Hjelmeland Municipality
Hjelmeland kommune
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View of the Hjelmeland Church
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Rogaland within Norway
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Hjelmeland within Rogaland
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| Coordinates: 59°13′02″N 06°20′27″E / 59.21722°N 6.34083°E / 59.21722; 6.34083 | |
| Country | Norway |
| County | Rogaland |
| District | Ryfylke |
| Established | 1 Jan 1838 |
| • Created as | Formannskapsdistrikt |
| Administrative centre | Hjelmelandsvågen |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2022) | Anita Husøy Riskedal (Sp) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1,067.78 km2 (412.27 sq mi) |
| • Land | 948.04 km2 (366.04 sq mi) |
| • Water | 119.74 km2 (46.23 sq mi) 11.2% |
| • Rank | #105 in Norway |
| Population
(2023)
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| • Total | 2,619 |
| • Rank | #247 in Norway |
| • Density | 2.8/km2 (7/sq mi) |
| • Change (10 years) |  −6.4% |
| Demonym | Hjelmelandsbu[1] |
| Official language | |
| • Norwegian form | Nynorsk |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| ISO 3166 code | NO-1133[3] |
| Website | Official website |
Hjelmelandⓘ is a municipalityinRogaland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional districtofRyfylke. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hjelmelandsvågen. Other villages in the municipality include Fister, Årdal, and Jøsenfjorden.[4]
Hjelmeland is known for its fruit (apples, pears, plums, cherries and strawberries) and fish production. Salmon has been important for the fish industry in Hjelmeland for a couple of decades, but white fish such as cod and halibut has increased its value in the latter years.
The 1,068-square-kilometre (412 sq mi) municipality is the 105th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Hjelmeland is the 247th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 2,619. The municipality's population density is 2.8 inhabitants per square kilometre (7.3/sq mi) and its population has decreased by 6.4% over the previous 10-year period.[5][6]
Hjelmeland was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). In 1859, Hjelmeland municipality was split into two: the southern portion of the municipality (population: 1,315) was split off to form the new municipality of Årdal and the remainder of the municipality became the municipality of Hjelmeland og Fister (population: 3,084). On 1 July 1884, the western islands and the western coast of the mainland (population: 832) were split off from Hjelmeland og Fister to form the new municipality of Fister and the rest of the municipality was renamed simply "Hjelmeland" which now had 2,249 residents.[7]
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1965, all of Hjelemland municipality (population: 1,691) was merged with most of the municipality of Årdal (except the Sundgardene area along the Årdalsfjorden), the mainland part and the island of Randøy from the municipality of Fister, and the small Buergårdene area on Ombo from the municipality of Jelsa. The population of the newly enlarged Hjelemland was 2,909; nearly doubling the size of the municipal population.[7]
On 1 January 2020, the parts of Hjelmeland municipality that were located on the island of Ombo were transferred to the neighboring Stavanger Municipality so that the whole island would be part of the same municipality.[8]
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Hjelmeland farm (Old Norse: Hjalmaland) since the first Hjelmeland Church was built there. Today the farm is a part of the Hjelmelandsvågen urban area. The first element of the name is the plural genitive caseofhjalmr which means "helmet" (likely referring to two hills behind the farm which have the form of two helmets). The last element is land which means "land" or "farm".[9]
The coat of arms was granted on 30 November 1984. The official blazonis"Gules, a triple saltire fretty Or" (Norwegian: På raud grunn ein gull Andreaskross, laga med trilling strengar). This means the arms have a red field (background) and the charge is a set of three interwoven St. Andrew's crosses. The charge has a tinctureofOr which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. They are based on the local tradition of making chairs and other furniture with seats of woven twigs (jærstoler). The process of weaving is symbolised in the arms. At the same time the arms show the strength and solidarity of the municipality. Furthermore, there are three sets of crosses to represent the fact that Hjelmeland is made up of three previous municipalities (Hjemeland, Fister, and Årdal) that were merged in 1965. The arms were designed by Svein Magnus Håvarstein who based the idea from an initial idea by Magnus Torgersen. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.[10][11][12]
The Church of Norway has three parishes (sokn) within the municipality of Hjelmeland. It is part of the Ryfylke prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Stavanger.
| Parish (sokn) | Church name | Location of the church | Year built |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fister | Fister Church | Fister | 1867 |
| Hjelmeland | Hjelmeland Church | Hjelmelandsvågen | 1858 |
| Årdal | Årdal Church | Årdal | 1919 |
| Old Årdal Church | Årdal | 1619 |
Hjelmeland Municipality is responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality is governed by a municipal councilofdirectly elected representatives. The mayorisindirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.[13] The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Sør-Rogaland District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.
