Notodden () is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

and

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 ...

Vestfold og Telemark Vestfold og Telemark (; ) is a county under disestablishment in Norway. The county is the southernmost one of Eastern Norway and consists of two distinct and separate traditional regions: the former counties of Telemark and (most of) Vestfold ...

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

, Norway. It is part of the

traditional region Historical regions (or historical areas) are geographical regions which at some point in time had a cultural, ethnic, linguistic or political basis, regardless of latterday borders. They are used as delimitations for studying and analysing social ...

Øst-Telemark Aust-Telemark is a traditional district in the county of Vestfold og Telemark in Norway. It comprises three municipalities: Hjartdal, Notodden and Tinn. The largest population centres in the region are the cities Notodden and Rjukan, of which Noto ...

. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Notodden. Notodden was separated from the municipality of

Heddal Heddal is a village and parish in Notodden municipality in Telemark County, Norway. History The parish of ''Hitterdal'' was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). Notodden was separated from Heddal both as a ...

in 1913 to become a separate city and municipality. On 1 January 1964, the rural municipalities of Heddal and

Gransherad Gransherad is a former municipality in Telemark county, Norway, located north-west of the city Notodden. ''Grandsherred'' was created in 1859 by the merger of the parishes Hovin in Tinn and Gransherad in Hjartdal. On January 1, 1886 Hovin was se ...

were merged into Notodden to form a new enlarged municipality. Notodden is on the shore of

Heddalsvatnet Heddalsvatnet ( en, Lake Heddal) is a lake in the municipalities Notodden and Sauherad in Vestfold og Telemark, Norway. The main influx comes from the rivers Tinnelva and Heddøla. The lake covers an area of 11.9 km2 or 13.2 km2 according to NVE. ...

lake, and the Tinn River runs through the town into the lake. Norway's biggest

stave church A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church building once common in north-western Europe. The name derives from the building's structure of post and lintel construction, a type of timber framing where the load-bearing ore-pine posts ar ...

Heddal Stave Church Heddal Stave Church ( nb, Heddal stavkirke, nn, Heddal stavkyrkje) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Notodden Municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the village of Heddal. It is the church for the Hedd ...

, can be seen a few kilometres from the city centre. Notodden Airport, Tuven, is located west of the city centre.

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 ...

was founded in this town. Notodden is well known for the annual

Notodden Blues Festival Notodden Blues Festival (NBF) is one of the largest blues music festivals in Europe and the largest in Scandinavia. The festival is held in Notodden, Norway, usually in early August. It has been running annually since 1988. The festival does no ...

, which is considered one of the best blues festivals in Europe. It also has a well-known metal festival called ''Motstøy Festivalen''. The football club

Notodden FK Notodden Fotballklubb is a Norwegian football club located in Notodden. The team currently plays in 2. divisjon, the third tier of the Norwegian football league system. It was founded in 1999 as a merger between the football departments of SK ...

is headquartered here.

Name

Rjukan-Notodden_Industrial_Heritage_Site

The name "Notodden" comes from the cotter's place (''husmannsplass'') Notodden that belonged to the farm Tinne gård—near the mouth of the river Tinnelva close to the lake

. The first element of the name is ''not'' which means "to fish using a seine" and the last element is the definite form of ''odde'' meaning " headland". Thus the general meaning of the name is "the fishing place".

Coat-of-arms

The

coat-of-arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its w ...

is from modern times. They were granted on 11 August 1939. The arms show a silver-colored river and four

lightning Lightning is a naturally occurring electrostatic discharge during which two electrically charged regions, both in the atmosphere or with one on the ground, temporarily neutralize themselves, causing the instantaneous release of an avera ...

strikes. One of the first

hydroelectric power Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...

stations in Norway was established in the late 19th century at the Tinnfoss

waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in severa ...

on the Tinn River.

Twin towns

In 2008, Notodden city council decided to end the twin city agreements with Ilisalmi, Nyköping and Stelle. At the same time Suwałki was approved as a new twin city. The following cities are twinned with Notodden: * Clarksdale, Mississippi, United States *

Suwałki Suwałki ( lt, Suvalkai; yi, סואוואַלק) is a city in northeastern Poland with a population of 69,206 (2021). It is the capital of Suwałki County and one of the most important centers of commerce in the Podlaskie Voivodeship. Suwałki ...

, Podlaskie Voivodeship, Poland Former twin cities of Notodden: *

Iisalmi Iisalmi (; sv, Idensalmi) is a town and municipality in the region of Northern Savonia in Finland. It is located north of Kuopio and south of Kajaani. The municipality has a population of (), which makes it the second largest of the five towns ...

Eastern Finland Eastern Finland ( fi, Itä-Suomen lääni, sv, Östra Finlands län) was a province of Finland from 1997 to 2009. It bordered the provinces of Oulu, Western Finland and Southern Finland. It also bordered Russia to the east. History On Septemb ...

, Finland *

Nyköping Nyköping () is a locality and the seat of Nyköping Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden with 32,759 inhabitants as of 2017. The city is also the capital of Södermanland County. Including Arnö, the locality on the southern shore of th ...

Södermanland County Södermanland County ( sv, Södermanlands län) is a county or ''län'' on the southeast coast of Sweden. In the local Sörmlandic dialects it is virtually universally shortened and pronounced as Sörmlands län, or simply Sörmland, which is th ...

, Sweden * Stelle,

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

, Germany

Notable residents

Notodden is the hometown of

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists. In addition, an organist may accompany congregational h ...

Kåre Nordstoga Kåre Nordstoga (born 18 December 1954) is a Norwegian organist. Nordstoga had his early studies under Harald Aune and Odd Jacob Unhammer in Notodden where he grew up. He went on to study at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo, where his tea ...

