Karmøy 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 ...

Rogaland Rogaland () is a Counties of Norway, county in Western Norway, bordering the North Sea to the west and the counties of Vestland to the north, Vestfold og Telemark to the east and Agder to the east and southeast. In 2020, it had a population of 47 ...

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 is southwest of the town of Haugesund in the traditional district of

Haugaland Haugaland or Haugalandet is a traditional district situated on the western coast of Norway. Haugaland is one of the 15 traditional districts located within the Vestlandet region. Geographically, Haugaland is a peninsula between Bømlafjorden in ...

. The

administrative centre An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune is located. In countries with French as administrative language (such as Belgium, Lu ...

of the municipality is the town of

Kopervik Kopervik is the largest town on the island of Karmøy in Rogaland county, Norway. It is also the administrative centre of the municipality of Karmøy. It is part of the traditional district of Haugaland. The town was also an independent municipa ...

. Most of the municipality lies on the island of

Karmøy Karmøy is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is southwest of the town of Haugesund in the traditional district of Haugaland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kopervik. Most of the municipality lies on ...

. The island is connected to the mainland by the Karmøy Tunnel and the

Karmsund Bridge Karmsund Bridge ( no, Karmsund bru) is a bridge over the Karmsundet strait in Rogaland county, Norway. The bridge is located in Karmøy municipality and it links the island of Karmøy to the Norwegian mainland. The steel arched road bridge car ...

. It is known for its industries, as well as for

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

. Karmøy is also well known in Norway for its beautiful heather moors and the white sand surfing beaches. The municipality is the 294th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Karmøy is the 25th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 42,541, making it one of the largest in the region. The municipality's

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 ...

is and its population has increased by 4.9% over the previous 10-year period. The island itself is the 4th most populated island in all of Norway.

General information

The municipality of Karmøy is a recent creation. 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 1965, Karmøy municipality was created upon the merger of two towns and parts of five municipalities into one large municipality with 23,217 residents. The areas that were merged were: *the town of

(population: 1,737) *the town of

Skudeneshavn (also known as Skudeneshamn or simply Skudenes) is a town in Karmøy municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located on the southernmost tip of the island of Karmøy at the entrance to the Boknafjorden and Karmsundet strait. The town is ...

(population: 1,275) *the whole municipality of

Skudenes Skudenes is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It was part of the traditional district of Haugaland. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1965. The administrative centre was the town of Skudeneshavn (whi ...

(population: 3,583) *the whole municipality of Stangaland (population: 2,678) *the whole municipality of

Åkra Åkra is a former municipality in the traditional district of Haugaland in Rogaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1892 until 1965 and it encompassed the central part of the western coast of the island of Karmøy. The administ ...

(population: 6,008) *the part of the municipality of

Avaldsnes Avaldsnes is a village in Karmøy municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The village is located on the northeastern part of the island of Karmøy, along the Karmsundet strait, just south of the town of Haugesund. The village was an ancient ...

located west of the Førresfjorden (population: 4,153) *most of the municipality of

Torvastad Torvastad is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until 1965. The administrative centre was the village of Haugesund (town), Haugesund (from 1838 until 1855 ...

(population: 3,783), except for the island of Vibrandsøy which went to

Haugesund Municipality Haugesund () is a municipality on the North Sea in Rogaland county, Norway. While the population is greater in the neighboring Karmøy municipality, the main commercial and economic centre of the Haugaland region in northern Rogaland and southern ...

Name

The municipality was named after the island of

, on which the majority of the municipality is located. 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 ...

form of the name was ''Kǫrmt''. The name is probably derived from '

bargeboard Bargeboard (probably from Medieval Latin ''bargus'', or ''barcus'', a scaffold, and not from the now obsolete synonym "vergeboard") or rake fascia is a board fastened to each projecting gable of a roof to give it strength and protection, and to ...

' (here in the sense 'sheltering island'). The last element in the word, ''øy'', means '

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 ...

' and was added later.

