Hol is a

municipality 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 ...

Viken Viken may refer to: *Viken, Scandinavia, a historical region *Viken (county), a Norwegian county established in 2020 *Viken, Sweden, a bimunicipal locality in Skåne County, Sweden *Viken (lake), a lake in Sweden, part of the part of the Göta cana ...

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

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 ...

Administrative history

The area of Hol was separated from the municipality Ål in 1877 to become a separate municipality. In 1937 a part of neighboring

Uvdal Uvdal is a village and former municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. It is situated in the traditional region of Numedal and is the location of the Uvdal Stave Church. The municipality was created by a split from Nore on 1 January 1901. The n ...

with 220 inhabitants moved to Hol municipality. The area was transferred from Uvdal to Hol in 1944. Uvdal was reunited with Nore to form the new municipality of

Nore og Uvdal Nore og Uvdal is a municipality in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Numedal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rødberg. The area of ''Nore'' was separated from the municipality of R ...

General information

''Name''

The municipality (originally 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 ...

) is named after the old ''Hol'' farm (

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 ...

: ), since the first church was built here. The name is identical with the word , which means 'round (and isolated) hill'.

''Villages and hamlets in Hol municipality''

* Dagali *

Geilo is a centre in the municipality of Hol in Viken county, Norway. Geilo is primarily a ski resort town, with around 2,500 inhabitants. It is situated in the valley of Hallingdal, 250 km from Oslo and 260 km from Bergen. The Bergen Line ...

Hagafoss Hagafoss is a small village in Hol municipality in Buskerud, Norway. Hagafoss is located in upper Hallingdal where the road branches off towards Aurland along Norwegian county road A Norwegian county road ( nb, Fylkesvei or nn, Fylkesveg) is a ...

* Hol (village) *

Hovet Hovet (formerly known as Johanneshovs Isstadion or, in English: Johanneshov Stadium) is an arena located in the Johanneshov district of Stockholm ( Stockholm Globe City) which is mainly used for ice hockey, concerts and corporate events. It was ...

* Kvisla * Myrland * Strønde * Sudndalen * Vedalen

''Geography''

Hol is bordered to the north by

Lærdal Lærdal is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located on the south side of the Sognefjorden in the traditional district of Sogn. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Lærdalsøyri. The old Filefjell Kon ...

, to the north and east by Ål, to the south by

, and to the west by

Eidfjord Eidfjord is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The municipality is located in the traditional district of Hardanger. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Eidfjord, where the majority of the municipal popula ...

Ulvik Ulvik is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The municipality stretches from the Hardangerfjord to the mountains that reach above sea level. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Ulvik. The villages of Osa and ...

and

Aurland Aurland () is a municipality in the county of Vestland, Norway. It is located on the south side of the Sognefjorden in the traditional district of Sogn. The administrative center is the village of Aurlandsvangen. Other villages include Bakka ...

. Hol is a mountainous area, where over 90% of the area is at an altitude exceeding 900 meters above sea level. The

Hallingskarvet Hallingskarvet is a mountain range in southern Norway stretching from Geilo to Finse in Vestland and Viken counties. The highest point is the tall mountain Folarskardnuten in Hol Municipality in Viken county. In the north, there is a large damm ...

mountain range is the highest point in the municipality, at 1933 meters above sea level. The Usta or Usteåne River flows northeast from Lake

Ustevatn Ustevatn is a lake in the municipality of Hol in Viken (county), Viken county, Norway. The main inflow is on the west side of the lake provided by Ustekveikja, which originates from the area around Finse in Hordaland. Norwegian National Road 7 ru ...

traveling down the Ustedalen valley. The

Hallingdalselva Hallingdalselva ( en, Hallingdal River) is a river which flows through the valley and traditional district of Hallingdal in Buskerud County, Norway. Within the valley, the river is often referred to as the Great River (''Storåne''). Hallingdal ...

River is formed by the confluence of the Usta River and the Holselva River from Lake

Strandavatnet Strandavatnet is a lake in Hol municipality, Norway. The lake covers an area of , and lies above sea level.' The lake is a reservoir for the Rud hydroelectric powerstation in Hovet, Buskerud. In 1952/1953 a dam was constructed which lifted the lak ...

''Lakes''

– in the municipality of Hol * Nygardsvatnet – in the municipality of Hol *

– in the municipality of Hol * Ørteren – in the municipality of Hol *

Nyhellervatnet Nyhellervatnet is a lake on the border of the municipalities of Hol (in Viken county) and Aurland (in Vestland county), Norway. The lake sits at an elevation of above sea level. The lake is located about southeast of the village of Aurlandsv ...

– on the border between Hol and

Vestland Vestland is a county in Norway established on 1 January 2020. The county is located in Western Norway and it is centred around the city of Bergen, Norway's second largest city. The administrative centre of the county is the city of Bergen, where t ...

county *

Pålsbufjorden Pålsbufjorden is a lake in the municipalities of Hol and Nore og Uvdal, both in Buskerud County, Norway. The water table lies 749 meters above sea level. The area of the lake is . The Pålsbu kraftverk hydro-electric plant was built to extract ...

