A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church building once common in north-western Europe. The name derives from the building's structure of post and lintel construction, a type of timber framing where the load-bearing ore-pine posts are called stafr in Old Norse (stav in modern Norwegian). Two related church building types also named for their structural elements, the post church and palisade church, are often called 'stave churches'.

Originally much more widespread, most of the surviving stave churches are in Norway. The only remaining medieval stave churches outside Norway are those of circa 1500 Hedared stave church in Sweden and one Norwegian stave church relocated in 1842 to contemporary Karpacz in the Karkonosze mountains of Poland (at the time being a part of the Kingdom of Prussia). One other church, the Anglo-Saxon Greensted Church in England, exhibits many similarities with a stave church but is generally considered a palisade church.

Norway has seen a dramatic decrease in the number of stave churches. Before the Black Death reached Norway in 1349, there were around 1,000 stave churches across the country. As many as 2,000, if not more, were erected before the Reformation in 1537.
Only 28 have survived. They thus serve as important culture bearers and story tellers. They represent almost 1,000 years of Norwegian history, and still provide new knowledge about our shared past. Show respect and due consideration when you visit our stave churches. We want to pass them on in good condition to coming generations.

A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church building once common in north-western Europe. The name derives from the building's structure of post and lintel construction, a type of timber framing where the load-bearing ore-pine posts are called stafr in Old Norse (stav in modern Norwegian). Two related church building types also named for their structural elements, the post church and palisade church, are often called 'stave churches'.

Originally much more widespread, most of the surviving stave churches are in Norway. The only remaining medieval stave churches outside Norway are those of circa 1500 Hedared stave church in Sweden and one Norwegian stave church relocated in 1842 to contemporary Karpacz in the Karkonosze mountains of Poland (at the time being a part of the Kingdom of Prussia). One other church, the Anglo-Saxon Greensted Church in England, exhibits many similarities with a stave church but is generally considered a palisade church.

Norway has seen a dramatic decrease in the number of stave churches. Before the Black Death reached Norway in 1349, there were around 1,000 stave churches across the country. As many as 2,000, if not more, were erected before the Reformation in 1537.
Only 28 have survived. They thus serve as important culture bearers and story tellers. They represent almost 1,000 years of Norwegian history, and still provide new knowledge about our shared past. Show respect and due consideration when you visit our stave churches. We want to pass them on in good condition to coming generations.