Finsland is a former municipality in the old

Vest-Agder Vest-Agder (; "West Agder") was one of 18 counties (''fylker'') in Norway up until 1 January 2020, when it was merged with Aust-Agder to form Agder county. In 2016, there were 182,701 inhabitants, around 3.5% of the total population of Norway. I ...

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 ...

. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The administrative centre was the village of Finsland where Finsland Church is located. The municipality generally encompassed the northern part of the present-day municipality of

Kristiansand Kristiansand is a seaside resort city and municipality in Agder county, Norway. The city is the fifth-largest and the municipality the sixth-largest in Norway, with a population of around 112,000 as of January 2020, following the incorporati ...

in what is now

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.

History

The

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 ...

of Finsland was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the

Schei Committee The Schei Committee ( no, Schei-komitéen) was a committee named by the Government of Norway to look into the organization of municipalities in Norway post-World War II. It convened in 1946, and its formal name was (The 1946 Committee on Municip ...

. On 1 January 1964, Finsland municipality was dissolved and its lands split between two municipalities. The small area of Finsland near Kleveland bru (population: 34) was transferred to the neighboring Marnardal municipality and the rest of Finsland (population: 797) was merged with the municipality of

Greipstad Greipstad is a former municipality in the old Vest-Agder county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1913 until its dissolution in 1964 when it became part of Songdalen municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the vi ...

(population: 2,061) and the Eikeland area of

Øvrebø Øvrebø is a rural district and village in Vennesla municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located about north-northwest of the city of Kristiansand. The village of Skarpengland lies about east of Øvrebø. The district of Øvre ...

(population: 39) to form the new municipality of

Songdalen Songdalen is a former municipality in the old Vest-Agder county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1964 until 2020 when it was merged with Søgne and Kristiansand municipalities to form a new, much larger Kristiansand municipality in what i ...

. Prior to the merger, the population of Finsland was 831.

Name

The municipality (originally the

) was named Finsland, after the old " Finsland" farm which is where the Finsland Church is located. The farm is situated by the river Finnsåna, which flows into the river

Mandalselva Mandalselva or Mandalsåni or Marna (English: Mandal River, non, Mǫrn) is a river in Agder county in Norway. The river has its origins in the mountains between Ose in Setesdal and the Upper Sirdal valley. The river flows south to its mouth at ...

. There are also farms nearby called Finsdal and Finsådal. The first element is the word ''finne'' means "wilderness" or "remote". The second element ''land'' is the same as the word for "land".

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Finsland, are responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services,

senior citizen Old age refers to ages nearing or surpassing the life expectancy of human beings, and is thus the end of the human life cycle. Terms and euphemisms for people at this age include old people, the elderly (worldwide usage), OAPs (British usage ...

services,

unemployment Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the refere ...

and other social services,

zoning Zoning is a method of urban planning in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into areas called zones, each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for a si ...

economic development In the economics study of the public sector, economic and social development is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and ...

, and municipal

road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

s. The municipality was governed by a

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population ...

representatives, which in turn elected a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

Municipal council

The

of Finsland was made up of representatives that were elected to four year terms. The

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often featur ...

breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows:

References

External links

1960 census and map of Finsland
{{use dmy dates, date=November 2020 Songdalen Former municipalities of Norway 1838 establishments in Norway 1964 disestablishments in Norway