Norway celebrates its constitution with children rather than soldiers — on 17 May school parades with flags and marching bands fill every town — while far in the north, the Sámi village of Kautokeino gathers at Easter for reindeer races and joik.
Photo: Bjoertvedt, CC BY-SA 3.0 no, via Wikimedia Commons
The two festivals in this atlas come from opposite ends of the country. Syttende mai, Constitution Day, marks the signing of Norway’s constitution at Eidsvoll on 17 May 1814 and is celebrated in towns and villages across the country. The Sámi Easter Festival is held every Easter in Guovdageaidnu/Kautokeino in Finnmark, a Sámi community where the Sámi language and culture are part of everyday life, and Norway’s largest municipality by area.
Sámi beassášmárkanat
At Easter the Sámi village of Kautokeino in Finnmark fills with reindeer races, duodji handicraft markets, theatre and concerts, crowned by the Sámi Grand Prix of joik and song — continuing the old tradition of gathering before the reindeer move to the coast.
March 20 – 29, 2027Officially announced
On 17 May, Norway’s National Day, children’s parades with flags, banners and marching bands wind through every community, people in the traditional bunad shout “Hurra!”, and in Oslo the royal family waves from the palace balcony — followed by ice cream and hot dogs.
May 17, 2027Calculated