Sunnylven Church ( no, Sunnylven kyrkje) is a

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

of the Church of Norway in Stranda Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county,

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 the ...

. It is located in the village of

Hellesylt Hellesylt is a small village in Stranda Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The village lies at the head of the Sunnylvsfjorden, which is a branch of the Storfjorden (Sunnmøre), Storfjorden, and which the more famous Geirangerfjord ...

, at the end of the Sunnylvsfjorden. It is the church for the Sunnylven

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 o ...

which is part of the

Nordre Sunnmøre prosti ''Nordre'' (Northern), formerly known as ''Haramsnytt'' (The Haram News), is a local Norwegian newspaper covering events in the northern part of the municipality of Ålesund in Møre og Romsdal county. History The newspaper was established as ''Ha ...

( deanery) in the

Diocese of Møre The Diocese of Møre ( no, Møre bispedømme) is a diocese in the Church of Norway which geographically consists of Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Its bishop is seated at the Molde Cathedral which is located in the county administrative center ...

. The white, wooden church was built in a long church style in 1859 by the builder Ludolph Rolfsen who used plans by the

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Hans Linstow Hans Ditlev Franciscus (Frants) von Linstow (4 May 1787 – 10 June 1851) was a Danish/Norwegian architect who designed the Royal Palace in Oslo and much of the surrounding park and the street ''Karl Johans gate''. Background Hans Ditlev Franc ...

. The church seats about 400 people.

History

The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to 1432 where it was mentioned in Aslak Bolt's cadastre, but there has been a church here in the Hellesylt area dating back to at least the year 1150. The first Sunnylven Church was likely a wooden

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 ...

that was probably built in the 12th century. This church was located on the Korsbrekke farm, about southeast of the present site of the church in the village of Hellesylt. During the 15th or 16th centuries, the old stave church was expanded into a

cruciform Cruciform is a term for physical manifestations resembling a common cross or Christian cross. The label can be extended to architectural shapes, biology, art, and design. Cruciform architectural plan Christian churches are commonly describe ...

design by adding

timber-framed Timber framing (german: Holzfachwerk) and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large woode ...

transepts A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...

to the north and south sides of the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

. At some point, the old

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

for the stave church was torn down and replaced with a timber-framed choir. On 15 March 1727, a large

avalanche An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a slope, such as a hill or mountain. Avalanches can be set off spontaneously, by such factors as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, animals, and eart ...

came down the nearby mountain and destroyed the old church. At that time, they chose to replace the church with a new building, but it was also decided to build it in a new location. The new church would be built on the southwest side of the village of Hellesylt, on a hill overlooking the village. This new church was consecrated in 1730. The new building was a

design. The 1730 cruciform church was in use until

Pentecost Sunday Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christian holiday which takes place on the 50th day (the seventh Sunday) after Easter Sunday. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and other followers of ...

1858, when it was closed and torn down shortly after. Once the site was cleared, work began on a new long church building on the same site. Work progressed over the summer and fall of 1858, and it was consecrated the following year on 7 August 1859. Captain Ludolph Rolfsen from the nearby Stryn Municipality designed the church based on drawings by

. Rolfsen also headed the construction of

Hornindal Church Hornindal Church ( no, Hornindal kyrkje) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in the municipality of Volda in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located in the village of Grodås, at the eastern end of the lake Hornindalsvatnet. It is ...

and

Nedstryn Church Nedstryn Church ( no, Nedstryn kyrkje) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Stryn Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Nedstryn, just west of the municipal centre of Stryn (village), Stryn. It is the ch ...

, both in the

Nordfjord Nordfjord ( en, Northern fjord—in contrast to Sunnfjord) is a traditional district of Norway. Geography The region is located in the northern part of Vestland county in Western Norway. It centers on the Nordfjorden and it comprises the muni ...

region to the south of here, and these churches share many features. Shipbuilder Nils A. Liaaen of

Sunnylven Sunnylven is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1965. Since that time, it has made up the southern part of the present-day Stranda Municipality. It encompassed ...

designed Sylte Church in 1862 and was probably inspired by this church at Hellesylt. Playwright Henrik Ibsen visited Hellesylt in the summer of 1862 when this church was new and Sunnylven with Geiranger had just been named a separate

prestegjeld A ''prestegjeld'' was a geographic and administrative area within the Church of Norway (''Den Norske Kirke'') roughly equivalent to a parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a di ...

(parish). The municipality of

and the local priest, Rev. Ole Olsen Barman (born 1816), was an inspiration for Ibsen's dramatic poem ''

Brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create ...

''.

Media gallery

Iglesia de Sunnylven, Hellesylt, Noruega, 2019-09-07, DD 08.jpg Hellesylt rundt århundreskiftet, 1891-1903.jpg, Colored photo, circa 1900. Sunnylven kyrkje Lindahl.jpg, Hellesylt with church late 1800s, Sunnylvsfjorden in the background. Hellesylt, Norway.jpg Hellesylt.jpg

References

{{use dmy dates, date=July 2021 Stranda Churches in Møre og Romsdal Long churches in Norway Wooden churches in Norway 19th-century Church of Norway church buildings Churches completed in 1859 12th-century establishments in Norway

History

Media gallery

See also

References