NHH logo
The logo for NHH was designed by NHH alumnus Bjarne Tømmerbakke (class of 1936) and was approved for use by the school in 1958. The four elements of the logo symbolise four pillars of the business community in Norway, all of which have been significant contributors to the success of Bergen through the ages as Norway's historic home of trade.
In the top right-hand corner can be seen the scales, a traditional symbol of trade and commerce. Since the days of the Hanseatic League, Bergen has been one of the most important trading cities in Northern Europe. It is thanks to the merchants from Norway and other parts of Europe who established themselves in Bergen that NHH was founded in the city.
The fish and harpoons in the bottom right-hand corner indicates the importance of the fishing industry. The fish industry has been a corner stone of the Norwegian economy from the early days when Bergen was the main centre for the buying and selling of dried and salted cod to modern times when many of the worlds largest aquaculture companies are Norwegian.
A ship’s anchor in the bottom left of the logo symbolises the shipping industry. From a poor country at the edge of Europe made largely up of farmers and fishermen, Norway rose to dominate the shipping world. Today much of the world's bulk cargoes are transported on ships owned and run from Norway.
The crossed hammers in the top left-hand corner symbolise industry and hand craft. It was the abundant supply of waterfalls in Norway and the cheap electricity that this provided that lead to the rapid development of industry in many areas of Norway in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Since the 1970's it has been a different kind of industry that has been dominating the Norwegian economy - the extraction of oil from under the North Sea. It is this black gold that has been an engine of growth for the Norwegian economy for the last 30 years.
