Helgeland is the most southerly
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...
in
Northern Norway. Generally speaking, Helgeland refers to the part of
Nordland county that is located south of the
Arctic Circle. It is bordered in the north by the
Saltfjellet
Saltfjellet is a mountain area in Nordland county, Norway that separates the two regions of Helgeland and Salten. It is also a cultural border between the Southern and Central parts of Sápmi.
Geography and environment
The Saltfjell is one of the ...
mountains and
Svartisen
Svartisen is a collective term for two glaciers located in Nordland county in northern Norway. It is part of Saltfjellet-Svartisen National Park, located in the Saltfjell mountain range. The glaciers are located in the municipalities of Beiarn, ...
glacier, which form a natural border with the
Salten
Salten is a traditional district in Nordland county, Norway. It includes the municipalities of Meløy, Gildeskål, Bodø, Beiarn, Saltdal, Fauske, Sørfold, Steigen, and Hamarøy. Salten covers an area of about and has a population (2016) ...
district. In the south, Helgeland borders
Trøndelag
Trøndelag (; sma, Trööndelage) is a county in the central part of Norway. It was created in 1687, then named Trondhjem County ( no, Trondhjems Amt); in 1804 the county was split into Nord-Trøndelag and Sør-Trøndelag by the King of Denma ...
county.
The district covers an area of about , with nearly 79,000 inhabitants. There are four towns in the district: from south to north these are
Brønnøysund
Brønnøysund () is a town and the administrative centre of Brønnøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is also a former municipality within Nordland county. The village of Brønnøysund originally was declared a ladested in 1923 wh ...
,
Mosjøen
Mosjøen (; sma, Mussere) is a town in Vefsn Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. Mosjøen is the oldest town in the Helgeland region, with only the town of Bodø being older within Nordland county. The town is also the administrative centre ...
,
Sandnessjøen
Sandnessjøen is a town and the administrative centre of Alstahaug Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. Sandnessjøen was granted special trading privileges in the late 1600s and it received town status in 1999. Sandnessjøen is located ...
, and
Mo i Rana
Mo i Rana () is a city, and the administrative centre of the municipality of Rana, in Nordland county, Norway. It is located in the Helgeland region of Nordland, just south of the Arctic Circle. Some of the city's suburbs include Båsmoen and Yt ...
.
Name
The
Old Norse
Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlemen ...
form of the name was ''Hálogaland'' (see
Hålogaland
Hålogaland was the northernmost of the Norwegian provinces in the medieval Norse sagas. In the early Viking Age, before Harald Fairhair, Hålogaland was a kingdom extending between the Namdalen valley in Trøndelag county and the Lyngen fjord ...
).
Geography
Helgeland is commonly divided into three or four sections:
* Southern Helgeland (actually southwest), which consists of the municipalities
Bindal,
Sømna
Sømna is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative center of Sømna is the village of Vik i Helgeland. Other villages in the municipality include Dalbotn, Sund, Vennesund, and ...
,
Brønnøy
Brønnøy is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland region. The administrative centre and commercial centre of the municipality is the town of Brønnøysund.
A secondary centre is the village of Hommelstø. Ot ...
,
Vega
Vega is the brightest star in the northern constellation of Lyra. It has the Bayer designation α Lyrae, which is Latinised to Alpha Lyrae and abbreviated Alpha Lyr or α Lyr. This star is relatively close at only from the Sun, a ...
and
Vevelstad.
* Central Helgeland, which is sometimes further divided into the regions:
** Inner Helgeland, which consists of the municipalities
Grane,
Hattfjelldal
Hattfjelldal ( sma, Aarborte) is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hattfjelldal. Other villages include Grubben, Svens ...
and
Vefsn
Vefsn ( sma, Vaapste) is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Mosjøen (population: 9,843). Some of the notable villages in Vefsn i ...
.
** Outer Helgeland, which consists of the municipalities
Leirfjord
Leirfjord is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Leland. Other villages in Leirfjord include Bardalssjøen and Sundøy. The ...
,
Alstahaug,
Herøy and
Dønna
Dønna is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland region. The administrative centre of the island municipality is the village of Solfjellsjøen. Other villages include Bjørn, Dønnes, Hestad, Sandåker, and V ...
.
* Northern Helgeland, which consists of the municipalities
Hemnes
Hemnes is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Korgen. Other villages include Bjerka, Bleikvasslia, Hemnesberget, and Sund ...
,
Rana,
Nesna
Nesna is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Nesna. Other villages in Nesna include Handnesneset, Husby, Saura, and Vi ...
,
Lurøy
Lurøy is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Lurøy, located on the island of Lurøya. Other villages in Lurøy include Aldra ...
,
Træna and
Rødøy
Rødøy is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Vågaholmen. Other villages include Gjerøy, Jektvika, Kilboghamn, Melfjord ...