, the internationally known author

Hans Herbjørnsrud Hans Herbjørnsrud (born 2 January 1938) is a Norwegian author of short stories. His works frequently play with the differences between Norwegian languages Bokmål and Nynorsk and the various Norwegian dialects. His stories' characters sometimes ...

who was born in

, and the Hardanger fiddlemaker Olav Gunnarsson Helland (1875–1939) who many consider the finest of the twentieth century. Composer

Klaus Egge Klaus Egge (July 19, 1906 – March 7, 1979) was a Norwegian composer and music critic. Background Egge was born in Gransherad, Telemark, Norway. He was the son Rasmus Klausen Egge (1874-1962) and Rakel Abrahamsdatter Iversen (1877-1986). He g ...

, born 1906 in Gransherad, also lived in Notodden. Olympic gold medalist

Ådne Søndrål Ådne Søndrål (born 10 May 1971) is a former Norwegian speed skater. Søndrål, representing Hol IL, was one of the best 1500 m skaters through most of the 1990s. He placed 2nd in the 1992 Winter Olympics and 4th in the 1994 Olympics. H ...

was born in Notodden. American blues musician

Seasick Steve Steven Gene Wold ( né Leach, 19 March 1951),/nowiki>freight_trains.html" ;"title="freight_trains.html" ;"title="/nowiki>freight trains">/nowiki>freight trains">freight_trains.html" ;"title="/nowiki>freight trains">/nowiki>freight trains/nowiki> f ...

, who is achieving fame in the United Kingdom, currently resides in Notodden. Norwegian blues musician

Margit Bakken Margit Bakken (born 8 April 1967) is a Norwegian musician (vocals, guitar) and songwriter. She is one of the most established blues musicians in Norway, and often performs with Rita Engedalen as the duo Women in Blues.Tor-Arne Moen also live in Notodden. One of the most influential Norwegian black metal bands,

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

, came from Notodden, as does

Mortiis Mortiis is an electronic band from Notodden, Norway fronted by Håvard Ellefsen, who is also known as the namesake of the band. The name is a misspelling of the word "mortis", which is the pronunciation used by the band. Mortiis started as th ...

, Peccatum, Star of Ash,

Leprous Leprous is a Norwegian rock band from Notodden, formed in 2001. The group was founded by singer and keyboardist Einar Solberg and guitarist Tor Oddmund Suhrke. After releasing several demos with relatively unstable lineups, the band released th ...

, and

Zyklon Zyklon was a Norwegian blackened death metal band formed in 1998 by Samoth and Trym of Emperor, along with members of Myrkskog. Their style has been described as modern death metal with black and industrial undertones. After more than a two- ...

. Emperor's singer,

Ihsahn Vegard Sverre Tveitan (born 10 October 1975), better known by his stage name Ihsahn (), is a Norwegian multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and composer, best known for his work with black metal band Emperor. Tveitan is also a founding member of Th ...

, still resides in Notodden. ; and Helga Flatland (cropped)

* Olav Andresen (1877 in Heddal - 1950) a Norwegian politician, Mayor of Notodden 1920s & 1930s *

Ambros Sollid Ambros Sollid (born 21 May 1880, died 9 February 1973) was a Norwegian agronomy, agronomist and politician. He was born in Heddal to teacher Ambros Torgrimsen Sollid and Gunhild Smedsrud. He was elected representative to the Storting for the peri ...

(1880 in Heddal - 1973) an agronomist and politician, Mayor of Skien 1935–1937 * Carl Bugge (1881 in Heddal – 1968) a Norwegian geologist and academic * Helga Stene (1904 in Notodden – 1983) an educator, feminist and resistance member * Aage Eriksen (1917 in Notodden – 1998 in Notodden) a wrestler and silver medallist at the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ca ...

Egil Bergsland Egil Bergsland (born 2 September 1924 in Notodden, died 12 October 2007) was a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. He was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Telemark in 1977, but was not re-elected in 1981. He had previously served a ...

(1924 in Notodden - 2007) a Norwegian politician, Mayor of Notodden 1971 to 1975 *

Sissel Sellæg Sissel Sellæg (10 February 1928 – 5 January 2014) was a Norwegian actress. She debuted in 1950 at the Studioteatret. She worked at Folketeatret in the years 1951–56, at Den Nationale Scene from 1959 to 1964 and at Oslo Nye Teater f ...

(1928 in Notodden – 2014) a Norwegian actress IMDb Database
retrieved 30 January 2021 * Hilde Mæhlum (born 1945 in Notodden) a Norwegian sculptor *

Magne Orre Magne Orre (born 16 April 1950) is a Norwegian cyclist. He was born in Notodden. He competed at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, where he placed fifth in the Cycling at the 1972 Summer Olympics – Men's team time trial, team time trial with t ...

(born 1950 in Notodden) a cyclist, competed at the

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...

1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 P ...

* Helga Flatland (born 1984 in Notodden) a Norwegian novelist and children's writer

Climate

Notodden has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

(Dfb). Situated inland at low altitude in the Telemark region, it is one of the warmest towns in Norway in summer, but winters can be cold. The weather station at Notodden Airport has been recording since March 1970 (temperature and wind speed). Precipitation data is from a different station in Notodden. The all-time high temperature was recorded July 27 2018.

References

External links

Municipal fact sheet
from Statistics Norway *
Notodden
on

Flickr Flickr ( ; ) is an American image hosting and video hosting service, as well as an online community, founded in Canada and headquartered in the United States. It was created by Ludicorp in 2004 and was a popular way for amateur and profession ...

1908 in Notodden: Of course the workers must have houses
from

{{Authority control Municipalities of Vestfold og Telemark Cities and towns in Norway