Abstract Electron back-scatter diffraction (EBSD) was used to measure the crystal preferred orientations (CPOs) from 101 samples across the ultrahigh-pressure Western Gneiss region of Norway to assess slip systems, sense of shear, CPO strength, and strain geometry. The CPOs suggest a dominance of prism 〈a〉 slip, with lesser amounts of prism [c] slip and basal 〈a〉 slip; there are few Type I and Type II girdles. The major structural feature in the study area – the high-strain, top-W, normal-sense Nordfjord–Sogn Detachment Zone – is characterized by asymmetric and strong CPOs; an eastern domain with strong asymmetric CPOs shows top-E shear. Strain throughout the study area was characterized by a mix of plane strain and constriction with no evidence of flattening. Adjacent gneiss and quartzite/vein samples have similar CPOs.