Søgne is a former municipality in the old

Vest-Agder Vest-Agder (; "West Agder") was one of 18 counties (''fylker'') in Norway from 1 January 1919 to 31 December 2019, after it was merged with Aust-Agder to form Agder county. In 2016, there were 182,701 inhabitants, around 3.5% of the total popul ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. The municipality existed from 1838 until 2020 when it was merged with the municipalities of

Songdalen Songdalen is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in the old Vest-Agder county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1964 until 2020 when it was merged with Søgne and Kristiansand municipalities to form a new, much la ...

and

Kristiansand Kristiansand is a city and Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Agder county, Norway. The city is the fifth-largest and the municipality is the sixth-largest in Norway, with a population of around 116,000 as of January 2020, following th ...

into the "new" Kristiansand municipality in what is now

Agder Agder is a counties of Norway, county () and districts of Norway, traditional region in the southern part of Norway and is coextensive with the Southern Norway region. The county was established on 1 January 2020, when the old Vest-Agder and Au ...

county. It was located in the traditional district of Sørlandet, just outside of the city of Kristiansand. The

administrative centre An administrative centre 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 the administrative language, such as Belgi ...

of the municipality was the hamlet of Tangvall. Hamlets and areas in Søgne include Ausviga, Eig,

Høllen Høllen is a fishing village in Kristiansand municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located at the mouth of the river Søgneelva, between the villages of Eig to the west, Tangvall to the north, and Åros to the east. Høllen is ...

, Langenes, Lohne, Lunde, Ny-Hellesund, Trysnes, Vedderheia, Ålo, and

Åros Åros is a village in Røyken in Asker (municipality), Asker municipality in Akershus, Akershus county, Norway. The population of Åros (2020) is about 2137. Location Åros is located on the peninsula of Hurumlandet along the western side of th ...

. Prior to its dissolution in 2020, the municipality was the 354th largest by area out of the 422 municipalities in Norway. Søgne is the 103rd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 11,321. The municipality's

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

is and its population has increased by 16.2% over the last decade.

General information

The

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

of Sygne (later spelled ''Søgne'') was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see

formannskapsdistrikt () was the name of a Norwegian self-governing municipality. The name was used from the establishment these municipalities in 1838 until the name fell out of use in 1863. The municipalities had their legal basis from two laws enacted on 14 Jan ...

law). on 1 July 1913, the northern half of Søgne (population: 822) was separated to form the new municipality of

Greipstad Greipstad is a former municipality in the old Vest-Agder county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1913 until its dissolution in 1964 when it became part of Songdalen municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the vil ...

. This left Søgne with 2,609 residents. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the

Schei Committee The Schei Committee () was a committee named by the Government of Norway to look into the organization of municipalities in Norway post-World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a ...

. Søgne municipality remained generally the same during this time, however, there were a couple of small changes to the municipal boundaries. On 1 January 1964, the Stubstad area of neighboring Holum municipality (population: 9) and the Brunvatne area of neighboring

Øyslebø Øyslebø is a village in Lindesnes municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located in the Mandalen valley along the Mandalselva river, about north of the town of Mandal. The Sørlandet Line passes the village to the north, stoppin ...

municipality (population: 44) were both transferred to Søgne municipality. Then on 1 January 1965, the unpopulated Svalemyren area of neighboring

Mandal A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administrative c ...

municipality was transferred to Søgne. On 1 January 2020, the three neighboring municipalities of

, and Søgne merged to form one large municipality called ''Kristiansand''.

Name

The municipality (originally the

) is named after the old ''Søgne'' farm () since the Old Søgne Church was built there. The name comes from the local river ''Sygna'' (now called

Søgneelva Songdalselva or Søgneelva or Songa is a river in Agder county, Norway. The long river in the hills between Finsland in Kristiansand municipality and Hægeland in Vennesla municipality. The catchment area is located between the Otra river a ...

). The river name is derived from the verb which means "to suck". The municipality was historically spelled ''Sygne'' until the 1880s when it was changed to ''Søgne''.

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 last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

was granted on 24 May 1985 and they were in use until 1 January 2020 when the municipality was dissolved. The official

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct an accurate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The visual d ...

is ''" Per fess urdy azure and

argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to b ...

, two points to the chief"'' (). This means the arms have a

field Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a grass ...

(background) that is divided by a line that follows a geometric "urdy" pattern. Below the line, the field has a

tincture A tincture is typically an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol (ethyl alcohol). Solvent concentrations of 25–60% are common, but may run as high as 90%.Groot Handboek Geneeskrachtige Planten by Geert Verhelst In chemistr ...

of azure (blue). Above the line, the field has a tincture of

which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The design of the line is meant to symbolize two stone road markers ( varder), which in historical times were used to mark the paths and tracks that people followed. Two of the largest of these signs are found in the municipality, and were mentioned in historical records in the early 17th century. According to legend, they were built by King

Olaf II of Norway Saint Olaf ( – 29 July 1030), also called Olaf the Holy, Olaf II, Olaf Haraldsson, and Olaf the Stout or "Large", was List of Norwegian monarchs, King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. Son of Harald Grenske, a petty king in Vestfold, Norway, he w ...