Coat of arms

The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...

was granted on 18 April 1975. The arms are a silver or white diamond interwoven with a cross on a red background. The diamond symbolizes the name ''Karmøy'' since the island protects the mainland. The cross symbolizes the historic Avaldsnes Church which was a royal chapel in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

Churches

The

Church of Norway The Church of Norway ( nb, Den norske kirke, nn, Den norske kyrkja, se, Norgga girku, sma, Nöörjen gærhkoe) is an evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. The church b ...

has eight parishes () within the municipality of Karmøy. It is part of the

Karmøy prosti This list of churches in Rogaland is a list of the Church of Norway churches in Rogaland county, Norway. The churches are all part of the Diocese of Stavanger. The diocese is based at the Stavanger Cathedral in the city of Stavanger. The list ...

(

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residenc ...

) in the

Diocese of Stavanger The Diocese of Stavanger ( no, Stavanger bispedømme) is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers all of Rogaland county in western Norway. The cathedral city is Stavanger, where the Stavanger Cathedral is located. The bishop is Anne Li ...

History

There are several finds from the

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistoric period during which stone was widely used to make tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years, and ended between 4,000 BC and 2,000 BC, with t ...

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

and

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 ...

. Large burial mounds, stone monuments, and many other ancient monuments are found on the island. Karmøy is the site of the Storhaug, Grønhaug, and Flagghaugen burial mounds. Karmøy was known for sailing in the old times. The

eddic "Edda" (; Old Norse ''Edda'', plural ''Eddur'') is an Old Norse term that has been attributed by modern scholars to the collective of two Medieval Icelandic literary works: what is now known as the ''Prose Edda'' and an older collection of poem ...

poem ''

Grímnismál ''Grímnismál'' (Old Norse: ; 'The Lay of Grímnir') is one of the mythological poems of the ''Poetic Edda''. It is preserved in the Codex Regius manuscript and the AM 748 I 4to fragment. It is spoken through the voice of ''Grímnir'', one of ...

'' says that

Thor Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding æsir, god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred trees and groves in Germanic paganism and mythology, sacred groves ...

, the weather god, wades the

Karmsundet Karmsund is a strait located in Rogaland county, Norway. The long strait separates the Karmøy (island), island of Karmøy on the west and the mainland of Norway and island of Vestre Bokn in the east. The strait runs through the municipalities ...

strait every morning on his way to

Yggdrasil Yggdrasil (from Old Norse ), in Norse cosmology, is an immense and central sacred tree. Around it exists all else, including the Nine Worlds. Yggdrasil is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'' compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional s ...

, the tree of life. The ocean outside Karmøy is dangerous, filled with underwater currents and rocks. Thus the ships were forced into the narrow

. Chieftains and kings controlled the ships passing up and down the coast and demanded taxes. The

strait was also the source of the name of the kingdom, at the time when the first king of the unified Norway,

Harald Fairhair Harald Fairhair no, Harald hårfagre Modern Icelandic: ( – ) was a Norwegian king. According to traditions current in Norway and Iceland in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, he reigned from 872 to 930 and was the first King of Nor ...

, lived on

. (See

History of Norway The history of Norway has been influenced to an extraordinary degree by the terrain and the climate of the region. About 10,000 BC, following the retreat inland of the great ice sheets, the earliest inhabitants migrated north into the territor ...

is located on the northeastern coast of the island. King

Augvald Augvald (Old Norse: ''Ogvaldr'') was a semi-legendary Norwegian petty king portrayed in the legendary Norse sagas. If considered historical, reconstructed estimates based on saga information would have Augvald living some time in the 7th century AD ...

who has given his name to this ancient site is mentioned in the

saga is a series of science fantasy role-playing video games by Square Enix. The series originated on the Game Boy in 1989 as the creation of Akitoshi Kawazu at Square (video game company), Square. It has since continued across multiple platforms, ...

s as having his home here. Later the residence of

and other kings are mentioned. There is also a

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

church, St. Olav's church of Avaldsnes, located on this coast. Visnes, a village in the northwest of Karmøy was once the site of an important

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

mine. This mine was source of the copper used for the

Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; French: ''La Liberté éclairant le monde'') is a List of colossal sculpture in situ, colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor in New York City, in the U ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. In the 18th century, two girls from Uyea in

Shetland Shetland, also called the Shetland Islands and formerly Zetland, is a subarctic archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands and Norway. It is the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the no ...

rowed to Haaf Gruney to milk some of the cows grazing there. Unfortunately, their return was marred by a strong storm, and eventually they found their tiny boat blown to Karmøy. The Uyea girls ended up marrying Karmøy men, and their descendants still live there. The Dyrland family of Karmoy are believed to be the family that the two girls married into after they arrived on Karmøy. Sivert Dyrland was a member of the Norwegian government in the early 20th century.

