Sandnes () is a city and municipality in

Rogaland Rogaland () is a Counties of Norway, county in Western Norway, bordering the North Sea to the west and the counties of Vestland to the north, Vestfold og Telemark to the east and Agder to the east and southeast. In 2020, it had a population of 47 ...

, Norway. It lies immediately south of

Stavanger Stavanger (, , American English, US usually , ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the a ...

, the 4th largest city in Norway and together, the Stavanger/Sandnes area is the third-largest urban area in Norway. The urban city of Sandnes lies in the extreme western part of the vast municipality and it makes up about 5% of the total land area of the municipality. Sandnes is part of the traditional district of Jæren. The western part of the municipality is very urbanized while the eastern part of the municipality is very rural. The municipality is divided into 13 boroughs and the administrative centre is located in the borough of Trones og Sentrum, a borough in the city. There are several villages in the rural parts of the municipality including Hommersåk,

Høle Høle is a previous borough and a village in the eastern part of Sandnes municipality in Rogaland county, Norway, located along the Høgsfjorden. The area was historically a part of the municipality of Høle. Høle Church and Høle School ar ...

, Foss-Eikeland, Stokka, Forsand, Lysebotn, and Vatne. The municipality is the 109th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Sandnes is the 7th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 80,704 in Q1 2021. The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 20.8% over the previous 10-year period.

History

The small port village of Sandnes was granted '' ladested'' (small seaport city) status in 1860. On 6 April 1861, the small city was separated from the municipality of Høyland to form a separate self-governing municipality of its own. Initially, the municipality had 440 residents. On 1 July 1957, a small part of Høyland municipality (population: 18) was transferred to the city of Sandnes. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1965, the city and municipality of Sandnes (population: 3,961) was merged with the municipality of Høyland (population: 20,353) and parts of the municipalities of

(population: 926) and Hetland (population: 2,077). In 2014, the

Storting The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years bas ...

decided that the number of municipalities in Norway would be lowered. If the municipalities of Sandnes, Stavanger and Sola were to merge, a new municipality would be formed called Nord-Jæren, after the name of the geographical location the municipalities are located in. After the city council said no to the merge, proposals for Forsand to merge with Sandnes were enacted instead. On 1 January 2017, a small area on the southwestern edge of the village of Solakrossen was transferred from Sandnes municipality to the neighboring municipality of Sola. On 1 January 2020, most of the neighboring municipality of Forsand was merged with Sandnes to form one large municipality called Sandnes.

Name

The municipality (and city) is named after an old farm, since the city was built on its grounds. The first element is which means ' sand' or 'sandy beach' and the last element is 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 farm was located at the end of the Gandsfjorden where the city centre is located today.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 21 April 1972. The arms show a white piece of pottery on a green background. Pottery was chosen since it was one of the main industries in the late 18th century. The symbol is a , which in English would be a ceramic cuckoo bird (, ' clay, ceramic' and , 'cuckoo bird'). The ceramic Sandnes cuckoo ( no, sandnesgauk) is an

ocarina The ocarina is a wind musical instrument; it is a type of vessel flute. Variations exist, but a typical ocarina is an enclosed space with four to twelve finger holes and a mouthpiece that projects from the body. It is traditionally made from c ...

or simple flute which was made by the potteries in Sandnes and used to advertise their products. Later it also became a nickname for people from Sandnes.

Geography

The municipality lies in the Jæren region and stretches nearly from the west coast of Norway to the rugged mountainous interior. The city of Sandnes is located at the base of the

Stavanger Peninsula Stavanger Peninsula ( no, Stavangerhalvøya) is a peninsula in Rogaland County, Norway. The peninsula is named for the city of Stavanger, located on its northeastern shore and it includes the most populous parts of the Greater Stavanger urban ...

, about south of the city of

, and these two cities have expanded so as to form a

conurbation A conurbation is a region comprising a number of metropolises, cities, large towns, and other urban areas which through population growth and physical expansion, have merged to form one continuous urban or industrially developed area. In most ca ...

