Ostøya is an
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 ...
in the western section of
Oslofjord
The Oslofjord (, ; en, Oslo Fjord) is an inlet in the south-east of Norway, stretching from an imaginary line between the and lighthouses and down to in the south to Oslo in the north. It is part of the Skagerrak strait, connecting the Nor ...
(Vestfjorden), within the borders of the municipality of
Bærum
Bærum () is a municipality in the Greater Oslo Region in Norway that forms an affluent suburb of Oslo on the west coast of the city. Bærum is Norway's fifth largest municipality with a population of 128,760 (2021). It is part of the electoral ...
. It is the second largest island in the Oslo basin, after
Nesøya. It is adjacent to the municipal border with
Asker, where Nesøya and
Brønnøya
Brønnøya is an island in the western section of Oslofjord (Vestfjorden), within the borders of the municipality of Asker.
Geography
The island is just beyond the upscale suburban construction of Nesøya, reachable across the Vendelsund sound ...
are to its northwest and southwest, respectively. Within Bærum,
Borøya is to the north,
Kjeholmen to the northeast, and
Grimsøya to the east. To the south is
Gåsøya.
History
At some point the island was split in two. The island is named after the farm that is situated on it. The etymology of Oust, or Ost is uncertain. O. Rygh claims the etymology is unknown but that the farm derives its name from the island's original name. Others speculate that it may have an
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 ...
origin related to ''ouste'', in the sense of claiming new land.
Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
) it was owned by the crown and spelled Oust. In 1791, the owner is listed as Hans Haagensen Tveter, and his descendants still own the main farm. In accordance with practice at the time, they also took the last name Oust. They successfully petitioned the minister at Haslum church for their own gravesite, citing the distance to the church and the need to quickly bury cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...
victims. A royal grant was given.[
In 1899 a significant portion of the island (Lille Oust) was sold for recreational summer houses.][
]
Nature reserve
Two areas of the island have been set aside as nature reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...
s:
*Oust naturreservat was established in 2002 and consists of 128,5 hectares, of which 5,5 hectares are marineland.[
*Syd Oust naturreservat was established on June 27, 2008 and consists of , of which is on land.][
]
Golf and country club
Oustøen Country Club was privately established in 1965 and has about 700 members. The golf course
A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". Th ...
originally had nine holes, but was expanded to a full 18-hole golf course in 1995. The club house is based on the main farmhouse on the Oust farm. The original farmhouse from 1791 burned to the ground in 1998, but has been restored. There is a restaurant on the premises.[
]
Today
The island is accessible only by sea. Aside from the main farm and country club, there are a few summer residences on the island, based on former tenant farms there. The island is within the postal code for Snarøya
Snarøya is a populated peninsula in the inner Oslofjord in Norway. It belongs to Bærum municipality in Viken (formerly Akershus) county. It is located south of the districts Lysaker, Lagåsen and Fornebu, and has 2,940 inhabitants.
History ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ostoya
Islands of Viken (county)
Geography of Bærum