Nesna 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 ...

Nordland Nordland (; smj, Nordlánnda, sma, Nordlaante, sme, Nordlánda, en, Northland) is a county in Norway in the Northern Norway region, the least populous of all 11 counties, bordering Troms og Finnmark in the north, Trøndelag in the south, N ...

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers 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 Helgeland

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 ...

. 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 village of Nesna. Other villages in Nesna include Handnesneset, Husby,

Saura Saura may refer to: * Saura (Hinduism), a Hindu denomination * Saura calendar, the Vedic and medieval Indian solar calendar People * Antonio Saura, Spanish surrealist artist * Carlos Saura, Spanish film director * Enrique Saura, Spanish footb ...

, and Vikholmen. Nesna map thumbview

The municipality consists of the three islands

Tomma Tomma is an island in the municipality of Nesna in Nordland county, Norway. The island sits to the west of the islands of Handnesøya and Hugla. The island is at the southern entrance to the Sjona fjord. The main settlement on this island ...

Hugla Hugla is an island in the municipality of Nesna in Nordland county, Norway. The island lies south of the islands of Tomma and Handnesøya, west of the mainland of Nesna, east of the island of Løkta, and north of the Ranfjorden The Ranfjorden ...

(known as "Hugløy" by its inhabitants), and

Handnesøya Handnesøya is an island in the municipality of Nesna in Nordland county, Norway. The island lies between the islands of Tomma and Hugla and the mainland, along the Sjona fjord. The mountainous island has a very narrow flat area on the east ...

, and one

peninsula A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on all ...

that bears the name of the municipality, Nesna. The old

Husby Estate The Husby Estate (Norwegian: ''Husbygodset'') is an estate in Helgeland, Norway. It is based in the village of Husby on the southwestern part of the island of Tomma in the municipality of Nesna. History Christensen family Anders Christensen ...

is headquartered in Husby on Tomma island. The Coastal Express arrives two times a day at the village of Nesna, the northbound arrives 05:30 and the southbound 11:15. The village of Nesna is also home to Nordland's education center

Nesna University College Nesna University College ( no, Høgskolen i Nesna or ) was a university college, a Norwegian state institution of higher education, until it became part of Nord University in 2016. Its campus was in the village of Nesna in Nesna Municipality. In ...

, and there is also the KVN High School, and

Nesna Church Nesna Church ( no, Nesna kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Nesna Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Nesna. It is the main church for the Nesna parish which is part of the Nord-Helgeland ...

. The municipality is the 309th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Nesna is the 296th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 1,698. The municipality's population density is and its population has decreased by 6.3% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

Nesna was established as a municipality on 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 ...

law). The western island district of Nesna (population: 1,348) was separated from Nesna on 1 July 1888 to form the new municipality of

Dønnes Dønnes is a former municipality in the Helgeland traditional region in Nordland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1888 until its dissolution in 1962. The former municipality encompassed the northern part of the island of Dønna ...

. This left Nesna with 2,958 residents. On 1 January 1919, the

Bardalssjøen Bardal is a village in the municipality of Leirfjord in Nordland county, Norway. The village is located along the south coast of the Ranfjorden, about west of the village of Hemnesberget. The village surrounds the Bardalselva river which flows ...

farm (population: 4) was transferred from

Hemnes Municipality Hemnes is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Korgen. Other villages include Bjerka, Bleikvasslia, Hemnesberget, and Sund ...

to Nesna Municipality. In 1945, a small area of southern Nesna (population: 26) was transferred to

Leirfjord Municipality Leirfjord is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Leland. Other villages in Leirfjord include Bardalssjøen and Sundøy. Th ...

. 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 1962, part of the island of

Løkta Løkta is an island in the municipality of Dønna in Nordland county, Norway. The island is located between the islands of Dønna and Hugla, at the entrance to the Ranfjorden. The village of Sandåker is located on the southern part of the is ...