Geography

The majority of the municipality is located on the large island of

, but it also includes the mainland peninsula between the Karmsundet strait and Førresfjorden, plus the island of

Feøy Feøy is a small island group in Karmøy municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The island group lies west of the town of Haugesund and the island of Karmøy, southeast of the islands of Røvær, and northeast of the island of Utsira. The i ...

and several other small islands. The natural and cultural landscape is highly heterogeneous, encompassing chalk-white sands,

moorland Moorland or moor is a type of habitat found in upland areas in temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands and montane grasslands and shrublands biomes, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils. Moorland, nowadays, generally ...

, and several piers around the island. The landscape in the north is mainly agricultural, while large parts of the inland south are heather moors. The island has many white, sandy beaches facing the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

, attracting surfers as one of the top spots for

windsurfing Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing ga ...

in Norway. Towns and villages are mostly located along the coast. The three towns in Karmøy are all on the island, the administrative center

is on the east side,

Åkrehamn or Åkrahamn (commonly known as simply ''Åkra'') is a small town in Karmøy municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The town is located on the west side of the island of Karmøy in the traditional district of Haugaland. The town sits about ...

is on the west side, while

is on the southern tip. On the mainland part of Karmøy, the village of

Norheim Norheim (in the local speech ''Norem'') is an '' Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verb ...

is contiguous with the neighboring town of

Haugesund Haugesund () is a municipality on the North Sea in Rogaland county, Norway. While the population is greater in the neighboring Karmøy municipality, the main commercial and economic centre of the Haugaland region in northern Rogaland and southern ...

. To the south of Norheim is the village of

Vormedal Vormedal is a village in Karmøy municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The village is located about south of the city of Haugesund in Western Norway. It sits on the mainland along the Karmsundet strait, directly across the strait from the ...

while the village of

Kolnes Kolnes is a village in Karmøy municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The residential village is located on the west side of the Førresfjorden, south of the village of Førre and east of the village of Norheim, Rogaland, Norheim. Kolnes has ex ...

is in the northeastern part of mainland Karmøy. Other villages in Karmøy include

Eike Eike is a given name and surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Eike Batista (born 1956), entrepreneur * Eike Bram (born 1965), handball player * Eike Duarte (born 1997), actor * Eike Duckwitz (born 1980), field hockey pla ...

, Ferkingstad, Sævelandsvik,

Sandve Sandve is a village in Karmøy municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The village is located on the southwestern part of the island of Karmøy, north of the town of Skudeneshavn, and it faces the Atlantic Ocean to the west. The village has ...

Veavågen Veavågen (historically ''Vedavågen'') is an urban village in Karmøy municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located on the western shore of the island of Karmøy, about halfway between the towns of Kopervik and Åkrehamn. The Norwegian ...

, and Visnes. Haugesund Airport is also located on the island rather than in the town of Haugesund proper. The Geitungen Lighthouse lies at the southern end of the municipality, marking the entrance to the

Boknafjorden Boknafjord or Boknafjorden ( en, Bokna Fjord) is a fjord located in Rogaland county, Norway. The huge fjord lies between the cities of Stavanger and Haugesund and dominates the central part of the county. The main part of the fjord is shared bet ...

Climate

Karmøy has an oceanic climate (Cfb), also known as marine west coast climate, with rainy winters and warm or mild summers, and a long frost-free season for the latitude. The all-time high was recorded July 2019, and the all-time low was set in January 2010 (extremes since 2003). The wettest time of year is autumn and winter, while April–July is the driest season. Haugesund Airport is situated in Karmøy municipality and has been recording since 1975.

