Langenes is a former municipality in

Nordland Nordland (; , , , ) is one of the three northernmost Counties of Norway, counties in Norway in the Northern Norway region, bordering Troms in the north, Trøndelag in the south, Norrbotten County in Sweden to the east, Västerbotten County to t ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. The municipality, which existed from 1919 until 1964, encompassed the western shore of the

Gavlfjorden Gavlfjorden is a fjord (more accurately, a sound) in Nordland county, Norway. The long fjord separates the large islands of Langøya and Andøya in the Vesterålen archipelago and it runs along the border of three municipalities: Øksnes, Andø ...

in what is now

Øksnes Municipality Øksnes is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is located on the northwestern part of the large island of Langøya, which is a part of the Districts of Norway, traditional region of ...

. It is located on the northern end of the large island of

Langøya Langøya is the third largest island of Norway (outside of Svalbard), with an area of . The island is a part of the Vesterålen archipelago in Nordland county, Norway. The island includes Bø Municipality and Øksnes Municipality as well as pa ...

in the

Vesterålen Vesterålen ( , ; ) is a district and archipelago in Nordland county, Norway. It is located just north of Lofoten and west of Harstad. It is the northernmost part of Nordland county. Sortland is the largest town, situated near the center of the a ...

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands. An archipelago may be in an ocean, a sea, or a smaller body of water. Example archipelagos include the Aegean Islands (the o ...

. The

administrative centre An administrative centre 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 the administrative language, such as Belgi ...

was in the village of

Stø Stø is a fishing village in Øksnes Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located on the northern tip of the island of Langøya, along the Gavlfjorden in the Vesterålen archipelago. In 2001, there were about 175 residents. This village ...

, just east of the Langenes Church in the northern part of the municipality.

General information

The municipality of Langenes was established on 1 July 1919 when the northeastern part of

was split off from Øksnes to form the new municipality. Initially, Langenes had a population of 1,085. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the

Schei Committee The Schei Committee () was a committee named by the Government of Norway to look into the organization of municipalities in Norway post-World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a ...

. On 1 January 1963, the Holm area along the

(population: 65) was transferred from Langenes Municipality to

Sortland Municipality or is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Districts of Norway, traditional region of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Sortland (town ...

. On 1 January 1964, the rest of Langenes (population: 2,037) was merged back together with Øksnes Municipality. Prior to the merger, Langenes had 2,037 residents.

Name

The municipality is named after the old ''Langenes'' farm () since the first Langenes Church was built there. The first element is which means "long", here referring to the island,

on which the municipality was located. The island's name, , is directly translated as "the long island". The last element is which means "

headland A headland, also known as a head, is a coastal landform, a point of land usually high and often with a sheer drop, that extends into a body of water. It is a type of promontory. A headland of considerable size often is called a cape.Whittow, Jo ...

". The municipality was located on the northernmost peninsula on the island thus the name Langenes means the "headland on Langøya".

Churches

The

Church of Norway The Church of Norway (, , , ) is an Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. Christianity became the state religion of Norway around 1020, and was established a ...

had one parish () within Langenes Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the

Øksnes Øksnes may refer to: Places *Øksnes Municipality, a municipality in Nordland county, Norway *Øksnes Church, a church in Øksnes Municipality in Nordland county, Norway *Øksnes, Trøndelag, a village in Steinkjer Municipality in Trøndelag count ...

prestegjeld A ''prestegjeld'' was a geographic and administrative area within the Church of Norway (''Den Norske Kirke'') roughly equivalent to a parish. This traditional designation was in use for centuries to divide the kingdom into ecclesiastical areas tha ...

and the

Vesterålen prosti Vesterålen ( , ; ) is a district and archipelago in Nordland county, Norway. It is located just north of Lofoten and west of Harstad. It is the northernmost part of Nordland county. Sortland is the largest town, situated near the center of the a ...

(

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the 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 residence of ...

) in the

Diocese of Sør-Hålogaland Sør-Hålogaland is a diocese in the Church of Norway. The Diocese covers the Lutheran Church of Norway churches located within Nordland county in Norway. The diocese is headquartered in the Bodø (town), town of Bodø at Bodø Cathedral, the sea ...

Geography

Langenes Municipality was located on the island of

, along with many other smaller islets and skerries just off shore.

was located to the west,

was located to the south, and

Bjørnskinn Municipality Bjørnskinn is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1924 until its dissolution in 1964. The municipality was centered around the Risøysundet strait. It encom ...

was located to the east, across the

, on the island of

Andøya , , or is the northernmost island in the Vesterålen archipelago, situated about inside the Arctic Circle. Andøya is located in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The main population centres on the island include the villages of ...

. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain

Snøkolla Snøkolla is the highest mountain on the island of Langøya (the third largest island on the mainland of Norway). The mountain is located in Øksnes Municipality in Nordland Nordland (; , , , ) is one of the three northernmost Counties of N ...

, located on the border with

. Near Langenes church 20060731 1712.jpg, Area near Langenes Church Stø overview.jpg, Harbour at

Alsvåg.jpg, View of the village of

Alsvåg Alsvåg is a village in Øksnes Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located on the western bank of the Gavlfjorden on the island of Langøya and about east of the municipal centre of Myre. Alsvåg Church is located in this village. ...

Government

While it existed, Langenes Municipality was responsible for

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

(through 10th grade), outpatient

health services Health care, or healthcare, is the improvement or maintenance of health via the preventive healthcare, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, treatment, wikt:amelioration, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other disability, physic ...

senior citizen Old age is the range of ages for people nearing and surpassing life expectancy. People who are of old age are also referred to as: old people, elderly, elders, senior citizens, seniors or older adults. Old age is not a definite biological sta ...

services,

welfare Welfare may refer to: Philosophy *Well-being (happiness, prosperity, or flourishing) of a person or group * Utility in utilitarianism * Value in value theory Economics * Utility, a general term for individual well-being in economics and decision ...

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. Also available amachine-converted HTML They may be provided by individuals, private and i ...

zoning In urban planning, zoning is a method in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into land-use "zones", each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for ...

economic development In economics, economic development (or 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 object ...

, and municipal

road A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. Th ...

s and utilities. 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, borough cou ...

of directly elected representatives. The

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, 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 responsibilitie ...

indirectly elected An indirect election or ''hierarchical voting,'' is an election in which voters do not choose directly among candidates or parties for an office ( direct voting system), but elect people who in turn choose candidates or parties. It is one of the o ...

by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the

Hålogaland Court of Appeal The Hålogaland Court of Appeal () is one of six courts of appeal in the Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Tromsø. The court has jurisdiction over the counties of Nordland, Troms, and Finnmark as well as the island territor ...

Mayors

The

() of Langenes was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who have held this position: *1919-1919: S. Skog *1920-1922: Lars Olson Standahl *1923-1925: Lorents Bendik Olsen Sæther *1925-1928: S. Skog *1928-1934: Lorents Bendik Olsen Sæther *1935-1943: L.H. Nielsen ( H) *1943-1945: Olav Meløy *1945-1945: Kristian Holm *1946-1955: Julius Kristian Pettersen Meløy ( KrF) *1955-1963: Otto Holm ( Ap)

Municipal council

The

of Langenes was made up of representatives that were elected to four year terms. The

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a Hospitality, 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 oft ...

breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows:

References

{{Authority control Øksnes Former municipalities of Norway 1919 establishments in Norway 1964 disestablishments in Norway Populated places established in 1919 Populated places disestablished in 1964