Heimdal is a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

in the city of Trondheim in the municipality of

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

Trøndelag Trøndelag (; sma, Trööndelage) is a county in the central part of Norway. It was created in 1687, then named Trondhjem County ( no, Trondhjems Amt); in 1804 the county was split into Nord-Trøndelag and Sør-Trøndelag by the King of Denmar ...

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 t ...

. It covers the western and southwestern parts of the municipality. The village area that is also called Heimdal is located in the southeastern part of the borough, near

Heimdal Church Heimdal Church ( no, Heimdal kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Trondheim municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located in the village of Heimdal, about south of Kolstad Church. It is the church for the Heimdal pari ...

. This area around the Heimdal Rail Station was until 1964 the center of two separate local

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

Tiller A tiller or till is a lever used to steer a vehicle. The mechanism is primarily used in watercraft, where it is attached to an outboard motor, rudder post or stock to provide leverage in the form of torque for the helmsman to turn the rudder. ...

and

Leinstrand Leinstrand is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in the old Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The municipality of Leinstrand encompassed the south-central ...

. The western part of Heimdal borough consists of the rural areas of

Byneset Byneset is a former municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The municipality of Byneset encompassed the western part of what is now Trondheim municipality in Trøndelag ...

, also a separate municipality until 1964. Tillerbyen, the eastern part of Heimdal, is a recent development, planned to ease the pressure on central Trondheim from the commercial boom in the city.

History

This area south of Trondheim was named after the

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

god Heimdall from

Norse mythology Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Nordic folklore of the modern period ...

. The area has been continuously inhabited since at least the

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

, and is rich in

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology an ...

s. The area where Tillerbyen has been built was initially

swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

, but it was drained in the 1930s as an

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

was planned here. Nazi invaders of 1940 halted these plans, as they rather wanted an airport at

Lade Lade may refer to: People * Brendon Lade (born 1976), an Australian rules footballer * Sir John Lade (1759–1838), a baronet and Regency horse-breeder * Heinrich Eduard von Lade (1817–1904), a German banker and amateur astronomer * The Jarls o ...

. In 1963 the municipality of Trondheim bought the areas, and in 1966 they verified a development plan for a new tertiary and commercial hub that could lighten the development pressure on the crowded downtown areas. These plans met much resistance; many politicians thought the development would be too hard to complete, as the

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former te ...

was too wet and unstable to support large-scale development. Ever since the first developments, the areas of Tillerbyen and Sjetnemarka have been one of the most booming parts of the city and still, large development projects are launched to meet the growing population pressure.

Today

Heimdal proper is a traditional commercial and transportation center; the railway has connections to

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

( Nabotåget, literally meaning ''the neighbour train''), to

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

and the south of Norway via the Dovre Line as well as to the north. Many bus lines also connect here. In addition to the large residential areas, Heimdal houses many of the city's leading enterprises and services.

City Syd City Syd is one of the largest shopping centres in Norway, and the largest in Midt-Norge, with a turnover of NOK 1.7 billion in 2004. It is located in Tiller, in the Heimdal area of Trondheim. City Syd opened in 1987 and was remodeled and expand ...

was at the time of its construction the largest

shopping mall A shopping mall (or simply mall) is a North American term for a large indoor shopping center, usually anchored by department stores. The term "mall" originally meant a pedestrian promenade with shops along it (that is, the term was used to refe ...

in the country and is still one of the most profitable shopping malls in Northern Europe, as it receives customers not only from the city, but from the surrounding countryside and neighbouring counties as well. Heimdal Stadion is a large sports complex with soccer and handball fields adjacent to the Breidablikk School. Heimdal is today a city within a city. The central areas of Tillerbyen resemble a typical western downtown area with high commercial structures, as opposed to the traditional downtown areas of Trondheim, which are dominated by old, two-storey buildings.

References

External links

Map of the boroughs of Trondheim
{{authority control Geography of Trondheim no:Heimdal (tettsted)

History

Today

See also

References

External links