‘All people living in Norway could become Norwegian’: How ordinary people blur the boundaries of nationhood

Based on 60 semi-structured interviews conducted in 2015, the study finds that individuals are inconsistent in how they define the boundaries of Norwegian nationhood, often drawing on different symbolic resources depending on the time, place, and their personal circumstances. While boundaries appear clear when they are actively produced, the uncertainty of when and why they emerge blurs the overall perception of a fixed national boundary. The author argues that boundary-making is a contingent event influenced by socioeconomic status and the distinction between public and private spheres, suggesting that nationhood's boundaries are permeable rather than stable.

• Individuals demonstrate inconsistency in producing and reproducing boundaries of nationhood, often showing a mismatch between their normative perceptions and their everyday experiences.
• Boundary-making is identified as a contingent event, meaning it is not constant but occurs at specific times and places with an inherent uncertainty regarding if or why a boundary will be produced.
• Socioeconomic circumstances can influence the production of national boundaries; for example, financial struggle may lead an individual to draw a boundary between themselves and refugees based on perceived entitlement to resources, despite holding inclusive views of nationhood in general.
• The production of nationhood boundaries varies across public and private dimensions, with some individuals maintaining different standards of belonging in their professional roles compared to their private lives.
• Symbolic resources used to define 'Norwegianness' include ancestry, cultural practice, citizenship, whiteness, language, and contribution to society, but these are not constant markers for all individuals.
• All individuals living within a shared national space contribute to the reproduction of nationhood boundaries, regardless of their own background or whether they identify as nationals.

APA

Strømsø, M. (n.d.). ‘All people living in Norway could become Norwegian’: How ordinary people blur the boundaries of nationhood. Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/cd561647-ebff-4235-b43e-ac9690a4e742/All people living in Norway could become Norwegian How ordinary people blur the boundaries of nationhood.pdf?inline=true

Chicago

Strømsø, Mette. ‘All people living in Norway could become Norwegian’: How ordinary people blur the boundaries of nationhood. Peace Research Institute Oslo, n.d. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/cd561647-ebff-4235-b43e-ac9690a4e742/All people living in Norway could become Norwegian How ordinary people blur the boundaries of nationhood.pdf?inline=true.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Strømsø |first1=Mette |title=‘All people living in Norway could become Norwegian’: How ordinary people blur the boundaries of nationhood |publisher=Peace Research Institute Oslo |url=https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/cd561647-ebff-4235-b43e-ac9690a4e742/All people living in Norway could become Norwegian How ordinary people blur the boundaries of nationhood.pdf?inline=true |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{strmsndall, author = {Strømsø, Mette}, title = {{‘All people living in Norway could become Norwegian’: How ordinary people blur the boundaries of nationhood}}, institution = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, url = {https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/cd561647-ebff-4235-b43e-ac9690a4e742/All people living in Norway could become Norwegian How ordinary people blur the boundaries of nationhood.pdf?inline=true}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }