Bygland is a municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Setesdal. The

administrative centre An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune is located. In countries with French as administrative language (such as Belgium, Lu ...

of the municipality is the village of Bygland. Other villages in the municipality include

Åraksbø Åraksbø is a village in Bygland municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located on the eastern shore of the Åraksfjorden, about north of the village of Sandnes and about southeast of the village of Ose. The population (2001) ...

, Austad, Byglandsfjord,

Grendi Grendi is a village in Bygland municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located on the east side of the lake Byglandsfjorden in the south part of the municipality. Grendi sits along the Norwegian National Road 9 about north of the ...

Langeid Langeid is a village in Bygland municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located in the northern part of the municipality, along the river Otra and the Norwegian National Road 9, about halfway between the villages of Tveit (in Bygl ...

Lauvdal Lauvdal is a village in the municipality of Bygland in Agder county, Norway. It's located along the Norwegian National Road 9 on the east side of Byglandsfjorden. The village lies about south of the village of Bygland and about the same distance ...

Litveit Litveit or Lidtveit is a village in Bygland municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located up in the hills about northeast of the village of Åraksbø Åraksbø is a village in Bygland municipality in Agder county, Norway. The vi ...

Longerak Longerak is a village in Bygland municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located on the eastern shore of the lake Byglandsfjorden. The village sits along the Norwegian National Road 9, about north of the village of Grendi and about ...

Moi Moi or MOI may refer to: People * Moi (name), a list of people with the given name or surname * Moisés Delgado (born 1994), Spanish footballer commonly known as simply Moi * Moisés Rodríguez (born 1997), Spanish footballer commonly known as s ...

, Ose, Sandnes,

Skåmedal Skåmedal is a village in Bygland municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located along the southwestern shore of the Åraksfjorden, about southwest of the village of Sandnes, across the lake. Skåmedal sits along the Norwegian Nati ...

, and Tveit. The Norwegian National Road 9 runs through the municipality, following the river Otra where most of the population of Bygland lives. The municipality is the 76th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Bygland is the 325th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 1,134. The municipality's population density is and its population has decreased by 7% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The parish of Bygland was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see

formannskapsdistrikt () is the name for Norwegian local self-government districts that were legally enacted on 1 January 1838. This system of municipalities was created in a bill approved by the Parliament of Norway and signed into law by King Carl Johan on 14 January ...

law). Since that time, the municipal boundaries have not changed.

Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old '' Bygland'' farm ( non, Byggland), since the first

Bygland Church Bygland Church ( no, Bygland kyrkje) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Bygland Municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the village of Bygland on the eastern shore of the Byglandsfjorden, just alongside the Norwegian Na ...

was built there. The first element is ''bygg'' which means " barley" and the last element is ''land'' which means "land" or "farm".

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 15 November 1991. The green arms show a yellow

European lynx The Eurasian lynx (''Lynx lynx'') is a medium-sized wild cat widely distributed from Northern, Central and Eastern Europe to Central Asia and Siberia, the Tibetan Plateau and the Himalayas. It inhabits temperate and boreal forests up to an elev ...

(''Lynx lynx''), which symbolises the wild and rich nature in the rural highlands of the municipality. The green background symbolises the agriculture and forests in the municipality.

Churches

The

Church of Norway The Church of Norway ( nb, Den norske kirke, nn, Den norske kyrkja, se, Norgga girku, sma, Nöörjen gærhkoe) is an evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. The church b ...

has two parishes () within the municipality of Bygland. It is part of the

Otredal prosti This list of churches in Agder og Telemark is a list of the Church of Norway churches in the Diocese of Agder og Telemark in Agder and Vestfold og Telemark counties in southern Norway. The diocese is based at the Kristiansand Cathedral in the c ...

(

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residenc ...

) in the

Diocese of Agder og Telemark The Diocese of Agder og Telemark ( no, Agder og Telemark bispedømme) is a diocese of the Church of Norway, covering all of Agder county and most of Vestfold og Telemark county in Norway. The cathedral city is Kristiansand, Norway's fifth larges ...

