Vanylven is 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 Møre og Romsdal

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers 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 the ...

. It is part of the Sunnmøre

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

. The administrative centre is the village of

Fiskåbygd Fiskåbygd or Fiskå is a coastal village that is also the administrative centre of Vanylven Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The village is located about southwest of the city of Ålesund, about east of the village of Mykleb ...

. Other villages in the municipality include Åheim, Åram, Rovdane, Eidså, Slagnes, and Myklebost. The municipality is the 241st largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Vanylven is the 225th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 3,045. The municipality's

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical ...

is and its population has decreased by 10.1% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

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 o ...

of ''Vanelven'' was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). The spelling was later changed to Vanylven. On 1 February 1918, the area around the Syvdsfjorden (population: 1,260) was separated to become the new Syvde Municipality. This left Vanylven with 1,848 residents. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the

Schei Committee The Schei Committee ( no, Schei-komitéen) was a committee named by the Government of Norway to look into the organization of municipalities in Norway post-World War II. It convened in 1946, and its formal name was (The 1946 Committee on Municip ...

. On 1 January 1964, Syvde Municipality (population: 1,458) and the

Rovdestranda Rovdane or Rovde is a village in Vanylven Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located along the Rovdefjorden, about north of the village of Myklebost, Vanylven, Myklebost, northeast of the municipal center of Fiskåbygd, and ...

area (population: 436) of

Rovde Municipality Rovde is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1905 until its dissolution in 1964. Rovde included the area on both the north and south sides of the Rovdefjorden. The northern area on the isla ...

were both merged into Vanylven Municipality. This gave Vanylven a new population of 3,897. On 1 January 2002, the mainland Åram area north of

(population: 380) was transferred from Sande Municipality to Vanylven Municipality.

Name

The municipality is named after

Vanylvsfjorden Vanylvsfjorden is a fjord in western Norway, on the border of Vestland and Møre og Romsdal counties. The long fjord runs between the mainland of Vanylven Municipality and the Stad peninsula of Stad Municipality, with the islands of Sande Muni ...

( non, Vaniflir). The meaning of the first element is unknown, but the last element (''-iflir'') is also found in the names

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 ...

and

Sykkylven Sykkylven is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the Sunnmøre region. The administrative centre is the village of Aure. Other villages in the municipality include Ikornnes, Straumgjerde, and Tusvik. The municipa ...

and it probably means "

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, Förden and East Jutland Fjorde, Germany, ...

". Before 1889, the name was written ''"Vanelven"'', from 1889 to 1917 it was spelled ''"Vannelven"'', and since 1918 it has been spelled ''"Vanylven"''.

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 ...

was granted on 11 December 1987. The arms are meant to show how the

meets the sea, surrounded by the fertile green lands of Vanylven. The fertile lands and the sea which is full of herring are both important industries to the municipality.

Churches

The Church of Norway has four parishes () within the municipality of Vanylven. It is part of the Søre Sunnmøre prosti ( 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 ...

Geography

Vanylven borders the municipalities of Sande and Herøy in the north (across the Rovdefjorden).

Volda Municipality Volda is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the Sunnmøre region. The administrative centre is the village of Volda. Other villages in the municipality include Dravlaus, Fyrde, Straumshamn, Leira, Bjørke, and ...

lies to the east; and the municipality of Stad (in

Vestland Vestland is a county in Norway established on 1 January 2020. The county is located in Western Norway and it is centred around the city of Bergen, Norway's second largest city. The administrative centre of the county is the city of Bergen, where t ...

county) is located to the south. Vanylven is located on the mainland of Norway and it is surrounded by several fjords. The

lies to the west and the Rovdefjorden to the north. The Syvdsfjorden cuts into the municipality from the north and it empties into the Rovdefjorden. The Syltefjorden branches off the main Vanylvsfjorden, just past the village of

Government

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

senior citizen Old age refers to ages nearing or surpassing the life expectancy of human beings, and is thus the end of the human life cycle. Terms and euphemisms for people at this age include old people, the elderly (worldwide usage), OAPs (British usage ...

services,

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

and other social services,

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

economic development In the economics study of the public sector, 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 ...

, and municipal

road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

s. The municipality is 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, rural counc ...

of elected representatives, which in turn elect a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a 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 responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

. The municipality falls under the

Møre og Romsdal District Court Møre og Romsdal District Court ( no, Møre og Romsdal tingrett) is a district court (Norway), district court located in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. This court is based at four different courthouses which are located in Volda (village), Volda ...

and the

Frostating Court of Appeal The Frostating Court of Appeal ( no, Frostating lagmannsrett) is one of six courts of appeal in the Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Trondheim. The court has jurisdiction over the counties of Trøndelag and Møre og Romsdal. ...

Municipal council

The

() of Vanylven is made up of 21 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a 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 often featur ...

breakdown of the council is as follows:

Mayor

The mayors of Vanylven (incomplete list): *2015–present: Lena M. Landsverk Sande ( V) *2003-2015: Jan Helgøy (

KrF The Christian Democratic Party ( nb, Kristelig Folkeparti, nn, Kristeleg Folkeparti, se, Risttalaš Álbmotbellodat, , KrF) is a Christian-democratic political party in Norway founded in 1933. The party is an observer member of the European Pe ...

) *1988-2003: Jon Aasen ( Ap) *1984-1988: Jon Arne Lillebø (KrF)

Notable people

* Jacob Vidnes (1875 in Vanylven – 1940) a trade unionist, newspaper editor and politician * Marie Lovise Widnes (born 1930 in Vanylven) a poet, author, singer, composer and politician * Helge Simonnes (born 1955 in Vanylven) editor, current editor-in-chief of '' Vårt Land'' *

Else Mundal Else Olaug Mundal (born 8 November 1944) is a Norwegian philologist. She was born in Vanylven and graduated with the cand.philol. degree in 1971. She was appointed as a docent in Norse language, Norse philology at the University of Oslo in 1977. B ...

(born 1944 in Vanylven) a Norwegian philologist and academic * Maria Parr (born 1981 in Vanylven) a Norwegian children's writer

References

External links

Municipal fact sheet
from Statistics Norway *http://www.vanylven.kommune.no {{use dmy dates, date=October 2022 Sunnmøre Municipalities of Møre og Romsdal 1838 establishments in Norway