The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Hjelmeland is made up of 19 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 5 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 2 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 9 | |
| Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) | 1 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Green Party (Miljøpartiet Dei Grøne) | 1 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 4 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 2 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 9 | |
| Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) | 1 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 3 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 5 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 4 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 6 | |
| Liberal Party (Venstre) | 1 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Progress Party (Framstegspartiet) | 1 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 5 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 4 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 5 | |
| Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) | 1 | |
| Liberal Party (Venstre) | 1 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 3 | |
| Progress Party (Framstegspartiet) | 1 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 2 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 4 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 7 | |
| Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) | 1 | |
| Liberal Party (Venstre) | 1 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Progress Party (Framstegspartiet) | 1 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 3 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 5 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 5 | |
| Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) | 1 | |
| Liberal Party (Venstre) | 2 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 1 | |
| Progress Party (Framstegspartiet) | 1 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 2 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 6 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 5 | |
| Joint list of the Liberal Party and independents (Fellesliste: Venstre og uavhengige) |
4 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 4 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 5 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 9 | |
| Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) | 1 | |
| Liberal Party (Venstre) | 4 | |
| Total number of members: | 25 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Progress Party (Framstegspartiet) | 1 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 3 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 6 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 10 | |
| Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) | 1 | |
| Hjelmeland local party (Hjelmeland bygdeparti) | 2 | |
| Total number of members: | 25 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 3 | |
| Progress Party (Framstegspartiet) | 1 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 4 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 7 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 8 | |
| Cross-party list (Tverrpolitisk liste) | 2 | |
| Total number of members: | 25 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Progress Party (Framstegspartiet) | 1 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 4 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 7 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 9 | |
| Cross-party list (Tverrpolitisk liste) | 2 | |
| Total number of members: | 25 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 5 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 7 | |
| New People's Party (Nye Folkepartiet) | 1 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 9 | |
| Joint list of the Progress Party and Non-party Group (Framstaggspartiet og Upolitisk Gruppe) |
1 | |
| Total number of members: | 25 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 2 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 7 | |
| New People's Party (Nye Folkepartiet) | 2 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 11 | |
| Joint list of the Liberal Party and independents (Venstre og Upolitisk) |
1 | |
| Total number of members: | 25 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 6 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 10 | |
| Liberal Party (Venstre) | 5 | |
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 2 | |
| Total number of members: | 25 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 5 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 10 | |
| Liberal Party (Venstre) | 5 | |
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 3 | |
| Total number of members: | 25 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 7 | |
| Liberal Party (Venstre) | 4 | |
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 1 | |
| Total number of members: | 17 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 1 | |
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 10 | |
| Total number of members: | 13 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet) | 8 | |
| Liberal Party (Venstre) | 3 | |
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 3 | |
| Total number of members: | 17 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 2 | |
| Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet) | 6 | |
| Liberal Party (Venstre) | 4 | |
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 4 | |
| Total number of members: | 16 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 2 | |
| Conservative Party (Høgre) | 1 | |
| Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet) | 5 | |
| Liberal Party (Venstre) | 5 | |
| Total number of members: | 16 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) | 4 | |
| Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgarlege Felleslister) | 4 | |
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 8 | |
| Total number of members: | 16 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgarlege Felleslister) | 8 | |
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 8 | |
| Total number of members: | 16 | |
| Note: Due to the German occupation of Norway during World War II, no elections were held for new municipal councils until after the war ended in 1945. | ||
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The mayors (Norwegian: ordfører) of Hjelmeland (incomplete list):
The municipality stretches from the mountains bordering the Setesdal valley to the shores of the fjords that connect to the main Boknafjorden. The small Jøsenfjorden and Årdalsfjorden cut into the mainland. There are several islands that are part of Hjelmeland including Randøy as well as some smaller surrounding islands. The island of Randøy is connected to the mainland by the Randøy Bridge.
There are several large lakes in the municipality including Nilsebuvatnet, Øvre Tysdalsvatnet, and Tysdalsvatnet. The large lake Blåsjø partially lies in the municipality. The Trollgarden glacial moraine lies atop a mountain in Hjelmeland. The Ritland crater is also located in the municipality.
The dictionary definition of Hjelmeland at Wiktionary
Rogaland travel guide from Wikivoyage|
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