{"id":235828,"date":"2026-05-18T20:43:22","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T20:43:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/235828\/"},"modified":"2026-05-18T20:43:22","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T20:43:22","slug":"norwegian-day-parade-draws-crowds-to-bay-ridge-for-73rd-annual-march-brooklyn-paper","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/235828\/","title":{"rendered":"Norwegian Day Parade draws crowds to Bay Ridge for 73rd annual march \u2022 Brooklyn Paper"},"content":{"rendered":"

The streets of Bay Ridge were awash with bunads \u2014 the traditional national costume of Norway \u2014 on Sunday as thousands gathered for the 73rd Annual Norwegian Day Parade<\/a>. The storied march honors Norway\u2019s Constitution Day and the enduring cultural ties between the country and the United States.<\/p>\n

Despite a grim forecast, spectators lined a sunny parade route, waving Norwegian and American flags as bands, community organizations, churches, families and cultural groups took part in the annual tradition.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s theme, \u201cOur Legacy Continues,\u201d reflected the parade\u2019s longstanding mission of preserving Norwegian heritage and celebrating the ideals of independence and freedom embodied by Norway\u2019s Constitution Day.<\/p>\n

\"\"General Chair Arlene Bakke Rutuelo poses with Miss Norway of Greater New York 2026 Olivia Riise Kongevold and Miss Heritage 2026 Baylyn Shankman during Sunday\u2019s 73rd Annual Norwegian Day Parade in Bay Ridge.Photo by Arthur de Gaeta \"\"Young parade-goers dressed in traditional bunads.Photo by Arthur de Gaeta<\/p>\n

The parade has long reflected the neighborhood\u2019s deep Norwegian roots. Historically considered the center of New York City\u2019s Norwegian population, Bay Ridge was once nicknamed the \u201cfourth largest city in Norway\u201d<\/a> during the height of Scandinavian immigration in the 1940s.<\/p>\n

Organizers said the event highlighted the continued strength of Norwegian traditions and the importance of passing those customs on to future generations.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cAs President of the Norwegian Day Parade, I am grateful to report that this year\u2019s parade was an incredible success,\u201d General Chair Arlene Bakke Rutuelo told Brooklyn Paper. \u201cThousands of participants marched through Bay Ridge in celebration of Norway\u2019s Constitution Day on May 17th, honoring the rich heritage and lasting friendship between Norway and the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rutuelo said this year\u2019s celebration drew especially strong community participation because the parade coincided with Norway\u2019s official Constitution Day.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cWith May 17th falling on the actual Constitution Day this year, we saw an even greater turnout from the community, families, organizations, and visitors who came together in a joyful display of culture, music, flags and fellowship,\u201d she said. \u201cWe are deeply thankful to all of our dedicated volunteers, parade participants, sponsors, churches, and supporters who made the day possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Marchers filled Third Avenue during Brooklyn\u2019s annual 17th of May Parade celebrating Norwegian heritage and culture.Photo by Arthur de Gaeta \"\"Multiple generations of families gathered along the parade route in Bay Ridge on Sunday, as longtime community members and young spectators alike celebrated Norwegian heritage during the annual 17th of May Parade.Photo by Arthur de Gaeta<\/p>\n

Rutuelo gave a special shoutout to the New York City Police Department \u201cfor their outstanding support and assistance in helping ensure a safe and successful celebration for all.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Among those who marched in this year\u2019s parade were Miss Norway of Greater New York 2026 Olivia Riise Kongevold and Miss Heritage 2026 Baylyn Shankman, who joined participants after earning their titles earlier this spring. The Miss Norway of Greater New York Pageant, now in its 67th year, returned in March<\/a> after a one-year hiatus. It serves as a lead-up to Bay Ridge\u2019s annual 17th of May celebration.<\/p>\n

Kongevold previously told Brooklyn Paper that traditions like the parade and pageant play an important role in keeping Norwegian heritage alive for younger generations.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing Miss Norway and traveling to Norway gave me a new appreciation for where my roots are from,\u201d Kongevold said. \u201cThat\u2019s what this competition is all about \u2014 celebrating each other, our heritage, strength and girlhood, and being able to represent something that is bigger than ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Local officials and parade supporters gathered outside The Salty Dog, the parade\u2019s headquarters.Photo by Arthur de Gaeta \"\"Parade-goers dressed in traditional Norwegian bunads march through Bay Ridge during the 73rd Annual Norwegian Day Parade on Sunday.Photo by Arthur de Gaeta \"\"Parade-goers dressed in traditional Norwegian bunads march through Bay Ridge during the 73rd Annual Norwegian Day Parade on Sunday.Photo by Arthur de Gaeta \"\"Spectators enjoyed sunny skies as bands, cultural groups and community organizations made their way through Bay Ridge.Photo by Arthur de Gaeta \"\"Norwegian and American flags lined the streets of Bay Ridge as thousands gathered to celebrate Norway\u2019s Constitution Day.Photo by Arthur de Gaeta \"\"The 73rd Annual Norwegian Day Parade celebrated the enduring ties between Norway and the United States.Photo by Arthur de Gaeta \"\"The 73rd Annual Norwegian Day Parade celebrated the enduring ties between Norway and the United States.Photo by Arthur de Gaeta<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The streets of Bay Ridge were awash with bunads \u2014 the traditional national costume of Norway \u2014 on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":235829,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[92289,92290,92291,92292,7727,9,24,12,370,75537,92293,63,134,136,135,18816],"class_list":["post-235828","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-staten-island","tag-17th-of-may","tag-17th-of-may-day","tag-17th-of-may-parade","tag-arlene-rutuelo","tag-bay-ridge","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-news","tag-newsletter","tag-norway","tag-norwegian-day-parade","tag-nyc","tag-staten-island","tag-staten-island-headlines","tag-staten-island-news","tag-third-avenue"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/235828","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=235828"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/235828\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/235829"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=235828"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=235828"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=235828"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}