Hardanger is a traditional district in the western part of Norway, dominated by the Hardangerfjord and its inner branches of the Sørfjorden and the Eid Fjord. It consists of the municipalities of Ullensvang, Eidfjord, Ulvik and Kvam, and is located inside the county of Vestland. The area is dominated by the vast Hardangervidda plateau in the east and the large Folgefonna glacier on the central Folgefonna peninsula. The district was selected as the

millennium site A millennium site ( no, tusenårssted) is a site selected by a Norwegian municipality or county municipality to mark the transition to the 2000s. In Norway it was decided that the counties and municipalities would choose one millennium site for ...

for the old Hordaland county. In the early Viking Age, before Harald Fairhair, Hardanger was a petty kingdom with its capital at Kinsarvik.

Etymology

The Old Norse form of the name was ''Harðangr''. The first element is derived from the ethnonym '' hǫrðar'', or from ''harðr'' meaning "hard" (referring to wind and weather). The last element is ''angr'' "tight fjord" (the name originally belonged to the fjord, now called Hardangerfjord).

Agriculture

The region is one of Norway's most important sources of fruit and constitutes approximately 40% of the national fruit production, including apple,

plum A plum is a fruit of some species in ''Prunus'' subg. ''Prunus'.'' Dried plums are called prunes. History Plums may have been one of the first fruits domesticated by humans. Three of the most abundantly cultivated species are not found i ...

, pear,

cherry A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The nam ...

and

redcurrant The redcurrant or red currant (''Ribes rubrum'') is a member of the genus ''Ribes'' in the gooseberry family. It is native to western Europe. The species is widely cultivated and has escaped into the wild in many regions. Description ''Ribes r ...

. Apples have been cultivated in Hardanger since the 14th century, the agricultural experience brought by English monks who first arrived at

Lyse Abbey Lyse Abbey or Saint Mary's Abbey, Lyse ( no, Lyse kloster, Lyse Mariakloster) is a now-ruined Cistercian monastery in Bjørnafjorden Municipality in Vestland county in south-western Norway. The name "Lyse" is derived from Lysefjorden near w ...

in 1146. The climate, soil and seasonal conditions of the region are believed to be particularly beneficial to the growth of apples. In 2005, juice produced from Hardanger apples became Norway's third product to be granted protection of origin name, with applications pending for other regional produce. In 2006, an Ulvik farmer and producer of sparkling

cider Cider ( ) is an alcoholic beverage made from the fermented juice of apples. Cider is widely available in the United Kingdom (particularly in the West Country) and the Republic of Ireland. The UK has the world's highest per capita consumption, ...

, Nils Lekve of Hardanger Saft og Siderfabrikk, successfully navigated the narrow and complex directives of Norwegian alcohol laws, and completed a distribution agreement with monopoly alcoholic beverage outlet Vinmonopolet, making ''Hardanger Sider Sprudlande'' available for national sale by July 2006. Lekve's efforts earned him a top 3 finalist nomination for the ''Bygdeutviklingsprisen'' (), awarded by Innovasjon Norge.

Food and crafts

Hardanger embroidery is a type of whitework that takes its name from that region. It is made with geometric designs of kloster (blocks), "ships", diamonds, and other embroidery techniques. It is worked on Hardanger or linen fabric which has a "count" of 22 to 29 threads per inch. Traditionally it is worked on white fabric with white cotton thread but in recent years other colors and threads are popular. Norwegian bunads ( Hardangerbunad, native costumes) from that region often feature this embroidery on the bottom of the white apron. Hardanger also lends its name to the Hardanger fiddle which was originally produced there.

Krotekake ''Krotekake'' is a traditional Norwegian flatbread. It is traditionally associated with the region of Hardanger and is commonly decorated with a cross-hatch pattern. Outside of the region it is often known as ''hardangerkaker''. ''Krotekake'' is ...

is a type of lefse unique to the region.

References

External links

* {{Coord, 60, 20, N, 6, 30, E, display=title Districts of Vestland Petty kingdoms of Norway Millennium sites