"orientation") was first used in 1886 at the Swedish Military Academy Karlberg and meant the crossing of unknown land with the aid of a map and a compass.
The first civilian orienteering competition open to the public was held in Norway in 1897, when Norway was still a part of the Swedish union. From the beginning, locations selected for orienteering have been chosen in part for their beauty, natural or man-made.
For the first public orienteering competition in Sweden, in 1901, control points included two historic churches, Spånga kyrka and Bromma kyrka (a round church). With the invention of inexpensive yet reliable compasses, the sport gained popularity during the 1930s.
For the first public orienteering competition in Sweden, in 1901, control points included two historic churches, Spånga kyrka and Bromma kyrka (a round church). With the invention of inexpensive yet reliable compasses, the sport gained popularity during the 1930s.
By 1934, over a quarter million Swedes were participants, and orienteering had spread to Finland, Switzerland, the Soviet Union, and Hungary.
There, the two oldest recurring orienteering meets have been held since the 1940s (Jukola relay and Tiomila), and the single largest orienteering meet has been held every year since 1965 and attracts around 15,000 competitors (O-Ringen). Typically, orienteering is run in wild terrain.
In Sweden in 1959, an international orienteering conference was held.
In 1961, orienteering organizations representing 10 European nations founded the International Orienteering Federation (IOF).
There, the two oldest recurring orienteering meets have been held since the 1940s (Jukola relay and Tiomila), and the single largest orienteering meet has been held every year since 1965 and attracts around 15,000 competitors (O-Ringen). Typically, orienteering is run in wild terrain.
The federation was founded in 1967 and it is made up of 13 constituent associations.
It is based in Finland and it claims on its website to aim to "spread the sport of orienteering, to promote its development and to create and maintain an attractive world event programme." Since 1977 the IOF has been recognised by the IOC ===National=== There are governing bodies for most of the individual nations that are represented in the sport of orienteering.
World championships were held every two years until 2003, then every year. Throughout this time, orienteering has remained most popular in Scandinavia.
By 2010, 71 national orienteering federations were member societies of the International Orienteering Federation.
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