.
Helgeland is characterized by pointed mountains and ''Strandflaten'', a shallow lowland area, sometimes just above the sea surface, and sometimes just below the surface. People living on the coast have settled on this lowland (while inland towns, such as Mo and Mosjøen, are situated in valleys). A consequence of the ''Strandflaten'' is thousands of islands, and shallow waters going far into the sea. This has provided some shelter from stormy weather, which might occur in winter. Some islands are fairly large, often with unique mountains, such as
Torghatten
Torghatten is a granite dome on the island of Torget in Brønnøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is known for its characteristic hole, or natural tunnel, through its center. It is possible to walk up to the tunnel on a well-prepar ...
,
De syv søstre
or is a mountain range on the island of Alsten in Alstahaug Municipality in Nordland county, Norway.
The mountain range consists of seven peaks on the southeastern half of the island. The mountains are (listed from northeast to southwest):
* ...
(The Seven Sisters),
Hestmannen,
Rødøyløva (in
Rødøy
Rødøy is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Vågaholmen. Other villages include Gjerøy, Jektvika, Kilboghamn, Melfjord ...
),
Dønnamannenpicture, and
Træna. There are several sea bird colonies, such as
Lovund
Lovund is an island and village in the municipality of Lurøy in Nordland county, Norway. The island is located west of the Solvær islands and southeast of the Træna islands. Lovund is notable for the large puffin breeding colony located on th ...
picture with thousands of
puffins.
The Solvær Islands (
Solværøyene) in
Lurøy
Lurøy is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Lurøy, located on the island of Lurøya. Other villages in Lurøy include Aldra ...
consists of about 300 small and flat islands and has the highest densities of Eurasian eagle-owls in Europe.
The highest mountains, are located inland, where
Oksskolten is the highest mountain in Northern Norway. There are many valleys inland, such as the
Dunderland Valley, Vefsndalen, and
Hattfjelldal
Hattfjelldal ( sma, Aarborte) is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hattfjelldal. Other villages include Grubben, Svens ...
.
Røssvatnet
or is a lake and reservoir in the municipalities of Hattfjelldal and Hemnes in Nordland county, Norway. It has been the site of human occupation since the Stone Age. Its area of makes it the second largest lake in Norway by surface area. Wi ...
is the second largest lake in Norway. There are three large national parks in Helgeland:
Saltfjellet–Svartisen National Park (partly),
Børgefjell National Park
Børgefjell National Park ( no, Børgefjell nasjonalpark, sma, Byrkije vaarjelimmiedajve) is an undeveloped national park in Norway, straddling the border between Trøndelag and Nordland counties, along the border with Sweden. The park is undeve ...
(partly), and
Lomsdal–Visten National Park (created in May 2009).
Cultural references
Helgeland is the scene for
Henrik Ibsen's 1857 historical play "
The Vikings at Helgeland" (''Hærmændene paa Helgeland''), whose plot takes place at this region during the time of
Erik Blood-axe (c. 930–934).
Helgeland Kammerkor
Helgeland Kammerkor is a mixed choir from the region of Helgeland in Northern Norway. The choir was founded in Sandnessjøen i 1992, and currently has around 30 members. The members of Helgeland Kammerkor meet once a month for rehearsals, and g ...
, a mixed choir with members from all parts of Helgeland, have recorded an
album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...
of
folk music
Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...
from Helgeland (''Folketoner fra Helgeland'', 2005). The album contains 27 folk tunes from Helgeland, recorded in collaboration with folk musicians from the area. The album was recorded in
Alstahaug Church
Alstahaug Church ( no, Alstahaug kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in the municipality of Alstahaug in Nordland county, Norway. It is one of seven surviving medieval churches in northern Norway. Petter Dass was the vicar at this ch ...
, a 900-year-old stone church located near
Sandnessjøen
Sandnessjøen is a town and the administrative centre of Alstahaug Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. Sandnessjøen was granted special trading privileges in the late 1600s and it received town status in 1999. Sandnessjøen is located ...
.
Media gallery
File:Dønnamannen.JPG, Dønnamannen (''the Dønna man'')
File:Rødøy3.jpg, Rødøyløva mountain (the lion of Rødøy)
File:Lomsdalen.jpg, Part of the Lomsdalen-Visten National Park
File:Utsikt mot Vefsn.JPG, View from Korgfjellet mountain north of Mosjøen
File:Røssvatnet with Dårtindan & Lukttinden, 2011 June.jpg, Røssvatnet, Norway's second largest lake, located inland nearly 400 m above sea level
File:Okstinden.JPG, Okstinden mountain (791 m.) in the municipality of Lurøy
References
{{reflist
External links
Helgeland on the web
Districts of Nordland