Ask is a small village in the eastern part of

Askøy Askøy is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The island municipality is located in the Midhordland district of the county, sitting in a large group of islands immediately northwest of the city of Bergen. The administrative centre of the ...

municipality in

Vestland Vestland is a Counties of Norway, 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 cit ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, 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 ...

. The village lies along the Byfjorden on the eastern shore of the island of

. The village of Ask is well known for the farming of

strawberries The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...

which are sold in the marketplace in the nearby city of

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, secon ...

during the summer season. The village has a population (2019) of 1,562 and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

of .

Due to its pleasant climate and its location on an island near Bergen, Ask was the location of a ''kongsgård'' (i.e., royal farm – the Norwegian equivalent of a palace estate). ''Ask gård'' (literally Ask farm), with the farm number 1, was the basis for the name of Askøy. This was also the site of the extremely old church and churchyard which was in use from around the year 1200 until 1741. Today the old church site is marked by a stone cross. A newer

Ask Church Ask Church ( no, Ask kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Askøy Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Ask, on the eastern coast of the island of Askøy. It is the church for the Ask parish which ...

was built in the centre of Ask in 1741. Ask village is the

saga is a series of science fantasy role-playing video games by Square Enix. The series originated on the Game Boy in 1989 as the creation of Akitoshi Kawazu at Square. It has since continued across multiple platforms, from the Super NES to th ...

location for a famous dispute over inheritance between

Egill Skallagrímsson Egil Skallagrímsson (Old Norse: ; Modern Icelandic: ; 904 995) was a Viking Age war poet, sorcerer, berserker, and farmer.Thorsson, 3 He is known mainly as the anti-hero of '' Egil's Saga''. ''Egil's Saga'' historically narrates a period fro ...

and Berg-Önundr. When Berg-Önundr refused to allow Egill to claim his wife Ásgerðr's share of her father's inheritance, Egill challenged Önundr to a

holmgang Holmgang (holmganga in Old Norse, hólmganga in modern Icelandic, holmgång in Swedish, holmgang in Danish and Norwegian bokmål and nynorsk) is a duel practiced by early medieval Scandinavians. It was a legally recognized way to settle disput ...

. The local

dialect The term dialect (from Latin , , from the Ancient Greek word , 'discourse', from , 'through' and , 'I speak') can refer to either of two distinctly different types of linguistic phenomena: One usage refers to a variety of a language that is ...

of the village also reflects the continuing close tie to Bergen, with the dialect being more similar to that of

than that of the rest of Askøy; the connection was reinforced into modern times as the wealthy merchants and other residents of Bergen summered there. Ask has had famous residents up to recent times.

Fridtjof Nansen Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen (; 10 October 186113 May 1930) was a Norwegian polymath and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He gained prominence at various points in his life as an explorer, scientist, diplomat, and humanitarian. He led the team t ...

lived in a house near ''Kongshaugen'' in a short period. Amalie Skram lived at ''Lien'' at Ask, near ''Ask Dambruk'', from 1876 to 1878, in the same house where the headmaster, ''Nils Peder Åland'', lived for 40 years.

Older history

The legendary Scandinavian hero and

skald A skald, or skáld (Old Norse: , later ; , meaning "poet"), is one of the often named poets who composed skaldic poetry, one of the two kinds of Old Norse poetry, the other being Eddic poetry, which is anonymous. Skaldic poems were traditional ...

whose adventures are retold in

Gesta Danorum ''Gesta Danorum'' ("Deeds of the Danes") is a patriotic work of Danish history, by the 12th-century author Saxo Grammaticus ("Saxo the Literate", literally "the Grammarian"). It is the most ambitious literary undertaking of medieval Denmark an ...

and in the legendary sagas,

Starkad ''Starkad'' ( non, Starkaðr or ; Latin: ''Starcaterus''; in the Late Middle Ages also ''Starkodder''; modern Danish: ''Stærkodder'')The article ''Starkad'' in ''Nationalencyklopedin''. was either an eight-armed giant or the human grandson of ...

, as well as

Egil Skallagrimson Egil or Egill is a masculine given name derived from Old Norse. It may refer to: Characters *Egil (Hymiskvida), farmer in the poem ''Hymiskvida'' *Egil, brother of Volund, hero of Völundarkviða and the Thidreks saga *Egil One-Hand, hero from the ...

of historic saga fame and the last

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdio ...

in Norway, Olav Engelbrektsson,

Archbishop of Nidaros The Archdiocese of Nidaros (or Niðaróss) was the metropolitan see covering Norway in the later Middle Ages. The see was the Nidaros Cathedral, in the city of Nidaros (now Trondheim). The archdiocese existed from the middle of the twelfth cent ...