Districts

The municipality is divided into 79 circuits, grouped into 10 areas: *

: Tjøsvoll, Tjøsvoll øst,

, Årvold, Grindhaug, Mosbron, Stong, Ådland,

Liknes Liknes is the administrative centre of Kvinesdal municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located along the river Kvina, about north of the mouth where it empties into the Fedafjorden. The village of Storekvina lies about to the nor ...

: Kvalavåg, Visnes, Skeie, Velde, Fiskå,

Utvik Utvik is a village in Stryn Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The village is located on the southern shore of the Nordfjorden. The village lies about southwest of the village of Innvik and about north of the village of Byrkjelo (in Gl ...

* Fastlandssiden: Norheimsvågen,

, Norheimsskogen, Spanne, Røyksund,

Fosen Fosen is a traditional district in Trøndelag, consisting of the municipalities Osen, Roan Åfjord, Ørland, Indre Fosen, Orkland, Heim, Hitra and Frøya. The district is dominated by forested valleys, lakes, coastal cliffs but also shallow ar ...

, Mykje, Aksnes,

, Moksheim, Bjøllehaugen, Trevarden,

* Ferkingstad: Stava, Stol/Ferkingstad, Langåker/Kvilhaug, Hemnes/Sandhåland *

Håvik Håvik is a small village in Stad Municipality, in Vestland county, Norway. Håvik has approximately 35 inhabitants. Håvik has a high mountain at one side and the Nordpollen fjord right on the other side of the little village. Neighbouring villa ...

: Østrem, Bygnes, Skår, Sund, Vorå, Kolstø *

: Stokkastrand, Nordstokke,

Stangeland Stangeland is a borough of the city of Sandnes in the west part of the large municipality of Sandnes in Rogaland county, Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory ...

, Liar, Kalvatre, Kopervik sentrum, Nordre side, Østremneset,

Eide Parallel ATA (PATA), originally , also known as IDE, is a standard interface designed for IBM PC-compatible computers. It was first developed by Western Digital and Compaq in 1986 for compatible hard drives and CD or DVD drives. The connection ...

, Brekke * Sevland: Heiå, Mannes, Sevlandsvik, Varne *

: Vikra,

, Syre, Breidablikk, Hålandshøgda, Vågen/Varden,

, Vigevågen,

Vik Vik (Old Norse: vík) means wick or bay in Norwegian and Swedish (''vig'' in Danish), and it may refer to the following: Places Iceland *Vík í Mýrdal, a village in southern Iceland Iran *Vik, Iran, a village in Zanjan Province, Iran Norway *V ...

, Falnes, Hillesland, Hovdastad, Snørteland *

, Hauge,

Håland The Norwegian surnames Haaland and Håland may refer to the following people: Sports Football * Alfie Haaland (born 1972), Norwegian footballer * Atle Roar Håland (born 1977), Norwegian footballer * Benedicte Håland (born 1998), Norwegi ...

, Osnes, Litlasund,

Karmsund Karmsund is a strait located in Rogaland county, Norway. The long strait separates the island of Karmøy on the west and the mainland of Norway and island of Vestre Bokn in the east. The strait runs through the municipalities of Haugesund, ...

, Storesund, Nordbø, Bø * Vedavågen: Sævik, Østhus, Østhusneset, Munkejord, Vea

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Karmøy, are responsible for

primary education Primary education or elementary education is typically the first stage of formal education, coming after preschool/kindergarten and before secondary school. Primary education takes place in ''primary schools'', ''elementary schools'', or first ...

(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 (human activity), w ...

and other

social services Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administe ...

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 o ...

, 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 is 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 counci ...

of elected representatives, which in turn elect 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 a ...

. The municipality falls under the

Haugaland og Sunnhordland District Court Haugaland og Sunnhordland District Court ( no, Haugaland og Sunnhordland tingrett) is a district court located in Vestland and Rogaland counties in Norway. This court is based at two different courthouses which are located in Haugesund and Leir ...

and the

Gulating Court of Appeal The Gulating Court of Appeal ( no, Gulating lagmannsrett) is one of six Court of appeal (Norway), courts of appeal in the Norway, Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Bergen (city), Bergen. The court has jurisdiction over the cou ...