Geography

Bygland lies in the middle of the Setesdal valley which is also a traditional district in Aust-Agder county. The valley includes the municipalities of Bykle,

Valle Valle may refer to: * Valle (surname) Geography *"Valle", the cultural and climatic zone of the dry subtropical Interandean Valles of the Andes of Peru, Bolivia, and northwest Argentina *University of Valle, a public university in Cali, Colombia ...

, Bygland, Iveland, and Evje og Hornnes. The Otra river flows from the glacially scoured Hardangervidda plateau in the north, through the Setesdal valley (and through Bygland), and into the sea near the city of Kristiansand. The municipality is bordered on the north by

, in the east by Fyresdal ( Vestfold og Telemark county) and Åmli ( Agder county), in the south by Froland and Evje og Hornnes, and in the west by Åseral, Kvinesdal, and Sirdal (all in Agder county). Bygland is Agder's third largest municipality in area. The majority of the area of the municipality lies in the

Setesdalsheiene Setesdalsheiene () is the collective term for the mountains to the west and east of the Setesdalen valley in Agder county in Southern Norway. The river Otra flows through the valley between the mountains. This area is primarily located in the mu ...

mountains, at an elevation of over above sea level. The municipality stretches from the small town Byglandsfjord in the south to the farms at

in the north. Lake Byglandsfjorden is long and lies on the river Otra. Other lakes include the

Åraksfjorden Åraksfjorden is a lake in the municipality of Bygland in Agder county, Norway. The lake is part of the Otra drainage basin. The northern part of the lake is fed directly by the river Otra. The southern part of the lake goes through a narrow ...

Gyvatn Gyvatn is a lake in Agder county, Norway. The lake straddles the borders of the three municipalities of Åseral, Bygland and Evje og Hornnes. The lake is located about northwest of the village of Byglandsfjord and the lake Byglandsfjorden By ...

Hovatn Hovatn or Hovatnet is a lake in the municipality of Bygland in Agder county, Norway. It is part of the Otra river drainage basin. The lake is regulated and is used by the nearby Hovatn Hydroelectricity, hydroelectric power plant. The dam has ...

Kvifjorden Kvifjorden is a lake in Agder county, Norway. THe lake straddles the borders of the municipalities of Bygland, Kvinesdal, and Sirdal. The lake was created when a dam was built along the Kvina river. The lake is located about northeast of the vi ...

Longerakvatnet Longerakvatnet or Longeraksvatnet is a lake in the municipality of Bygland in Agder county, Norway. It has a small dam on the southwest side to regulate the water level for hydro-electric power generation at a plant located down the hill. The la ...

, Straumsfjorden, and

Topsæ Topsæ is a lake in the municipality of Bygland in Agder county, Norway. The lake is located east of the lake Hovatn, about northeast of the village of Åraksbø. The ''Topsæfossen'' waterfall is located at the north end of the lake at the ...

. The rivers Otra and

Topdalsfjorden Topdalsfjorden or Tofdalsfjorden is a fjord in the municipality of Kristiansand in Agder county, Norway. The long fjord runs from the village of Ålefjær south to the city centre of Kristiansand. The river Topdalselva empties into the fjord at ...

both run through Bygland on their way south. The

Reiårsfossen Reiårsfossen is a tall waterfall in Setesdal, Norway. The waterfall is located along the Norwegian National Road 9, just south of the village of Ose in the municipality of Bygland in Agder county. The waterfall flows down into a short stream be ...

waterfall is one of many waterfalls in the municipality.

Climate

Byglandsfjord is situated inland in the southernmost of Norway's main valleys and has a humid continental climate (Dfb) or temperate

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...

(Cfb), depending on winter threshold used ( as in USA or as in Europe). The precipitation pattern, with autumn and winter as wettest seasons, is in line with an oceanic climate. The all-time high was recorded in July 1986. The all-time low is from January 1941. The coldest low after 1980 is recorded February 1986. The average date for the last overnight freeze (low below ) in spring is 3 May and average date for first freeze in autumn is 14 October giving a frost-free season of 163 days (1981-2010 average).