– in the municipalities of Hol and Nore og Uvdal * Øvre Hein – in the municipalities of Hol and Nore og Uvdal * Djupsvatnet – in the municipalities of Hol and Ål * Flakavatnet – in the municipalities of Hol and Ulvik,

Hordaland Hordaland () was a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark, and Rogaland counties. Hordaland was the third largest county, after Akershus and Oslo, by population. The county government was the Hordaland County Munici ...

county

''Coat-of-arms''

The

coat-of-arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its w ...

of Hol is from modern times; the arms were granted on 5 July 1991. They show three silver anvils on a blue background and were designed by Trond Andersson. The three anvils are stacked one above the other, with the top one being largest and the bottom one smallest. The anvil was chosen to symbolize the former smithies in the municipality, which were famous for the production of

axe An axe ( sometimes ax in American English; see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, to harvest timber, as a weapon, and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. The axe has ma ...

blade A blade is the portion of a tool, weapon, or machine with an edge that is designed to puncture, chop, slice or scrape surfaces or materials. Blades are typically made from materials that are harder than those they are to be used on. Histor ...

s, and

knives A knife ( : knives; from Old Norse 'knife, dirk') is a tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade, usually attached to a handle or hilt. One of the earliest tools used by humanity, knives appeared at least 2.5 million years ago, as evidenced ...

Iron Iron () is a chemical element with Symbol (chemistry), symbol Fe (from la, Wikt:ferrum, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 element, group 8 of the periodic table. It is, Abundanc ...

mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic ...

was already practiced in the area in the

Viking Age The Viking Age () was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonizing, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. It followed the Migration Period and the Germ ...

. (See also coat-of-arms of

Trøgstad Trøgstad is a municipality in Østfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Skjønhaug. The municipality is divided into the parishes of Skjønhaug, Havnås and Båstad. The parish of ''Trygstad'' was ...

)

Hol Old Church

Hol Old Church () is presumed to date from the 13th century, but the exact dating is unknown. The church is the oldest parish in Hol and is first mentioned in a letter from 1328 as a small

stave church A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church building once common in north-western Europe. The name derives from the building's structure of post and lintel construction, a type of timber framing where the load-bearing ore-pine posts ar ...

with covered side porches (). The church has been expanded several times, in the 16th century, in 1697 and in 1798–99. It was rebuilt in 1888 and 1938. It is believed that the floor of the church was made using columns from the old stave church. The pulpit and baptismal font are from the Renaissance period (1697) and the altarpiece from 1703. The pulpit is placed above the altar.

Notable residents

* Knut Henriksen Dybsjord (1809–1866), mayor and temperance movement activist *

Pål Olson Grøt Pål Olson Grøt (1813–1906) was a Norwegian rosemaling painter who belonged to the most important group of rosemaling painters in Hol. He was born in Hol in 1813 and lived until he moved to the village of Hovet, Buskerud, in 1852. He died there ...

(1813–1906), Rosemåling painter *

Olav Sletto Olav Sletto (21 June 1886 – 24 October 1963 ) was a Norwegian novelist and educator. He was born in Hol, and was the father of Eva Sletto. He made his literary debut in 1908, with the story ''Dei gamle''. Among his historical novels is the t ...

(1886–1963), novelist and educator * Knut Bry (born 1946 in Hovet), fine-art photographer and film director *

Terje Isungset Terje Isungset (born May 4, 1964) is a Norwegian drummer. From his background in jazz and traditional Scandinavian music, he has designed musical instruments from non-traditional materials, including ice. Career Isungset was raised in Geil ...

(born 1964), musician, percussionist and composer

Sport

Margit Hvammen Margit Hvammen (26 September 1932 – 10 May 2010) was a Norwegian alpine skier. Career Hvammen competed at the 1952 Winter Olympics in Oslo, where she placed 7th in the downhill, 18th in giant slalom, and 18th in slalom. She represented the club ...

(1932 in Geilo – 2010) alpine skier * Aud Hvammen (born 1943 in Geilo), alpine skier *

Anne Brusletto Anne Brusletto (born 24 January 1951) is a Norwegian alpine skier. She was born in Geilo. She participated at the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is th ...

(born 1951 in Geilo), alpine skier * Martin Hole (born 1959), former cross country runner *

Ådne Søndrål Ådne Søndrål (born 10 May 1971) is a former Norwegian speed skater. Søndrål, representing Hol IL, was one of the best 1500 m skaters through most of the 1990s. He placed 2nd in the 1992 Winter Olympics and 4th in the 1994 Olympics. H ...

