Vartdal is a former municipality in

Møre og Romsdal Møre og Romsdal (; en, Møre and Romsdal) is a county in the northernmost part of Western Norway. It borders the counties of Trøndelag, Innlandet, and Vestland. The county administration is located in the town of Molde, while Ålesund is the ...

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 t ...

. The municipality existed from 1895 until its dissolution in 1965. The area now sits in the northwestern part of the

Ørsta is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Møre og Romsdal Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Sunnmøre Districts of Norway, region of Western Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Ørsta ( ...

municipality, along the

Vartdalsfjorden Vartdalsfjorden is a fjord (more technically, a strait) in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It begins at the Storfjorden and Sulafjorden in the northeast and flows through the municipalities of Hareid and Ulstein on the northern shore of the fj ...

. The

administrative centre An administrative center 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 administrative language (such as Belgium, Lu ...

was the village Sætre, which is also known as Vartdal. Other villages in the municipality were

Flåskjer Flåskjer is a small village in the municipality of Ørsta, Møre og Romsdal, Norway. It is located along the European route E39 highway about southwest of the village of Sætre in the Vartdal district of Ørsta. It lies at the entrance to the ...

and

Nordre Vartdal Nordre Vartdal is a village in the Vartdal area of the municipality of Ørsta, Møre og Romsdal, Norway. The village is located along the Vartdalsfjorden about northeast of the village of Sætre. The village sits at the entrance to the Ådale ...

. The main church for Vartdal was

Vartdal Church Vartdal Church ( no, Vartdal kyrkje) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in the municipality of Ørsta in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located in the village of Nordre Vartdal, along the Vartdalsfjorden. It is the church for the ...

, located in the village of Nordre Vartdal.

History

The municipality was established on 1 January 1895 when all of

Ulstein Ulstein is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the Sunnmøre region. The commercial and administrative centre of Ulstein is the town of Ulsteinvik. The municipality occupies the western half of the island of Hareid ...

located south of the

was separated from the rest of that municipality to form a new municipality which was called ''Vartdalsstrand''. The new municipality had an initial population of 736. The name was officially shortened to ''Vartdal'' in 1918. 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, Vartdal was merged with the neighboring municipalities of

Hjørundfjord Hjørundfjord is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The municipality is now a part of the municipality of Ørsta. The administrative centre was the village ...

and

to form the new, larger Ørsta. Prior to the merger, Vartdal had a population of 1,315.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Vartdal, are responsible for

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

(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 (human activity), w ...

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 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 o ...

, 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 counci ...

elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population ...

representatives, which in turn elects 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 a ...

Municipal council

The

of Vartdal was made up of 17 representatives that were 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 feature f ...

breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows:

Notable residents

* Helge Barstad,

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

* Eldar Westre,

Baker A baker is a tradesperson who bakes and sometimes sells breads and other products made of flour by using an oven or other concentrated heat source. The place where a baker works is called a bakery. History Ancient history Since grains ha ...

References

{{Authority control Ørsta Former municipalities of Norway 1895 establishments in Norway 1964 disestablishments in Norway