Municipal council

The

() of Karmøyis made up of 17 representatives that are elected to four year terms. Currently, 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 feature f ...

breakdown is as follows:

Area attractions

* Skude Festival (''Skudefestivalen'') is an annual festival held during the first week of July in

. It is the largest gathering of coastal culture in Western Norway with boats of all categories: vintage boats of all categories – old wooden boats, vintage boats, modern boats, sailing boats, tall ships. Craftsmen demonstrate handcrafts from olden days connected to sea and shipping. International and national artists entertain in the evenings. In 2004, Skudeneshavn was voted Norway's summer city by national TV viewers. * Viking Farm (''Vikinggarden'') is part of the Nordvegen History Centre, located close to Avaldsnes. The building and use of the farm is an ongoing experimental archaeological research and interpretation programme. The farm includes reconstructed houses. * Karmøy Museum of Fishing (''Karmøy Fiskerimuseum''), which opened in 1999 in

, presents the history of fishing in the region of Karmøy from the 1950s up to the present day. In addition to the main exhibitions there are salt-water aquariums showing the most common types of fish in the area. The Karmøy Fishery Museum is housed in a new building with unique architecture. * Mælandsgården Museum (''Museet i Mælandsgården'') is situated in the middle of the old, well preserved part of Skudeneshavn. A town model shows what old

looked like in 1918. * Rogaland Fish Museum (''Rogaland Fiskerimuseum''), located in an old

herring Herring are forage fish, mostly belonging to the family of Clupeidae. Herring often move in large schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and North Atlantic Oceans, i ...

salting factory in

, is fully restored to its former glory and housing new exhibitions about the history of this vibrant coastal community. This museum also richly depicts the contact enjoyed between Karmøy and North America. * Visnes Mining Museum (''Visnes Gruvemuseum'') provides the history of the rather special mining community that in the 1800s had 3,000 inhabitants. Visnes supplied the

for the

. * Ferkingstad, an area known for its archaeological finds, from the early Viking period to the late medieval era. Høgspentmaster på Fosen Karmøy

Industry

Norsk Hydro Norsk Hydro ASA (often referred to as just ''Hydro'') is a Norwegian aluminium and renewable energy company, headquartered in Oslo. It is one of the largest aluminium companies worldwide. It has operations in some 50 countries around the world a ...

is a large

aluminium smelter Aluminium smelting is the process of extracting aluminium from its oxide, alumina, generally by the Hall-Héroult process. Alumina is extracted from the ore bauxite by means of the Bayer process at an alumina refinery. This is an electrolyti ...

operator located on the island of Karmøy. The power supply of this facility is done by three overhead power lines, which cross the Karmsundet strait on tall pylons. These pylons are the tallest electricity pylons in Norway. Bauer-Nilsen design and produce

high-pressure In science and engineering the study of high pressure examines its effects on materials and the design and construction of devices, such as a diamond anvil cell, which can create high pressure. By ''high pressure'' is usually meant pressures of th ...

hydraulics Hydraulics (from Greek: Υδραυλική) is a technology and applied science using engineering, chemistry, and other sciences involving the mechanical properties and use of liquids. At a very basic level, hydraulics is the liquid counter ...

located at Karmøy.

International relations

Twin towns – Sister cities

Karmøy has

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...

agreements with the following places: *

Mjölby Mjölby ( or ) is a city and the seat of Mjölby Municipality, Östergötland County, Sweden with 12,245 inhabitants in 2010. Mjölby is located by the rivulet Svartån. The name "Mjölby" is derived from ''Mölloby'', which comes from or ''m� ...

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 ...

Vinderup Vinderup is a railway town in Northwestern Jutland, Holstebro Municipality, Denmark at the railway between Struer and Skive. Vinderup has a population of 3,077 (1 January 2022)

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

Hankasalmi Hankasalmi is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the Central Finland region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The municipality is unilingually Finnish. Han ...

, Finland

Notable residents

* King

(7th century AD), semi-legendary king in Norway * King

Ferking King Ferking was a semi-legendary figure recorded in local church literature. He lived in the 7th century, controlling a realm that included western parts of island of Karmøy, in southern Norway. The name Ferking is probably derived from the nic ...

