanger ferry|ferry service]] from 1890 to 2008.<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 November 2008 |title=Æresborger av Newcastle |url=http://www.kongehuset.no/c26951/nyhet/vis.html?tid=74108&strukt_tid=26951 |access-date=8 February 2010 |publisher=kongehuset.no}}</ref> The Nordic friendship cities of Bergen, [[Gothenburg]], [[Turku]] and [[Aarhus]] arrange inter-Nordic camps each year by registering tenth-grade school classes from each of the other cities to school camps, for a profit. Bergen received a [[totem pole]] as a gift of friendship from the city of [[Seattle]] on the city's 900th anniversary in 1970. It is now placed in the [[Nordnes Park]] and gazes out over the sea towards the friendship city far to the west.

==Twin towns – sister cities==
{{See also|List of twin towns and sister cities in Norway}}
Bergen is [[Sister city|twinned]] with:<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-07-17 |title=Hvor mange venner har vi? |url=https://www.bergen.kommune.no/omkommunen/fakta-om-bergen/kuriosa/hvor-mange-venner-har-vi |access-date=2023-01-14 |publisher=Bergen Kommune |language=no}}</ref>
*{{flagicon|DEN}} [[Aarhus Municipality|Aarhus]], Denmark (since 1946)
*{{flagicon|SWE}} [[Gothenburg Municipality|Gothenburg]], Sweden (since 1946)
*{{flagicon|ENG}} [[Newcastle upon Tyne|Newcastle]], England, United Kingdom (since 1968)
*{{flagicon|GER}} [[Rostock]], Germany (since 1957)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Partnerstädte |url=https://rathaus.rostock.de/de/rathaus/international/internationale_verbindungen/partnerstaedte/279903 |access-date=2023-01-14 |publisher=Rostock |language=de}}</ref>
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Seattle]], United States (since 1967)
*{{flagicon|FIN}} [[Turku]], Finland (since 1946)

== Gallery ==
<gallery mode="packed">
File:Kjottbasaren, Bergen, Noruega, 2019-09-08, DD 14.jpg| Kjøttbasaren, an iconic building in Bergen from 1876
File:Bergen, Lille Lungegårdsvannet - panoramio (2).jpg| [[Lille Lungegårdsvannet]]
File:Torgallmenningen, Bergen (2).jpg| [[Torgallmenningen]]
File:Bergen Tinghus (Tingrett) courthouse, Christian Michelsens gate, Tårnplassen, Bergen, Norway 2018-03-19.jpg| Bergen Courthouse
File:Musikkpaviljongen, Bergen, 2019 (01).jpg| View of the Musikkpaviljongen
File:Ulriken Bergen Norway 02.jpg| [[Ulriken]]
File:Vista del puerto de Bergen desde la montaña Fløyen, Noruega, 2019-09-08, DD 46.jpg| Zachariasbryggen
File:Bergen storsenter (shopping mall), Strømgaten, Fjøsangerveien, Bergen, Norway, 2017-11-01 a.jpg| Bergen Storsenter, shopping mall in central Bergen
File:Nygårdsparken, 5006 Bergen, Norway.jpg|[[Nygårdsparken]]
</gallery>

== Notable people from Bergen ==
*[[List of people from Bergen]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
{{See also|Timeline of Bergen#Bibliography|l1=Bibliography of the history of Bergen}}

==External links==
{{EB1911 poster|Bergen}}
{{wikivoyage|Bergen}}
*[http://ssb.no/kommunefakta/bergen Municipal fact sheet] from [[Statistics Norway]] {{in lang|no}}
*{{official website|https://www.bergen.kommune.no/}} {{in lang|no}}
*{{official website|https://www.bergen.kommune.no/english}} {{in lang|en}}

{{Sister bar|auto=y|Bergen, Norway}}
{{Bergen}}
{{Neighbourhoods of Bergen}}
{{Vestland|state=collapsed}}
{{Counties of Norway|former|state=collapsed}}
{{Most populous urban areas of Norway|state=collapsed}}
{{25 largest municipalities of Norway|state=collapsed}}
{{50 most populous urban settlements of Scandinavia|state=collapsed}}
{{European Capital of Culture}}
{{Hanseatic League}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Bergen| ]]
[[Category:Municipalities of Vestland]]
[[Category:Populated coastal places in Norway]]
[[Category:1070 establishments in Europe]]
[[Category:Populated places established in the 11th century]]
[[Category:Port cities and towns in Norway]]
[[Category:Port cities and towns of the North Sea]]
[[Category:Former capitals of Norway]]
[[Category:Viking Age populated places]]
[[Category:Trading posts of the Hanseatic League]]
[[Category:11th-century establishments in Norway]]