. The municipality of Sola is located to the west, Klepp and Time, Gjesdal to the south, Sirdal and Bykle to the east, Strand and Hjelmeland to the northeast, and Stavanger to the northwest. The fjord Gandsfjorden is situated north–south at the west end of the municipality and the Høgsfjorden and Lysefjorden dominate the eastern part of the municipality. The international airport for Sandnes/Stavanger is situated in Sola, just to the west of Sandnes. Prior to 2020 (when the municipality was enlarged), the city-municipality of Sandnes was divided into 13 boroughs: Austrått, Figgjo, Ganddal, Hana,

, Lura,

Malmheim og Soma Malmheim og Soma is a borough of the Sandnes (town), city of Sandnes in the west part of the large municipality of Sandnes in Rogaland county, Norway. The borough sits in the western part of the municipality and it has a population of 1,597. It ...

, Riska, Sandved, Stangeland,

Sviland Sviland is a borough in the southwestern part of the municipality of Sandnes in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located in the rural part of the municipality, southeast of the city of Sandnes. With a population (2020) of only 1,332, the borough i ...

, and Trones og Sentrum. The landscape of western Sandnes is quite flat. On the long west coast there are several beaches and further inland the land is raised to form low plains with some small peaks rising up to above sea level. From Stavanger and Sandnes it is approximately one hour by car to alpine and skiing resorts. In Sandnes there are some easily accessible small mountain peaks, such as Dalsnuten and Lifjell, with a view over the Sandnes/Stavanger area. The renowned Lysefjorden is also easily accessible by car or boat. The lake

Frøylandsvatnet Frøylandsvatnet is a lake in Rogaland county, Norway. The lake is located in the district of Jæren. It forms part of the municipal boundary line between Klepp and Time, Norway, Time. The lake is quite shallow, with an average depth of . The ...

, the river Figgjoelva, and the mountain

Hanafjellet Hanafjellet is the commonly used name for the small mountain located in the city of Sandnes in the western part of the large municipality of Sandnes in Rogaland county, Norway. "Hanafjellet" or "Hana Hills" lies in the northern part of the borough ...

are all located in Sandnes. The Lysefjorden in the eastern part of the municipality is surrounded by very steep tall cliffs such as Kjerag and Preikestolen, with the

Lysefjord Bridge Lysefjord Bridge no, Lysefjordbrua is a suspension bridge over the Lysefjorden in Rogaland county, Norway. The bridge connects the municipalities of Strand (on the north end of the bridge) and Sandnes (on the south end of the bridge). Construct ...

crossing the fjord near the western end. The famous Kjeragbolten boulder and Kjeragfossen waterfall are located along the inner part of the fjord. The village of Lysebotn lies at the eastern end of the fjord. The lake

Nilsebuvatnet Nilsebuvatnet is a lake in the municipalities of Sandnes and Hjelmeland in Rogaland county, Norway. The lake lies in the Lyseheiane mountains about north of the village of Lysebotn and about east of the village of Årdal. The lake is regulat ...

is located high up in the mountains, north of Lysebotn on the border of Strand and Forsand municipalities. It is regulated for hydroelectric power use at the

Lysebotn Hydroelectric Power Station The Lysebotn Power Station is a hydroelectric power station located in the municipality Sandnes in Rogaland, Norway. The facility operates at an installed capacity of . The average annual production is 1,242 GWh. It has produced 63 TWh since ...

Location

Sandnes is located on the west coast of Norway. Here are some distances from the city of Sandnes to other major cities in Norway:

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Sandnes, are responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient

health services Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the preventive healthcare, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, treatment, wiktionary:amelioration, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other disability, physical and menta ...

, senior citizen 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, economic development, and municipal roads. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of elected representatives, which in turn elect a mayor. The municipality falls under the

Jæren District Court Jæren District Court ( no, Jæren tingrett) was a district court in Rogaland county, Norway. The court was based at the ''Sandnes Courthouse'' located on Olav V's plass in the town of Sandnes. The court existed until 2021. It had jurisdiction ...

and the

Gulating Court of Appeal The Gulating Court of Appeal ( no, Gulating lagmannsrett) is one of six Court of appeal (Norway), courts of appeal in the Norway, Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Bergen (city), Bergen. The court has jurisdiction over the cou ...

