Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Svalbard (sometimes referred to as Spitsbergen, the largest island in the archipelago)
etymology: 12th century Norse accounts speak of the discovery of a "Svalbard" - literally "cold shores" - but they may have referred to Jan Mayen island or eastern Greenland; the archipelago was traditionally known as Spitsbergen, but Norway renamed it Svalbard in the 1920s when it assumed sovereignty of the islands

Dependency status:
territory of Norway; administered by the Polar Department of the Ministry of Justice, through a governor (sysselmann) residing in Longyearbyen, Spitsbergen; by treaty (9 February 1920) sovereignty was awarded to Norway

Government type:

Capital:
name: Longyearbyen
geographic coordinates: 78 13 N, 15 38 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

Independence:
none (territory of Norway)

Legal system:
the laws of Norway where applicable apply; only the laws of Norway made explicitly applicable to Svalbard have effect there; the Svalbard Act and the Svalbard Environmental Protection Act, and certain regulations, apply only to Svalbard; the Spitsbergen Treaty and the Svalbard Treaty grants certain rights to citizens and corporations of signatory nations

Citizenship:
see Norway

Executive branch:
chief of state: King HARALD V of Norway (since 17 January 1991)
head of government: Governor Kjerstin ASKHOLT (since 1 October 2015); Assistant Governor Lars Erik ALHEIM
elections/appointments: none; the monarchy is hereditary; governor and assistant governor responsible to the Polar Department of the Ministry of Justice

Legislative branch:
description: unicameral Longyearbyen Community Council (15 seats; members elected by direct vote to serve four-year-terms)
elections: last held on 6 October 2015 (next to be held October 2019)
election results: seats by party - Conservatives 5, Green Party 2, Labor Party 5, Liberals 3
note: the Council's main responsibilities are infrastructure and utilities, including power, land-use and community planning, education, and child welfare; however, healthcare services are provided by the state

Judicial branch:
highest court(s): none; note - Svalbard is subordinate to Norway's Nord-Troms District Court and Halogaland Court of Appeal, both located in Tromso

Political parties and leaders:
Svalbard Conservative Party [Kjetil FIGENSCHOO]; Svalbard Green Party [Espen Klungseth ROTEVATN]; Svalbard Labor Party [Arid OLSEN]; Svalbard Liberal Party [Erik BERGER]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA

International organization participation:
none

Flag description:
the flag of Norway is used

National anthem:
note: as a territory of Norway, "Ja, vi elsker dette landet" is official (see Norway)