inOslo - History (WIKI 1)

Oslo (called Christiania 1624-1878, Kristiania 1878-1924) is the capital and largest city of Norway. The population of the city proper is 544,073 (as of July 1, 2006). [1] The city area extends into the surrounding county of Akershus, with a total population of 825,105[2] in the conurbation (as of January 1, 2006). The city has a current annual growth exceeding 15,000. The city centre of Oslo is situated at the end of the Oslofjord from where the city sprawls out both to the north and to the south on both sides of the fjord giving the city area more or less the shape of a U. Oslo's metropolitan area, also referred to as Greater Oslo region, which extends beyond the city boundaries, has an estimated population of 1,300,000 citizens. In the entire Oslo Fjord Region there is a total population of about 1.7 million.
About 22 % of the population of Oslo is comprised of immigrants. The urban municipality (bykommune) of Oslo and county (fylke) is the same entity. Of Oslo's total area, 115 km² is built-up and 7 km² is agricultural. The open areas within the built-up zone amount to 22 km².