is the administrative centre of the

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 ...

of Bamble, Norway. The town of Langesund was established as a municipality 1 January 1838 (see

formannskapsdistrikt () is the name for Norwegian local self-government districts that were legally enacted on 1 January 1838. This system of municipalities was created in a bill approved by the Parliament of Norway and signed into law by King Carl Johan on 14 January ...

). It was merged with Bamble 1 January 1964. In the early days, Langesund was one of the most important shipping towns in

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 ...

Peter Wessel Tordenskiold Peter Jansen Wessel Tordenskiold (28 October 1690 – 12 November 1720), commonly referred to as Tordenskjold (), was a Norwegian nobleman and flag officer who spent his career in the service of the Royal Dano-Norwegian Navy. He rose to the rank ...

got one of his ships built in Langesund, '' Løvendals Gallej''. It was known as Longsound in English in the 1800s. It is possible to visit the remains of the old Coastal Fortress on Langesundstangen on the extreme end of the Langesund peninsula. The fort was established during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

and later used by the Norwegian Coastal Artillery and Home Guard until 1993. Langesund is one of the most celebrated summer towns in

because of the large number of sunny days. It is also well known for Wrightegaarden, a building that hosts outdoor concerts every weekend the whole summer. Artists like

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

A-ha A-ha (usually stylised as ''a-''h''a''; ) is a Norwegian synth-pop band formed in Oslo in 1982. Founded by Paul Waaktaar-Savoy (guitars and vocals), Magne Furuholmen (keyboards, guitars and vocals), and Morten Harket (lead vocals), the band ...

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

and

Little Richard Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the " ...

have played in Wrightegaarden. Langesund marks the border between

Ytre Oslofjord Ytre Oslofjord (Norwegian literally "Outer Oslo Fjord") is that part of Oslofjord which is south of the threshold of Drøbaksund (literally Drøbak Sound), the strait where the fjord narrows between Drøbak and Hurum, Norway. Ytre Oslofjord stret ...

and Skagerrak.

Landmarks

The best-known landmark in Langesund is ''Langøytangen fyr'', a

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mar ...

placed on the peak of Langøya, a kilometre-long island right outside of Langesund. The island group east of the town are called

Arøya Arøya is a group of isles located in the outer part of the Langesund fjord in Norway. The isles, in detail referred to as Store Arøy, Lille Arøy and Vesle Arøy ('Big', 'Small' and 'Tiny' Arøy), are situated approximately midway between the to ...

. A short walk outside of the town centre, facing the Skagerrak strait, lies the decommissioned military fort known as

Tangen Fortress Tangen is a village in Stange Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. The village is located near the shores of the large lake Mjøsa, about south of the village of Stangebyen. The small village of Espa lies about to the south of Tangen. The ...

Mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change. History On ...

Atle Selberg Atle Selberg (14 June 1917 – 6 August 2007) was a Norwegian mathematician known for his work in analytic number theory and the theory of automorphic forms, and in particular for bringing them into relation with spectral theory. He was awarded t ...

, musician

Vidar Busk Vidar Busk (born 19 May 1970 in Langesund, Norway) is a Norwegian guitarist, vocalist, composer and record producer within genres blues and soul. Store Norske Leksikon (in Norwegian) (in Norwegian) Career Busk grew up in Langesund, but went t ...

, Norwegian-American

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

theologian

Marcus Olaus Bockman Marcus Olaus Bockman (January 9, 1849 – July 21, 1942) was a Norwegian-American Lutheran theologian. Background Marcus Olaus Bockman was born Marcus Olaus Bøckmann at Langesund in Bamble municipality, Telemark county, Norway. He was educated a ...

and Instagram influencer

Jens Kulås Jens may refer to: * Jens (given name), a list of people with the name * Jens (surname), a list of people * Jens, Switzerland, a municipality * 1719 Jens, an asteroid See also * Jensen (disambiguation) * Jenssi Joensuu (; krl, Jovensuu; ) ...

were all born in Langesund.

Cultural contribution

Artists like

and

Stephen Ackels Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...

are originally from Langesund. The concertplace Wrightegaarden is famous for its intimate concerts and is hosting big Norwegian bands like Postgirobygget every year. Langesund is mentioned in the opening lyrics of Postgirobygget's song Sommer på jorda (Summer on Earth).

The name

The meaning of the name is 'the long strait.' Former municipalities of Norway Cities and towns in Norway Port cities and towns in Norway Populated places in Vestfold og Telemark Bamble {{Telemark-geo-stub