Eiken Church ( no, Eiken kirke) is a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

of the Church of Norway in Hægebostad Municipality in

Agder Agder is a county (''fylke'') and traditional region in the southern part of Norway. The county was established on 1 January 2020, when the old Vest-Agder and Aust-Agder counties were merged. Since the early 1900s, the term Sørlandet ("south ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

. It is located along the lake

Lygne Lygne is a lake in the municipality of Hægebostad in Agder county, Norway. The lake is part of the river Lygna Lygna or Lyngdalselva is a river in Agder county, Norway. The river runs from the mountains in northern Hægebostad municipality, ...

in the village of

Eiken Eiken may refer to: Places Norway * Eiken, Norway, a former municipality in the old Vest-Agder county * Eiken, Agder, a village in Hægebostad municipality in Agder county ** Eiken Church, a church in Hægebostad municipality in Agder county Swi ...

. It is the church for the Eiken

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...

which is part of the

Lister og Mandal 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 cit ...

( deanery) 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 ...

. The white, wooden church was built in a

cruciform Cruciform is a term for physical manifestations resembling a common cross or Christian cross. The label can be extended to architectural shapes, biology, art, and design. Cruciform architectural plan Christian churches are commonly describe ...

design in 1817 using plans drawn up by an unknown

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

. The church seats about 300 people.

History

The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1417, but the church was not built that year. It is not known when the church was originally built, but in a church inspection in 1725, the church was described as "old". In 1818, the old church was torn down and replaced with a new cruciform building on the same site as the previous building. Some of the old materials from the previous building were reused in the construction of the new church building. In 1860, the cemetery was expanded to the northwest by adding an additional . Then in 1899-1900, the cemetery was expanded to the south by adding about .

References

{{use dmy dates, date=December 2020 Hægebostad Churches in Agder Wooden churches in Norway 19th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1817 14th-century establishments in Norway Cruciform churches in Norway

History

See also

References