(born 1971), former speed skater and gold medallist at the

1998 Winter Olympics The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially known as the and commonly known as Nagano 1998 ( ja, 長野1998), was a winter multi-sport event held from 7 to 22 February 1998, mainly in Nagano, Japan, with some events taking place in the ...

Håvard Bøkko Håvard Bøkko (; born 2 February 1987) is a Norwegian former speed skater, and the premier skater from his country since 2008, with 32 national championships and thirteen international medals. He had junior results similar to those of Sven Krame ...

(born 1987 in Hovet), speed skater * Roger S. Kleivdal (born 1988), snowboarder *

Christoffer Fagerli Rukke Christoffer Fagerli Rukke (; born 17 April 1988) is a Norwegian speed skating, speed-skater who competes for the club Hol IL. He represented Norway at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Before the 2012–13 season, Rukke has started 78 indiv ...

(born 1988), speed skater * Hege Bøkko (born 1991 in Hovet), speed skater *

Vetle Sjåstad Christiansen Vetle Sjåstad Christiansen (born 12 May 1992) is a Norwegian biathlete. Early life Christiansen was born in Geilo, a centre in the municipality of Hol, to Randi Sjåstad and her husband Georg William Christiansen. His younger sister, Tiril Sjå ...

(born 1992 in Geilo), biathlete *

Tiril Sjåstad Christiansen Tiril Sjåstad Christiansen (born 7 April 1995) is a Norwegian freestyle skier. She hails from Geilo and represents Geilo IL. She won her first Winter X Games medal in the Women's Slopestyle at the Winter X Games XVII in Aspen, Colorado. She won ...

(born 1995 in Geilo), freestyle skier

Gallery

File:2001 07 04 Aurlandsdalen Geiteryggvannet.jpg, Lake Geiteryggen File:Farm in Hol.jpg, Traditionally built farm in Hol File:Flakavatn, S. Norway Oct 19, 2005.jpg, Lake Flakavatn File:Geilo i mai.jpg, Geilo File:2001 07 03 06AurlandsdalenGeiteryggen.jpg, Geiteryggen File:Skurdalen kirke.jpg, Skurdalen Church (''Skurdalskyrkja'') File:2001 07 04 Over Rossdøla under Bolhovd.jpg, Rossdøla River

Attractions

Hallingskarvet National Park Hallingskarvet National Park ( no, Hallingskarvet nasjonalpark) is a national park in central Norway that was established by the government on 22 December 2006. The park is located in the municipalities of Hol (Viken county), Ulvik and Aurland ...

– national park in the municipalities of Hol (Buskerud), Ulvik (Hordaland) and Aurland (Sogn og Fjordane) *

Hol Bygdemuseum Hol Bygdamuseum is an open-air museum located at the village of Hagafoss in Hol in Viken (county), Viken county, Norway. Hol Bygdamuseum is a subsidiary of Hallingdal Museum, the regional folk museum for Buskerud. The museum is located in the trad ...

– located along the road from Ål to

in the small village of

. The museum is built as an old farm () with buildings of the local type. There are a total of 17 buildings, of which two, and , have decorative wall paintings on the walls. * Dagali Museum – museum with ten buildings located in the middle of Dagali, on the edge of

Hardangervidda Hardangervidda ( en, Hardanger Plateau) is a mountain plateau (Norwegian: ''vidde'') in central southern Norway, covering parts of Vestland, Vestfold og Telemark, and Viken counties. It is the largest plateau of its kind in Europe, with a cold ye ...

. The buildings came from Dagali, Skurdalen, Tunhovd, and

; the oldest dates to the 18th century. * Dagali Skisenter –

alpine resort A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area – a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In North ...

in Dagali, also offering sled-racing, with one of Norway's longest sled-racing hills. * Dr Holms Hotel – resort hotel in the ski resort town of Geilo

Sister cities

The following cities are twinned with Hol: * –

Halinga Parish Halinga was a municipality located in Pärnu County, one of the 15 counties of Estonia. Settlements ;Borough: Pärnu-Jaagupi ;Villages: Aasa, Altküla, Anelema, Arase, Eametsa, Eense, Eerma, Enge, Ertsma, Halinga, Helenurme, Kablim ...

, Pärnu County,

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

* –

Mäntyharju Mäntyharju (, literally 'Pine Ridge') is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the Southern Savonia region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The coastline is almost . The population density ...

, Itä-Suomi,

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

* – Säffle,

Värmland County Värmland County (''Värmlands län'') is a county or '' län'' in west central Sweden. It borders the Swedish counties of Dalarna, Örebro and Västra Götaland, as well as the Norwegian counties of Viken and Innlandet to the west. Prince C ...

, Sweden

External links

Municipal fact sheet
from Statistics Norway *
Dagali Opplevelser
– offering a great deal of activities in and around Dagali
Dagali Skisenter
– The alpine resort in Dagali
Map hiking and DNT cabins

References

{{Authority control Hallingdal Municipalities of Buskerud Municipalities of Viken (county)