''(Hellige-Olav)'', in the 11th century. A local tradition says they represent two girls standing on top of the hill looking for their lovers to return from fishing. The fishermen drowned and the girls remained waiting there. The stone markers are named (the girls on Heller island). The original stone markers were destroyed by Germans during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and afterwards they were rebuilt in concrete. The arms were designed by Ulf Skauge based on idea by Nols Th. Finstad.

Churches

The

Church of Norway The Church of Norway (, , , ) is an Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. Christianity became the state religion of Norway around 1020, and was established a ...

has one parish () within the municipality of Søgne. It is part of the Mandal prosti (

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the 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 residence of ...

) in the Diocese of Agder og Telemark.

Government

While it existed, this municipality was responsible for

primary education Primary education is the first stage of Education, formal education, coming after preschool/kindergarten and before secondary education. Primary education takes place in ''primary schools'', ''elementary schools'', or first schools and middle s ...

(through 10th grade), outpatient

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

senior citizen Old age is the range of ages for people nearing and surpassing life expectancy. People who are of old age are also referred to as: old people, elderly, elders, senior citizens, seniors or older adults. Old age is not a definite biological sta ...

services,

unemployment Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is the proportion of people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work du ...

social services Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. Also available amachine-converted HTML They may be provided by individuals, private and i ...

zoning In urban planning, zoning is a method in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into land-use "zones", each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for ...

economic development In economics, economic development (or 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 object ...

, and municipal

road A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. Th ...

s. During its existence, this municipality was 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, borough cou ...

of directly elected representatives. The

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

was

indirectly elected An indirect election or ''hierarchical voting,'' is an election in which voters do not choose directly among candidates or parties for an office ( direct voting system), but elect people who in turn choose candidates or parties. It is one of the o ...

by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Kristiansand District Court and the Agder Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The

of Søgne was made up of 27 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a Hospitality, 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 oft ...

Mayors

The

mayors In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

() of Søgne (incomplete list): * 1838–18??: Otto Joachim Moltke Hansen * 1853-18??: Peder Bjørnson * 1888–1901: Jakob Brunvatne ( V) * 1902–1904: Hans Jensen Try ( H) * 1905–1907: Jakob Brunvatne ( V) * 1908–1916: Hans Jensen Try ( H) * 1916-1922: S. Sverdrup ( V) * 1922–1925: Harald Brunvatne ( Bp) * 1926–1928: Hans Jensen Try ( H) * 1929–1931: Harald Brunvatne ( Bp) * 1932–1941: Tarald Eg ( V) * 1945-1945: Tarald Eg ( V) * 1946–1951: Jørgen H. Lohne ( V) * 1952–1955: Tarald Eg ( V) * 1956–1963: Jørgen H. Lohne ( V) * 1964-1967: Syvert Tallaksen ( V) * 1968-1971: Thorbjørn Odd Olsen ( V) * 1972-1975: Syvert Tallaksen ( V) * 1976–1991: Bjarne Nesheim ( H) * 1992–2001: Anne Berit Andersen ( H) * 2001–2007: Eli Løite ( H) * 2007–2011: Solveig Kjelland Larsen ( Ap) * 2011–2015: Åse R. Severinsen ( H) * 2015–2019: Astrid Hilde ( Ap)

Media

The newspaper '' Søgne og Songdalen Budstikke'' has been published in Søgne since 1999.''Store norske leksikon'': ''Søgne og Songdalen Budstikke''.
/ref>

Geography

Søgne was a small, coastal municipality, with a long stretch of coastline and islands to the south. To the east, it bordered the municipality of

, to the north and northeast it bordered the municipalities of Marnardal and

, and to the west it bordered the municipality of

. The municipality had a couple main rivers running through it: Lundeelva and

. The Trysfjorden cuts into the shoreline in the west part of the municipality. There are also many islands to the south of the mainland. Ny-Hellesund is a small cluster of three populated islands that were an important

outport An outport is any port considered secondary to a main port (including a provincial one as opposed to a capital one), and often (especially) a small port built to support the commercial operations of a large port. The Port of Tilbury from the Port ...

in the history of Søgne. The Songvår Lighthouse is located in the far south part of the municipality on the small island of Hellersøya.

Climate

Notable people

* Dina Larsen (1873-1961), domestic science teacher and civil servant * Hans Try (1934–1990), archivist and historian

References

External links

Municipal fact sheet
from

Statistics Norway Statistics Norway (, 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 year on its web site. All rele ...

Søgneguiden: Visitor information Welcome to Søgne: Tourist information''Søgne og Songdalen Budstikke'': local newspaper

Søgne municipal website

Sørforumet: Forum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sogne Kristiansand region Former municipalities of Norway 1838 establishments in Norway 2020 disestablishments in Norway