History

The Setesdal Line was a narrow gauge steam railway which went between Vennesla and Byglandsfjord in Bygland. It was built in 1896. The Setesdal Line's operation was terminated in 1962 and the track was removed between Byglandsfjord and Beihølen. Other transport up the Setesdal valley was provided by the steamships and Dølen. First placed in operation in 1866, the is still in operation as a tourist attraction on lake Byglandsfjorden during the summers.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Bygland, are responsible for

primary education Primary education or elementary education is typically the first stage of formal education, coming after preschool/kindergarten and before secondary school. Primary education takes place in ''primary schools'', ''elementary schools'', or first ...

(through 10th grade), outpatient

health services Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the preventive healthcare, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, treatment, wiktionary:amelioration, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other disability, physical and menta ...

, senior citizen services, unemployment and other

social services Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administe ...

, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of elected representatives, which in turn elect a mayor. The municipality falls under the

Agder District Court Agder District Court ( no, Agder tingrett) is a district court located in Agder county, Norway. This court is based at three different courthouses which are located in Farsund, Kristiansand, and Arendal. The court serves most of Agder county and ...

and the Agder Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council () of Bygland is made up of 15 representatives that are elected to four year terms. Currently, the party breakdown is as follows:

Attractions

Byglandsfjord Station Byglandsfjord Station was a railway station in the village of Byglandsfjord in Bygland municipality in Agder county, Norway. It was the terminus station for the old Setesdal Line that traveled up the Setesdal valley from Kristiansand - Grovane - B ...

, a former railway station constructed in 1896 * , a wood-fuelled heritage steamboat that travels the route between Byglandsfjord-Bygland and Bygland- Ose on the lake Byglandsfjorden in the summer. * Bygland tower, a folk museum.

Notable people

Even Torkildsen Lande Even Torkildsen Lande (1758 – 9 May 1833) was a Norwegian farmer and blacksmith. He served as a representative at the Norwegian Constitutional Assembly. He was born at Bygland in Vest-Agder, Norway. He was raised on the Åsen farm in the tr ...

(1758 in Bygland – 1833) a Norwegian farmer and blacksmith, served on the

Norwegian Constitutional Assembly The Norwegian Constituent Assembly (in Norwegian ''Grunnlovsforsamlingen'', also known as ''Riksforsamlingen'') is the name given to the 1814 constitutional assembly at Eidsvoll in Norway, that adopted the Norwegian Constitution and formalised th ...

Oscar Castberg Oscar Ambrosius Castberg (30 September 1846 – 18 June 1917) was a Norwegian painter and sculptor. Bkiography He was born at Bygland in Aust-Agder, Norway . His father, physician Tycho Fredrik Edvard Castberg, was the oldest living son of p ...

(1846 in Bygland – 1917) a Norwegian painter and sculptor *

Hallvard Sandnes Hallvard Sandnes (27 March 1893 – 25 July 1968) was a Norwegian schoolteacher and writer. He was born in the village of Sandnes in Aust-Agder, Norway. He studied education at Voss Folk High School (''Voss Folkehøgskule'') and at Kristian ...

(1893 in Sandnes - 1968) a Norwegian schoolteacher and writer *

Olav Bø Olav Bø (19 May 1918 – 26 July 1998) was a Norwegian folklorist. He was born in Bygland. Bø was appointed at the University of Oslo from 1956, as professor from 1974. Among his books are ''Norsk skitradisjon'' from 1966, ''Vår norske ju ...

(1918 in Bygland – 1998) a Norwegian

folklorist Folklore studies, less often known as folkloristics, and occasionally tradition studies or folk life studies in the United Kingdom, is the branch of anthropology devoted to the study of folklore. This term, along with its synonyms, gained currenc ...

* Kjell Kristian Rike (1944 in Byglandsfjord – 2008) a Norwegian sports commentator

References

External links

Municipal fact sheet
from

Statistics Norway Statistics Norway ( no, Statistisk sentralbyrå, abbreviated to ''SSB'') is the Norwegian statistics bureau. It was established in 1876. Relying on a staff of about 1,000, Statistics Norway publish about 1,000 new statistical releases every yea ...

*
Culture in Bygland on the map

The Steamboat Bjoren
{{use dmy dates, date=December 2020 Setesdal Municipalities of Agder 1838 establishments in Norway