Sarpsborg is part of the fifthlargest urban area in Norway when paired with neighbouringFredrikstad. As of 1 January 2018, according toStatistics Norway these two municipalities have a total population of 136,127 with 55,840 in Sarpsborg and 81,278 in Fredrikstad.[4]
Statistics for 2021, say that the city has a population where 19% of the children belong to families that have "low-income in the long-term"; that is the highest level for a city (in Norway); the national level is 11.3%.[5]
InNorse times the city was just calledBorg (fromborg which means "castle"). The background for this was thefortification built by Olav Haraldsson (see History section). Later, thegenitive case of the name of thewaterfallSarpr (Sarp Falls) was added. It's unclear how Sarpsborg received this part of its name, though two interpretations are the most prevalent. The first comes from the Icelandic wordSarpr which meansbirdcage in English. The other interpretation is thatSarpr means "the one who swallows", probably referring to the local waterfall.[6]
In Norse times Østfold county was calledBorgarsýsla which means "the county (sýsla) of Borg" and the law district of southeast Norway was calledBorgarþing meaning "thething/court of Borg".
Thecoat-of-arms is from modern times and was granted on 13 November 1991. It is based on a coat of arms dating from 1556 and shows a bear above a castle. The bear was introduced as early as some time in the 13th century, by theearl of Sarpsborg(Comes de Saresburgh),Alv Erlingsson. He used the bear to symbolise his strength.[citation needed] The castle symbolises the fortress (borg) that gave the city its original name.[7]
The city was founded asBorg by the Viking KingOlav Haraldsson (Saint Olaf) in 1016. It was burned to the ground by Swedish invaders in 1567 during theNorthern Seven Years' War. Half the population was evacuated down the river to what is today known as Fredrikstad, about 15 kilometres (9 mi) downstream.
Much of the rebuilt town disappeared into the riverGlomma during a 1702mudslide. Again Borg was rebuilt, and it was recreated as a city in 1839, and separated fromTune as a municipality of its own.
The rural municipalities of Tune,Skjeberg, andVarteig were merged with the city on 1 January 1992. The population is steadily growing, and during the summer of 2005 it reached 50,000 inhabitants.
In 2016 the town celebrated its 1,000th anniversary, and the entire year was commemorated by a special programme that encouraged historic preservation within the town.[8]
Historically, the sawmill and timber shipping industry has been Sarpsborg's most important sources of income, however since theindustrialisation in Norway, more specifically Sarpsborg and the establishment of local manufacturing businesses during the late 1800s, the biggest beingBorregaard, Sarpsborg has changed from its traditional timber-based economy andpre-industrial society to a more manufacturing and refining-based economy andindustrial society. In modern times Sarpsborg has moved away from being a city based on the local manufacturing and refining industry, with only around ten percent employed within the local manufacturing industry, coinciding with Norway's general shift towards apost-industrial society. Despite this, the city is still widely regarded by Norwegians both unofficially and officially, to be an industrial city.[9]
Number of minorities (1st and 2nd generation) in Sarpsborg by country of origin in 2021[10]
Borregaard Industries is, and always has been, the most important industry in the city. The city is also the home ofBorg Bryggerier, part of theHansa Borg Bryggerier, which is Norway's second largestbrewery-group.
During the 1950s and 1960s, Sarpsborg was famous for itsfootball (soccer) team,Sarpsborg FK, but is now more known for itsice hockey team,Sparta Warriors. In football,Sarpsborg 08 FF has taken over the local throne, currently playing at the highest national level. On 6 November 2009, they sent arch-rivalFFK down from thetop division in a play-off game inFredrikstad stadion. Sarpsborg 08 has a women's football team that was promoted to the women's Division 1 at the end of 2011, at the same time as the club's under-19 girls reached the Junior Cup Final.Sarpsborg BK plays in the highestbandy division.[citation needed]
The city does not have its own airport. The nearest airports areSandefjord Airport which is located 80 km andOslo Airport which is located 137 km away from Sarpsborg.
Sarpsborg has ahumid continental climate (Dfb) or temperateoceanic climate (Cfb), depending on winter threshold used (0 °C (32 °F) or −3 °C (27 °F)). The all-time high 33.5 °C (92.3 °F) was recorded in July 2018. The all-time low −26 °C (−15 °F) was set in December 2002. Since the weather station was incepted in 1991, the records may not be representative of a longer time frame. The average date for the last overnight freeze (low below 0 °C (32.0 °F)) in spring is 20 April[11] and average date for first freeze in autumn is 22 October[12] giving a frost-free season of 184 days (1981-2010 average).
Climate data for Sarpsborg 1991-2020 (57 m, extremes since 1991)
^Thorsnæs, Geir (16 November 2021),"Sarpsborg",Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian Bokmål),archived from the original on 18 January 2022, retrieved10 December 2021
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