Municipal council

The municipal council () of Sandnes is made up of 49 representatives that are elected to four-year terms. Elections are always held two years from the parliamentary elections.

Media gallery

File:Sandnes City Map.png, Map of Sandnes city center File:Sandnes 01.jpg, The bus station, known as ''Ruten'' (The Route) File:Jaeren Tingrett.jpg, Jæren Tingrett (District Court) File:Sandnes idrettspark fra luften.jpg, Sandnes sports park from the air File:Sandnes om natta.jpg, Sandnes by night File:Sandnesgauk.png, A Sandnesgauk. A clay toy originating in Sandnes.

Economy

Sandnes hosts a large array of retail shops of most kinds and is used by the neighbouring municipalities appreciating the service and wide range of selections. Sandnes is known as Norway's bicycle city, mainly due to the fact that the bicycle manufacturer Øglænd DBS was situated here for decades. The city offers a variety of routes for everyday riders and tourists. Since 1996, a public bicycle rental program has been in operation in the city. The city has a vibrant industrial base, mainly in the Ganddal area in the south and the Lura and Forus area in the north along the municipal boundary with Stavanger. There is significant activity related to oil exploration in the North Sea and also some IT-related companies. In this suburban region between Sandnes and Stavanger, malls and department stores have also been established. Among these malls is one of Norway's biggest malls, Kvadrat, meaning 'square' (although it is not square shaped anymore as it has expanded several times since it opened in 1984). Around 30% of the population is employed in Stavanger (Q4 2004). Sandnes was formerly known as the ''pottery town'' of Norway – due to the important ceramics industry based on the extensive occurrence of clay in the surroundings. The

Vatneleiren Vatneleiren is a military base located in the municipality of Sandnes in Rogaland county, Norway. It was constructed just east of the Hanafjellet mountain just outside the Sandnes (town), city of Sandnes by the German Army (Wehrmacht), German Army ...

military base is also located in Sandnes, just outside Vatne.

Culture, sports, and education

Since 2016, the primary football team, Sandnes Ulf, has played in the second tier,

1. divisjon The Norwegian First Division, also called 1. divisjon and OBOS-ligaen (named sponsor is property developer OBOS), is the second-highest level of the Norwegian football league system. Each year, the top finishing teams in the 1. divisjon are p ...

, of Norwegian professional football. Sandnes is also known for its Rugby League team, Sandnes Raiders which has supplied the Norwegian national team with players. The major tourist attraction in Sandnes is the

Science Factory (Vitenfabrikken) Science Factory ( no, Vitenfabrikken) is a museum and science center located at Sandnes, in Rogaland, Norway. Background The Science Factory opened in May 2008. It is a science museum with exhibitions about mathematic, astronomy, chemistry, p ...

. It is a science museum with science and art exhibitions, a planetarium, sun telescopes, and chemistry experiments. Sandnes is the only city in Norway which is a member of the World Health Organization's network of Healthy Cities. Sandnes and Stavanger were chosen along with Liverpool, United Kingdom, to be a European Capital of Culture for 2008. Higher education facilities include

Sandnes Upper Secondary School Sandnes () is a city and municipality in Rogaland, Norway. It lies immediately south of Stavanger, the 4th largest city in Norway and together, the Stavanger/Sandnes area is the third-largest urban area in Norway. The urban city of Sandnes li ...

Gand Upper Secondary School Gand may refer to: * Ghent (French: Gand), a city in Belgium * Gand (''Star Wars''), a fictional planet and its resident species in the ''Star Wars'' franchise * Gand., the standard author abbreviation for Michel Gandoger * ', Old Norse word fo ...

