Halse og Harkmark 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 of the municipality was the village of Halse, which at that time was a suburb of the town of Mandal. It was located in the southern part of the municipality of Mandal. The municipality of Halse og Harkmark encompassed the rural areas that surrounded the town of Mandal, including many

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

s such as Hille,

Skjernøy Skjernøy is an island in Lindesnes municipality in Agder county, Norway. The island is the southernmost inhabited island in Norway. The island sits about southeast of the town of Mandal, about west of the island of Skogsøy, and about nor ...

, and

Pysen Pysen is a small skerry in Lindesnes municipality in Agder county, Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and no ...

(Norway's southernmost point). It is now located within

Lindesnes Municipality Lindesnes ( en, the Naze) is a municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sørlandet. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Mandal. Other villages in Lindesnes include Åvik, Hølle ...

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

''Mandals landdistrikt'' was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). It encompassed all the rural areas surrounding the town of Mandal. In 1865, the name was changed to ''Halse og Harkmark'' since those were the names of the two parishes surrounding Mandal. On 1 July 1921, a part of Halse og Harkmark (population: 221) was transferred to the town of Mandal. 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, Halse og Harkmark (population: 3676) was merged with the town of Mandal and most of the neighboring municipality of

Holum Holum is a former municipality that was located in the old Vest-Agder county in Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The administrative centre was the village of Krossen where Holum Church is located. ...

(population: 1,127) to form a new Mandal municipality.

Name

Halse og Harkmark (literally: ''Halse and Harkmark'') is a combination of the names of two parishes surrounding the town of Mandal. The name Halse is the name of the site where

Mandal Church Mandal Church ( no, Mandal kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Lindesnes Municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the town of Mandal. It is one of the two churches for the Mandal parish which is part of the Lister ...

is located. The name comes from the

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlemen ...

name ''Halshaugar'', where ''hals'' means a low area of land between two waters and ''haugr'' meaning hill or mound. The name Harkmark may be derived from an old river name.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Halse og Harkmark, 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 Halse og Harkmark 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

{{use dmy dates, date=November 2020 Lindesnes Former municipalities of Norway 1838 establishments in Norway 1964 disestablishments in Norway