17th May: Norway National Day

Today is Norway's National Day. 10 things you might not know about Norway:

1. In Norway, you will find the longest road tunnel in the world, The Lærdal Tunnel, (24.5 km / 15.2 mi) and the world's deepest undersea tunnel, The Eiksund Tunnel which is 7,765 metres (25,476 ft) long and 287 metres (942 ft) deep.
2. The name “Norway” means “path to the North”. It is also sometimes called "Land of the Midnight sun" because some parts of Norway are above the Arctic Circle and so from late May to late July, the Sun never completely sets.
3. The Cheese slicer and the aerosol spray were both invented by Norwegians, by by Thor Bjørklund and Erik Rotheim respectively. Other famous Norwegians include playwright Henrik Ibsen, composer Edvard Grieg and the painter Edvard Munch.
4. Norway made a significant contribution to the world of sport as it claims to have invented modern skiing. An ancient rock carving at Rødøy shows that Norwegians used skis 4,000 years ago, and a 2,300-year old ski was found in Finnmark in far northern Norway. The word "ski" is a Norwegian word meaning "piece of wood". Skiing as we know it today was pioneered by Sondre Norheim of Telemark in the 1870s. He devised ski bindings and designed the “waisted,” or Telemark, ski, the prototype for modern skis. In 1884, he emigrated to the US and promoted the sport of skiing there. The world's oldest ski festival, at Holmenkollen has taken place since 1872, and Norway has won more medals in the Winter Olympics than any other country. The world "slalom" is also Norwegian - sla, means “slope, hill, or smooth surface,” and låm is the track down the slope.
5. Norway’s Hardangervidda Plateau is the biggest mountain plateau in Europe and home to the continent’s largest herd of wild Reindeer. Norway is also home to Europe's highest waterfall, Vinnufossen (860 m / 2,822 ft), the world's sixth tallest.
6. The children's book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, was inspired by the Freia hot chocolate factory in Norway. Roald Dahl was Norwegian-American. Roald Amundsen, another Norwegian, was the first to reach the South Pole - and Freia chocolate was one of the main sources of sustenance on his journey.
7. Norway is the world’s largest exporter of Salmon.
8. Throughout history, people from Norway have travelled far and wide and settled in may other countries. The Irish cities of Dublin, Limerick and Waterford were founded by Norwegian settlers. It is even thought that Norwegian sailors discovered America long before Columbus but did not settle there.
9. During World War II, the Norwegian mining town of Kirkenes suffered more bomb attacks than any other place in Europe except for Malta. Norway was so grateful for the UK's assistance during the war that each December Norway gives us a Christmas Tree as a thank you. The tree in is erected in London's Trafalgar Square in a special ceremony each year.
10. Norway’s national symbol is the Lion. Its flag is red with a blue cross outlined in white. The colours represent Norway’s past political unions with Denmark (red and white) and Sweden (blue).