Abstract
<p>The effects of war on the health of the population have never been systematically studied. The article explores the impact of war on the general health condition of Finnmark’s population during the war years. The indicators chosen are infant mortality and the epidemic diseases diphtheria, scabies and acute gastroenteritis. The development of the indicators in Finnmark is compared with the averages in Norway and Finnish Lapland. The findings deserve attention. The article discusses the statistical indicators and findings in a social and historical context with a range of sources. The article is a broad as well as penetrating analysis of the war’s impact on the health of the civilian population of Finnmark and on their everyday living and survival.</p>
Highlights
Finnmark is the largest (48,616 km2) and northernmost county in Norway, but its population is the most scattered
Living conditions have often been more demanding in Finnmark than in the rest of the country, and infant mortality has been higher (Mølmann 2004)
In terms of the chosen indicators, the civilian population in Finnmark clearly suffered more than the rest of the country during WW2
Summary
Finnmark is the largest (48,616 km2) and northernmost county in Norway, but its population (approximately 56,000 in 1940) is the most scattered. Kirkenes town and the wider geographical area stretching to Vadsø, Vardø and the Varangerfjord in the easternmost part of Norway, was the first area in Finnmark to be occupied by the Germans in 1940. They called it “Festung Kirkenes”, and close to 100,000 German-Austrian soldiers, sailors and marines were stationed there simultaneously in 1944 (Hauglid et al 1985, 14, 22). The population of Finnmark was multiplied by German invaders and their prisoners of war This caused a strain on the available resources for everyday life, and made it hard to maintain the pre-war standard of health care and impossible to improve the services
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