Rygge was 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 ...
in
Ăstfold
Ăstfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in southeastern Norway. It borders Akershus and southwestern Sweden (Västra GĂśtaland County and Värmland), while Buskerud and Vestfold are on the other side o ...
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
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 ...
. It was merged into
Moss
Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and hor ...
municipality on January 1, 2020. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rygge. Rygge 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 ...
).
The emblem of Rygge is the
Pasque flower
The genus ''Pulsatilla'' contains about 40 species of herbaceous perennial plants native to meadows and prairies of North America, Europe, and Asia. Derived from the Hebrew word for Passover, "pasakh", the common name pasque flower refers to th ...
. Rygge is connected to
Oslo
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
by double-tracked railway, and four-lane motorway.
Rygge was served by
Moss Airport, which has not been operational since 2016.
General information
Name
The municipality (originally the
parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
) is named after the old ''Rygge'' farm, since the first church was built there. The
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 ...
form of the name is not known (the oldest manuscripts from 1353-1528 use the form "Ryg(g)jof"). A possible (but uncertain) reconstruction is ''Rýgjuhof''. The first element would then be the
genitive case
In grammar, the genitive case (abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a nounâthus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive can al ...
of ''rýgja'', a sideform of ''rýgr'' which means "lady". (Like ''ylgja'' to ''ylgr'', both forms with the meaning 'she-wolf'.) The last element is probably ''hof'' meaning "
temple
A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...
". If this is correct, then the word ''rýgja'' most probably is referring to the goddess
Freyja
In Norse paganism, Freyja (Old Norse "(the) Lady") is a goddess associated with love, beauty, fertility, sex, war, gold, and seiĂ°r (magic for seeing and influencing the future). Freyja is the owner of the necklace BrĂsingamen, rides a chario ...
, since the meaning of the word ''freyja'' also is 'lady'.
An alternative explanation is that the word is derived from ''"rygg"'', which means ''"ridge"'', and related to place names like ''"Ryen"'' further east. The "ridge" in question would be the end
moraine
A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris (regolith and rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a glacier or ice shee ...
that runs across the landscape here, from the other side of the
fjord
In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Ice ...
and stretching east through
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
and into the
Baltic region
The terms Baltic Sea Region, Baltic Rim countries (or simply the Baltic Rim), and the Baltic Sea countries/states refer to slightly different combinations of countries in the general area surrounding the Baltic Sea, mainly in Northern Europe. ...
. In Ăstfold, this moraine is referred to as the ''"
Raet
Raet is the largest terminal moraine in Scandinavia. It was formed during the end of the last glacial period, 12,800â11,500 years ago, in one of the latest advances of the glaciers.
As the glacier retreated towards the end of this period, it ...
"''.
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. It was granted on 30 November 1984. The arms show a golden
spur
A spur is a metal tool designed to be worn in pairs on the heels of riding boots for the purpose of directing a horse or other animal to move forward or laterally while riding. It is usually used to refine the riding aids (commands) and to back ...
on a red background. A spur like this was found in the area that dated back to the
Viking Age
The Viking Age () was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonizing, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. It followed the Migration Period and the Ger ...
. It is one of the largest golden items that was ever found in Norway and was thus chosen as a symbol on the arms.
Rygge Church
Rygge church (''Rygge kirke'') is a medieval era church located in the village of
Kirkegrenda
Kirkegrenda is a village in the municipality of Rygge in Ăstfold, 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 ...
. The church belongs to Vestre Borgesyssel deanery in Diocese of Borg. Rygge church is one of the county's better preserved medieval stone churches. It is built around the year 1170. Rygge church was originally a chapter church, which had income from a larger area than a parish and contained several villages. The building is characterized by the use of large stones, partly of granite, but parts of the facade is carved of stone cultivar, including large parts of the north portal. It has long nave and lower and narrower choir. The church was restored in 1967.
Military
Rygge Air Station
Rygge Air Force Base ( no, Rygge flystasjon) is located in the municipalities of Rygge and RĂĽde in Viken county, Norway. The Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) operates various squadron and aircraft at the airbase, including AgustaWestland AW101 ...
replaced a temporary airfield constructed by
German forces during
World War II
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 countriesâincluding all of the great powersâforming two opposin ...
. The contemporary airfield, northeast of the highway and main railway is situated in Rygge and its neighbouring municipality
RĂĽde
RĂĽde is a municipality in Viken county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Karlshus. The parish of ''Raade'' was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt).
The neighbouring ...
. It was constructed from 1952â1954 and until recently it was one of the largest establishments of the
Royal Norwegian Air Force
The Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) ( no, Luftforsvaret, , The Air Defence) is the air force of Norway. It was established as a separate arm of the Norwegian Armed Forces on 10 November 1944. The RNoAF's peacetime establishment is approximatel ...
. The military use of the airfield is now much reduced. A civilian air terminal
Moss Airport, Rygge
Moss Airport, Rygge ( no, Moss lufthavn, Rygge; ) was an international airport serving Moss, Oslo and Eastern Norway. It is located in Rygge, outside Moss and outside Oslo. It also served as a regional airport for Ăstfold county and owned ...
, was opened in early 2008. The airport was closed to all civilian traffic on 1 November 2016 after its main commercial operator, Ryanair, decided to shut down its base there.
Climate
Notable people
See also
*
Kirkegrenda
Kirkegrenda is a village in the municipality of Rygge in Ăstfold, 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 ...
, a village in the municipality
*
Møvik, a village in the municipality
References
External links
*
*
Municipal fact sheetfrom
Statistics Norway
Statistics Norway ( no, Statistisk sentralbyrĂĽ, 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 ...
*
{{authority control
Municipalities of Ăstfold
Villages in Ăstfold