(7th century AD), semi-legendary king in Norway * King

(c. 850—c. 932), the first king of a united Norway *

Christen Bentsen Schaaning Christen Bentsen Schaaning (''Kristen Bentsen Skaaning'') (c. 1611-1679) was a Norwegian clergyman. He served as parish priest of Avaldsnes Church (''Avaldsnes kirke'') at Karmøy in Rogaland, Norway from 1635–1679. Biography He was probab ...

(ca.1611-1679) clergyman, parish priest of Avaldsnes, 1635–1679 *

Thormodus Torfæus Thormodus Torfæus (Thormodr Torfason, Thormod Torfæus, or Þormóður Torfason) (1636—1719) was an Icelandic historian, born 27 May 1636 at Engey, Iceland and educated at the University of Copenhagen. He lived and worked for most of his life in ...

(1636—1719), Icelandic-born resident of Kopervik, the first Royal Historian of Norway * Endre Johannes Cleven (1874—1916) promoted the settlement and culture of Norwegian immigrants in

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

Asbjørn Sunde Asbjørn Edvin Sunde (12 December 1909 – 23 April 1985) was a Norwegian politician for the Communist Party of Norway, communist partisan during the Spanish Civil War, saboteur against the Nazi occupation of Norway during the Second World W ...

(1909—1985), communist resistance fighter and leader of the

Osvald Group The Osvald Group was a Norwegian organisation that was the most active World War II resistance group in Norway from 1941 to the summer of 1944. Numbering more than 200 members, it committed at least 110 acts of sabotage against Nazi occupying fo ...

* Jan Ivar Pedersen (born 1936) a Norwegian professor of nutrition * Jakob Eng (born 1937) a banker, politician and Mayor of Karmøy in 1980's *

Thorhild Widvey Thorhild Widvey (born 9 January 1956) is a Norwegian politician for the Conservative Party who served as Minister of Culture from 2013 to 2015, and Minister of Petroleum and Energy from 2004 to 2005. Political career Local politics On the local ...

(born 1956) a

physical therapist Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is one of the allied health professions. It is provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through physical examination, diagnosis, management, prognosis, patien ...

, politician and Govt. minister *

Leif Johan Sevland Leif Johan Sevland (born 13 September 1961 in Avaldsnes) is a Norwegian politician for the Conservative Party. He served as a deputy representative to the Norwegian Parliament from Rogaland during the terms 1985–1989 and 1993–1997 ...

(born 1961) politician, Mayor of Stavanger from 1995 to 2011 *

Leif Ove Andsnes Leif Ove Andsnes (; born 7 April 1970) is a Norwegian pianist and chamber musician. Andsnes has made several recordings for Virgin and EMI. In 2012, Leif Ove Andsnes has signed to Sony Classical, and recorded for the label the "Beethoven Journe ...

(born 1970), pianist and chamber musician * Jostein Grindhaug (born 1973), former football player with 135 caps for

FK Haugesund Fotballklubben Haugesund (English: ''Football Club Haugesund''), usually referred to as FK Haugesund or FKH, is a professional Norwegian football club from the city of Haugesund, Rogaland, Norway. The club currently plays in the Norwegian Elites ...

and coach *

Anne Margrethe Hausken Anne Margrethe Hausken Nordberg (born 23 January 1976) is a Norwegian orienteering competitor, World champion and European champion. She took the overall victory in the 2008 World Cup. World championships Hausken finished second in ''sprint'' ...

(born 1976),

orienteering Orienteering is a group of sports that require navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain whilst moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a s ...

world champion, grew up in Karmøy * Bjørn Eriksen, (Norwegian Wiki) (born 1983), videogame commentator («Addexio») on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

References

External links

Municipal fact sheet
from

Statistics Norway Statistics Norway ( no, Statistisk sentralbyrå, abbreviated to ''SSB'') is the Norwegian statistics bureau. It was established in 1876. Relying on a staff of about 1,000, Statistics Norway publish about 1,000 new statistical releases every yea ...

*
Tourist information
– from the municipality

Mælandsgården

Karmøy Kulturopplevelser

{{DEFAULTSORT:Karmoy Municipalities of Rogaland 1965 establishments in Norway