Age of democracy in Norway
Norway: Age of democracy was 74 years in 2018. ◆ Volatile
Age of democracy in Norway, 1898–2018
Source: Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
Norway recorded 74 years for age of democracy in 2018. That is the highest value across all 116 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.4% on the previous year and up 15.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of democracy in Norway peaked at 74 years in 2018 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1898.
That places Norway 11th out of 110 countries with data for 2018, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Age of democracy in Norway, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1898 | 1 years | — |
| 1899 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1900 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1901 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1902 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1903 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1904 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1905 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1906 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1907 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1908 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1909 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1910 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1911 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1912 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1913 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1914 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1915 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1916 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 1917 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 1918 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 1919 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 1920 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 1921 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 1922 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 1923 | 26 years | +4.0% |
| 1924 | 27 years | +3.8% |
| 1925 | 28 years | +3.7% |
| 1926 | 29 years | +3.6% |
| 1927 | 30 years | +3.4% |
| 1928 | 31 years | +3.3% |
| 1929 | 32 years | +3.2% |
| 1930 | 33 years | +3.1% |
| 1931 | 34 years | +3.0% |
| 1932 | 35 years | +2.9% |
| 1933 | 36 years | +2.9% |
| 1934 | 37 years | +2.8% |
| 1935 | 38 years | +2.7% |
| 1936 | 39 years | +2.6% |
| 1937 | 40 years | +2.6% |
| 1938 | 41 years | +2.5% |
| 1939 | 42 years | +2.4% |
| 1945 | 1 years | -97.6% |
| 1946 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1947 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1948 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1949 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1950 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1951 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1952 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1953 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1954 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1955 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1956 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1957 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1958 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1959 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1960 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1961 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1962 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1963 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 1964 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 1965 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 1966 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 1967 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 1968 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 1969 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 1970 | 26 years | +4.0% |
| 1971 | 27 years | +3.8% |
| 1972 | 28 years | +3.7% |
| 1973 | 29 years | +3.6% |
| 1974 | 30 years | +3.4% |
| 1975 | 31 years | +3.3% |
| 1976 | 32 years | +3.2% |
| 1977 | 33 years | +3.1% |
| 1978 | 34 years | +3.0% |
| 1979 | 35 years | +2.9% |
| 1980 | 36 years | +2.9% |
| 1981 | 37 years | +2.8% |
| 1982 | 38 years | +2.7% |
| 1983 | 39 years | +2.6% |
| 1984 | 40 years | +2.6% |
| 1985 | 41 years | +2.5% |
| 1986 | 42 years | +2.4% |
| 1987 | 43 years | +2.4% |
| 1988 | 44 years | +2.3% |
| 1989 | 45 years | +2.3% |
| 1990 | 46 years | +2.2% |
| 1991 | 47 years | +2.2% |
| 1992 | 48 years | +2.1% |
| 1993 | 49 years | +2.1% |
| 1994 | 50 years | +2.0% |
| 1995 | 51 years | +2.0% |
| 1996 | 52 years | +2.0% |
| 1997 | 53 years | +1.9% |
| 1998 | 54 years | +1.9% |
| 1999 | 55 years | +1.9% |
| 2000 | 56 years | +1.8% |
| 2001 | 57 years | +1.8% |
| 2002 | 58 years | +1.8% |
| 2003 | 59 years | +1.7% |
| 2004 | 60 years | +1.7% |
| 2005 | 61 years | +1.7% |
| 2006 | 62 years | +1.6% |
| 2007 | 63 years | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 64 years | +1.6% |
| 2009 | 65 years | +1.6% |
| 2010 | 66 years | +1.5% |
| 2011 | 67 years | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 68 years | +1.5% |
| 2013 | 69 years | +1.5% |
| 2014 | 70 years | +1.4% |
| 2015 | 71 years | +1.4% |
| 2016 | 72 years | +1.4% |
| 2017 | 73 years | +1.4% |
| 2018 | 74 years | +1.4% |
Norway compared with similar countries
- Norway's 74 years is above the median for high income countries, which is 44 years, 1.7× the median. (43 countries reporting)
- Norway's 74 years is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 29 years, 2.6× the median. (40 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of democracy in Norway changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1945 | -97.6% | 42 years | 1 years |
| 1899 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1946 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1900 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1947 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1901 | +33.3% | 3 years | 4 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1890s | 1.5 years | 1 years | 2 years | 2 |
| 1900s | 7.5 years | 3 years | 12 years | 10 |
| 1910s | 17.5 years | 13 years | 22 years | 10 |
| 1920s | 27.5 years | 23 years | 32 years | 10 |
| 1930s | 37.5 years | 33 years | 42 years | 10 |
| 1940s | 3 years | 1 years | 5 years | 5 |
| 1950s | 10.5 years | 6 years | 15 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 20.5 years | 16 years | 25 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 30.5 years | 26 years | 35 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 40.5 years | 36 years | 45 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 50.5 years | 46 years | 55 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 60.5 years | 56 years | 65 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 70 years | 66 years | 74 years | 9 |
Countries ranked near Norway
More social development data for Norway
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 124,006 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 20 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 1 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 20 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0221 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is age of democracy in Norway?
- Age of democracy in Norway was 74 years in 2018, according to Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of democracy recorded in Norway?
- The highest recorded value was 74 years in 2018.
- What is the lowest age of democracy recorded in Norway?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1898.
- How does Norway rank for age of democracy?
- Norway ranks 11th out of 110 countries with data for 2018.
- Is age of democracy rising or falling in Norway?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Norway data come from?
- The figures come from Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Age of democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 116 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in a democracy.