, have connections to Ask. The

sagas is a series of science fantasy role-playing video games by Square Enix. The series originated on the Game Boy in 1989 as the creation of Akitoshi Kawazu at Square. It has since continued across multiple platforms, from the Super NES to th ...

mention Ask as early as the 6th century. King Hertjov of

Hordaland Hordaland () was a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark, and Rogaland counties. Hordaland was the third largest county, after Akershus and Oslo, by population. The county government was the Hordaland County Municipa ...

traveled to

Agder Agder is a county (''fylke'') and traditional region in the southern part of Norway. The county was established on 1 January 2020, when the old Vest-Agder and Aust-Agder counties were merged. Since the early 1900s, the term Sørlandet ("south ...

and took with him two boys named Stakard and Vikar. As was common in the period, he asked Grane, who held the land (farm) of Ask, to raise these boys. As they grew, they became great hunters and warriors. As warriors, the boys revenged attacks on Ask by

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

s from Hordaland, who had robbed villages in

. Ask became their new home until Vikar was killed by an accident. After this, Stakard had to leave the country. He was known in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...

Egils saga ''Egill's Saga'' or ''Egil's saga'' ( non, Egils saga ; ) is an Icelandic saga (family saga) on the lives of the clan of Egill Skallagrímsson (Anglicised as Egill Skallagrimsson), an Icelandic farmer, viking and skald. The saga spans the year ...

tells that in the 9th century, ''Torgeir Tyrnefot'' owned Ask. His son was ''Berg Onund''. Berg Onund was killed in an attack led by

, one of the most powerful men on

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its ...

. As revenge for a miscarriage in inheritance in around 960, Egil travel with his men through Herdlafjorden and to Ask, where they arrive at the farm, killing 15 or 16 men and pillaging. The first church in Askøy was most probably built at the pagan ''sacrifice mountain'' located at Ask.

Olav Engelbrektsson was the last Catholic

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

. His final residence was in Bergen and as the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

spread throughout Norway in 1534, he took refuge at Ask. Mauritz Bostede bought Ask in 1628. Other well-known men from Bergen have also owned Ask for extended periods. Thomas Ericssen built a large house in the area and Thomas Ericssen Minde from 1795 is the only building at Askøy from that period that is preserved today.

Later history

Since Ask is located only northwest of

(across the Byfjorden), around the years 1880-1890 there was a resurgence in the popularity of Ask as a vacation destination from Bergen. As a result, there were increases in commercial cargo and passenger transport by

steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. Steamboats sometimes use the ship prefix, prefix designation SS, S.S. or S/S ...

. The "''Fridtjof''" was one of the boats that went into between Ask and Bergen. When the road to

Kleppestø Kleppestø is the administrative centre of the municipality of Askøy in Vestland county, Norway. The village is located on the southern coast of the island of Askøy. The village of Florvåg lies just north of Kleppestø and the village of S ...

was constructed around 1950, the traffic at the Ask harbour decreased. The writer, Amalie Skram's first husband, Captain Bernt Ulrik August Müller, bought a watermill in the area and they lived there for some years. Emanuel Jæger started commercial strawberry production. He sent his strawberries to Fleischer's Hotel at

Voss Voss () is a municipality and a traditional district in Vestland county, Norway. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Vossevangen. Other villages include Bolstadøyri, Borstrondi, Evanger, Kvitheim, Mjølfjell, ...

. The strawberries were of the German type "Sieger" (victory) and these was very popular throughout the area in the last century.

Geography

Ask is located on the eastern part of the island of

. The

Herdlefjorden Herdlefjorden is a fjord in Vestland county, Norway. The long fjord runs between the islands of Holsnøy (in Alver Municipality) and Askøy (in Askøy Municipality). The fjord connects with the Salhusfjorden and the Byfjorden on the southe ...

is located to the east of the village and the

Nordhordland Bridge The Nordhordland Bridge ( no, Nordhordlandsbrua) is a combined cable-stayed and pontoon bridge which crosses Salhusfjorden between Klauvaneset (in Bergen Municipality) and the island of Flatøy (in Alver Municipality) in Vestland county, No ...

is visible from the village. The lake Askevatnet and extensive

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s are located in the area west of Ask.

Cultural arrangements

May Day May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. Festivities may also be held the night before, known as May Eve. Tr ...

each year, the Ask-relay is held. In 2006 the relay celebrated its 54th running.

References

*This article includes extensive translations from the Norwegian Wikipedia article on the same subject (see interwiki). {{use dmy dates, date=June 2020 Villages in Vestland Askøy