(population: 80) was transferred from Nesna to the new

Dønna Municipality Dønna is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland region. The administrative centre of the island municipality is the village of Solfjellsjøen. Other villages include Bjørn, Dønnes, Hestad, Sandåker, and V ...

and part of the island of

(population: 80) was transferred from the old municipality of

to Nesna Municipality. Then on 1 January 1964, the

area of Nesna, located south of the

Ranfjorden The Ranfjorden (or just ''Ranfjord'') is a fjord in the Helgeland district of Nordland county, Norway. The largest part of the fjord is in the municipality of Rana, but the fjord also passes through the municipalities of Hemnes, Vefsn, Leirfjor ...

, was transferred to

. On that same date, the part of Nesna around the inner part of the

Sjona Sjona is a fjord in Nordland county, Norway. The fjord begins in the municipality of Rana and flows to the west through Nesna and Lurøy municipalities into the sea. The islands of Handnesøya and Tomma lie at the mouth of the fjord. The deepe ...

fjord was transferred to

Rana Municipality Rana is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland Districts of Norway, traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Mo i Rana, ...

Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old ''Nesna'' farm ( non, Nesnar), since the first

was built there. The name is derived from the word ''nes'' 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, John ...

". The name was historically spelled ''Nesne''.

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 23 June 1989. The arms are a

canting ' (IPA: , VOS Spelling: ''tjanting'', jv, ꦕꦤ꧀ꦛꦶꦁ, Tjanting) is a pen-like tool used to apply liquid hot wax ( jv, ) in the batik-making process in Indonesia, more precisely '' batik tulis'' (lit. "written batik"). Traditional ''T ...

of the name of the municipality because they show a yellow-colored "headland" or peninsula surrounded by blue water (''nes'' is Norwegian for headland).

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 one parish () within the municipality of Nesna. It is part of the Nord-Helgeland prosti (

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 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 town of Bodø at Bodø Cathedral, the seat of the ...

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Nesna, are responsible for primary education (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 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 roads. 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. The municipality falls under the Rana District Court and the

Hålogaland Court of Appeal The Hålogaland Court of Appeal ( no, Hålogaland lagmannsrett) 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 ...

Municipal council

The

() of Nesna is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to four-year terms. 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 of the council is as follows:

Notable residents

* Johan Augustinussen (born 1808 at Langset - 1888 in Nesna) a curate/choirmaster, teacher and politician *

Hans Christiansen Hans Christiansen may refer to: * Hans Christiansen (sailor) * Hans Christiansen (artist) Hans Christiansen (6 March 1866 in Flensburg – 5 January 1945 in Wiesbaden) was a German craftsman and painter of the Jugendstil ''Jugendstil'' ("You ...

(1867 in Nesna – 1938) a sailor, competed at the

1912 Summer Olympics The 1912 Summer Olympics ( sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1912), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad ( sv, Den V olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, be ...

* Birger Fredrik Motzfeldt OBE, CVO (1898 in Nesna – 1987) a Norwegian aviator and senior military officer. *

Ida Maria Ida Maria Børli Sivertsen ( ; born 13 July 1984), better known simply as Ida Maria, is a Norwegian musician and songwriter. Biography Early life Maria was born and raised in Nesna. She taught herself to play guitar and began performing at loca ...

(born 1984) a Norwegian musician and singer-songwriter; born and lives in Nesna *

Emil Weber Meek Emil Weber Meek (born August 20, 1988) is a Norwegian professional mixed martial artist that competes in the Welterweight division of Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki (KSW). He previously fought in the UFC's Welterweight division. He is currently ranke ...

(born 1988) a Norwegian professional mixed martial artist, brought up in Nesna * Ulrik Berglann (born 1992 in Nesna) a Norwegian footballer with 180 club caps

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 ...

*
Official site of Nesna MunicipalityHammerø nature reserveDillern-Ørnes nature reserve at HandnesøyaHusbymarka nature reserve at Tomma
{{Use dmy dates, date=October 2019 Municipalities of Nordland 1838 establishments in Norway