Husnes is the largest village in

Kvinnherad Kvinnherad is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnhordland, along the Hardangerfjorden. The municipality was the 5th in size in former Hordaland county. The administrative centre of the mu ...

municipality in

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,

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 ...

. The village is located on the southern shore of the

Hardangerfjorden The Hardangerfjord ( en, Hardanger Fjord) is the fifth longest fjord in the world, and the second longest fjord in Norway. It is located in Vestland county in the Hardanger region. The fjord stretches from the Atlantic Ocean into the mountain ...

on the Folgefonna peninsula, about south of the village of Herøysund and immediately north of the villages of Sunde and Valen. The lake Onarheimsvatnet lies along the southwestern part of the village between Husnes and Sunde. The village has a population (2019) of 2,189 and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

of . When the neighboring villages of Sunde and Valen are included, the entire urban area includes just under 4,500 people. Husnes is centered on the huge factory owned by ''Hydro'', formerly Sør-Norge Aluminium, and the village has become the center of commerce and education in Kvinnherad municipality, as well as the site of Husnes Church. The government of Kvinnherad has at times proposed that Husnes become the new administrative centre of Kvinnherad which usually sparks debate in the municipality.

Industry and commerce

Husnes is the commercial capital of Kvinnherad municipality, with ''Husnes Storsenter'', the largest shopping center in

Sunnhordland Sunnhordland is a traditional district in the western region of Norway. The district consists of the southern coastal regions of the old Hordaland county (now part of Vestland county). It includes the areas that surround the mouth of the Hardang ...

having opened in 2008 following renovations. In addition, most commercial companies in Kvinnherad, including ''HMR Group'' and ''Hydro Husnes'', have their headquarters in Husnes, along with local newspaper

Kvinnheringen ''Kvinnheringen'' is a Norwegian regional newspaper for the Kvinnherad municipality in Vestland county. In print since 1973, it is currently released bi-weekly with more than 7000 readers and a circulation of 4 400 as of January 2021. Since 2003, t ...

. In 2014, Husnes was given official status as "regional centre" in the new development plan for the Sunnhordland region. This was met with enthusiasm, as this would allow more funding for infrastructure and improvements, which began with the construction of a new main road the following year. This was followed by the construction of several new stores, apartment buildings. In 2019 it was announced that a new elementary school campus would be built within 2025 to meet regional requirements. In 2022, the regional authority announced that Husnes could potentially lose their regional centre status due to failing to meet the new, revised requirements in terms of population and commercial growth, with a final decision expected before 2026.Kvinnheringen, 25.08.22
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Education

Husnes has one elementary school, one junior high school, and one high school, as well as two additional elementary schools in the immediate suburbs. The high school, ''Kvinnherad Vidaregåande Skule'', is the only high school in Kvinnheard municipality, and houses around 400 students each year.

Notable residents

* Asbjørn Slettemark, a journalist, TV-show host and former

Pop Idol ''Pop Idol'' is a British music competition television series created by Simon Fuller which ran on ITV from 2001 to 2003. The aim of the show was to decide the best new young pop singer (or "pop idol") in the UK based on viewer voting and par ...

judge * Per Olav Alvestad, a television presenter and host *Steinar Taarn Sande, a musician

References

{{use dmy dates, date=June 2020 Villages in Vestland Kvinnherad