, Akademiet Upper Secondary School, and Vågen Upper Secondary School. In 2010

Forus Upper Secondary School Forus Upper Secondary School () was an upper secondary school in Sandnes, Norway. It offered vocational studies, focused mainly on fine arts, and media and communication (photography, graphic design, video, computers etc.). It was the only upper ...

and parts of Lundehaugen merged to become Vågen. Lundehaugen still exists as a middle school. The city is also home to the VID Specialized University Sandnes campus, a private christian college.

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 nine parishes () within the municipality of Sandnes. It is part of the

Sandnes prosti This list of churches in Rogaland is a list of the Church of Norway churches in Rogaland county, Norway. The churches are all part of the Diocese of Stavanger. The diocese is based at the Stavanger Cathedral in the city of Stavanger. The list ...

(

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 Stavanger. The main church for the city is Sandnes Church, which is the seat of the deanery which covers the whole municipality.

Notable residents

Karen Grude Koht Karen Grude Koht (16 November 1871– 10 July 1960) was a Norwegian educationalist, essayist and feminist pioneer. Biography She was born at Høyland in Rogaland, Norway. She was the daughter of Martin Adolf Grude (1841-1918) and Anna Karolin ...

(1871 in Høyland – 1960) educationalist, essayist and feminist pioneer *

Theodor Thjøtta Theodor Thjøtta (17 June 1885 – 16 June 1955) was a Norwegian physician. He specialized in bacteriology and serology, and was a professor at the University of Oslo from 1935 to his death. Personal life He was born in Sandnes as a son of ...

(1885 in Sandnes – 1955) physician, dealt with bacteriology and serology * Elise Ottesen-Jensen (1886 in Hoyland − 1973) sex educator, journalist and anarchist *

Aaslaug Aasland Aaslaug Aasland (11 August 1890 – 30 August 1962) was a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. She served as Norwegian Minister of Social Affairs from 1948 to 1953. She was born in Sandnes as a daughter of Hans Aasland (1855–1901) and ...

(1890 in Sandnes – 1962) politician,

Minister of Social Affairs A Ministry of Social Affairs or Department of Social Affairs is the common name for a government department found in states where the government is divided into ministries or departments. While there is some variation in the responsibilities of s ...

, 1948 to 1953 *

Toralv Øksnevad Toralv Øksnevad (13 January 1891 – 31 July 1975) was a Norwegian politician, journalist, newspaper editor and radio personality. He was known as the "voice from London" during World War II, when listening to foreign radio in Norway wa ...

(1891 in Høyland – 1975) politician, journalist, newspaper editor and radio personality - the ''"voice from London"'' during WWII * Sigrid Stray (1893 in Sandnes – 1978) barrister and proponent of women's rights *

Soffi Schønning Soffi Schønning (October 2, 1895 – September 9, 1994) was a Norwegian operatic soprano. Schønning was born in Kabelvåg. She studied under Borghild Langaard in Christiania, and under Mme. Luisa Cappiani in London . She made her professiona ...

(1895–1994) operatic soprano, lived in Sandnes in later life * Kasper Idland MM, (1918 in Figgjo – 1968) Norwegian heavy water saboteur in 1943 * Kåre Berven Fjeldsaa (1918 in Sandnes – 1991) ceramic designer, early user of stoneware *

Tormod Førland Tormod Ernst Dittmar Førland (6 June 1920 – 10 November 1995) was a Norwegian chemist, a researcher in inorganic and physical chemistry, and professor at the Norwegian Institute of Technology. Personal life Førland was born in Høyland on 6 ...

(1920 in Høyland – 1995) chemist, worked on inorganic and physical chemistry * Arne Sandnes (1925-2006) politician, mayor of Sandnes in the 1970s *

Roald G. Bergsaker Roald Georg Bergsaker (born 5 July 1942) is a Norwegian sports official and politician for the Conservative Party. Bergsaker was mayor of Sandnes from 1986 to 1990. He was then a member of Rogaland county council from 1991 to 2007, serving as coun ...

