Norway is one of the world's most maritime nations. The country is long and narrow, with drowned valleys called fjords that bring the sea far inland in most regions. The mainland coast is estimated to be 2650 km (1650 mi) long and when all the islands and minor indentations are counted the total coastline approaches an astonishing 60,000 km (37,500 mi), long enough the go around the world one and a half times. With such a lengthy and rocky shore it's not surprising that Norway has a large number of lighthouses. Norway is divided into counties (fylker) and the counties are divided into townships (kommuner). In 2020 mergers decreed by the national government reduced the number of counties from 19 to 11. This page lists lighthouses of the former Østfold county in the southeastern corner of the country, adjoining Sweden. Østfold borders south on the Skaggerak and west on the lower Oslofjord. In 2020 Østfold was merged with Akershus and Buskerud counties to form a new county called Viken. This merger was not popular and might be reversed in the future. Although it has always been considered a separate realm, Norway has only been independent since 1905; it was ruled by the Danish king until 1814 and then by the Swedish king until the Norwegian parliament arranged a peaceful separation of the two kingdoms. In Norwegian a lighthouse is a fyrtårn (fire tower) or simply a fyr; a fyrlykt is a beacon and a lyktehus is a lantern. Øy is an island, holmen is an islet, skjær is a skerry (a tiny island or rocky reef), sund is a strait (often between an island and the mainland), bukt is a bay, nes is a headland, and havn is a harbor. Aids to navigation in Norway are maintained by the Kystverket (Coast Directorate), an agency of the Ministry of Transport and Communications. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. NF numbers are from the Norsk Fyrliste, the official Norwegian light list. Admiralty numbers are from volume B of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 115. |
|
Halden and Sarpsborg Lighthouses
Hvaler Lighthouses
|
|
![]() Papperhavn (Lyngholmen) Light, Hvaler Østfold County photo |
|
![]() Torbjørnskjær Light, Hvaler, November 2011 Wikimedia Creative Commons photo by Vibeke Weibell Eliassen |
Fredrikstad Lighthouses
|
|
|
Moss Area Lighthouses
|
Information available on lost lighthouses:
Notable faux lighthouses:
Adjoining pages: East: Tanum Area | North: Oslo Area | West: West Oslofjord
Return to the Lighthouse Directory index | Ratings key
Posted April 10, 2006. Checked and revised January 12, 2021. Lighthouses: 39. Site copyright 2021 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.