(born 1942) sports official and politician, mayor of Sandnes, 1986 to 1990 and Rogaland county mayor, 1999 to 2007 * Julie Ege (1943 in Sandnes – 2008) actress and model * Ivar Braut (born 1956 in Sandnes) a theologian and priest, the Bishop of Stavanger, 2017-2019 * Roger Rasmussen (born ca.1965 in Sandnes) stage name '' Nattefrost,'' vocalist and founder of Carpathian Forest, a black metal band *

Mette Grøtteland Mette Grøtteland (born 1969) became the first female fighter pilot in the Royal Norwegian Air Force after qualifying to fly jet fighter aircraft in 1992. Early life Grøtteland was born in 1969 in Sandnes, Norway. Military service In 1991, the ...

(born 1969 in Sandnes) first female fighter pilot, Royal Norwegian Air Force * Kjartan Salvesen (born 1976 in Sandnes) winner of Norwegian Idol TV series in 2004 *

Thomas Dybdahl Thomas Dybdahl (born 12 April 1979) is a Norwegian singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Background Thomas Dybdahl grew up in Sandnes, Norway. His musical career started off as the guitarist in the band Quadraphonics. The band released ...

(born 1979 in Sandnes) singer-songwriter * Anh Vu (born 1986 in Sandnes) singer and actress IMDb Database
retrieved 02 April 2021 * Annette Obrestad (born 1988) professional poker player; won the

2007 World Series of Poker Europe 175px, Five time bracelet winner, Chris Ferguson, finished in fourth place in the first event The World Series of Poker Europe (WSOPE) is the first expansion effort of World Series of Poker-branded poker tournaments outside the United States. Sinc ...

aged 18; lives in Sandnes

Sport

* Bjarne Berntsen (born 1956 in Sandnes) a former football player with 33 caps with Norway and coach with Norway women (2005–2009), Viking FK, and Sandnes Ulf *

Anne Brit Skjæveland Anne Brit Sandberg, née Skjæveland (born 24 July 1962) is a retired Norwegian heptathlete. She finished eleventh at the 1990 European Championships, and 22nd at the 1992 Olympic Games. She was a Norwegian champion in heptathlon five times, ...

(born 1962) retired heptathlete, lives in Sandnes * Linda Medalen (born 1965 in Sandnes) former footballer, 152 caps with Norway women *

Gjert Ingebrigtsen Gjert Arne Ingebrigtsen (born 1966) is a Norwegian sports coach. He was awarded the title ''Norwegian Sports Coach of the Year'' for 2018. Career Ingebrigtsen was born in Båtsfjord and resides in Sandnes. He is married to Tone Eva Tønnessen; t ...

(born 1966) sports coach, father and coach of sons Henrik,

Filip Filip () is a masculine given name and a surname, cognate to Philip. In Croatia, the name Filip was among the most common masculine given names in the 2000s. Notable people with the name include: ; Given name * Filip Barović (born 1990), Monten ...

and Jakob; lives in Sandnes * Rolf Bae (1975 in Sandnes – 2008) Arctic adventurer and mountaineer * Arild Haugen (born 1985) former strongman, currently a professional boxer; lives in Sandnes * Stine Borgli (born 1990 in Sandnes) racing cyclist * 1500-metre runner brothers: ** Henrik Ingebrigtsen (born 1991 in Sandnes), competed at the

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

and

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

Filip Ingebrigtsen Filip Mangen Ingebrigtsen (born 20 April 1993) is a Norwegian middle distance runner who represents Sandnes Idrettslag. In 2016, Ingebrigtsen became European Champion at 1500 meters during the European Championships in Amsterdam, and took bronze ...

(born 1993 in Sandnes), competed at the

European European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...

and World Athletics Championships ** Jakob Ingebrigtsen (born 2000 in Sandnes), two gold medals at the

2018 European Athletics Championships The 2018 European Athletics Championships were held in Berlin, Germany, from 6 to 12 August 2018. The championships were part of the first European Championships with other events happening in the United Kingdom. For the second Championships in a ...

, Olympic champion over 1500 meters in Tokyo 2020.

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 ...

Municipality website

Region Stavanger & Ryfylke toursist website

Website about the city
{{authority control Municipalities of Rogaland 1861 establishments in Norway Jæren