Eidskog 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 ...

Innlandet Innlandet is a county in Norway. It was created on 1 January 2020 with the merger of the old counties of Oppland and Hedmark (the municipalities of Jevnaker and Lunner were transferred to the neighboring county of Viken on the same date). ...

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 ...

. It is located in the traditional district of Vinger. 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 ...

of the municipality is the village of Skotterud. Other villages in the municipality include

Magnor Magnor is a village in Eidskog Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. The village is located from the border with Sweden. The village lies along the Norwegian National Road 2 and the Kongsvingerbanen railway line. The municipal centre, Skot ...

Matrand Matrand is a village in Eidskog Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. The village is located approximately south of the town of Kongsvinger and about north of the village of Skotterud. Matrand is approximately northwest of the border with ...

, and Åbogen. The municipality is the 181st largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Eidskog is the 155th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 6,032. The municipality's

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 ...

is and its population has decreased by 4.1% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The municipality was established on 1 January 1864 when the old Vinger Municipality was divided in two: Vinger (population: 6,226) in the north and Eidskog (population: 6,920) in the south. On 1 January 1986, the northern part of the Åbogen area (population: 14) was transferred from Kongsvinger Municipality to Eidskog Municipality.

Name

The municipality was named ''Eidskog'' (historically spelled ''Eidskogen''). 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 settlement ...

form of the name was . The first element is the

plural The plural (sometimes list of glossing abbreviations, abbreviated pl., pl, or ), in many languages, is one of the values of the grammatical number, grammatical category of number. The plural of a noun typically denotes a quantity greater than the ...

genitive case In grammar, the genitive case ( abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive can a ...

of which means "path between two lakes". The last element is which means "

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin ...

s". Thus the name means "the woods with the many ". (In historical times people traveled in small boats on the lakes and the rivers, but they had to drag the boats over the .)

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 12 September 1986. The arms show a gray background with a

black grouse The black grouse (''Lyrurus tetrix''), also known as northern black grouse, Eurasian black grouse, blackgame or blackcock, is a large game bird in the grouse family. It is a sedentary species, spanning across the Palearctic in moorland and step ...

, a common inhabitant of the many

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 in the municipality.

Forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. ...

is also one of the main sources of income in the area.

Churches

The

Church of Norway The Church of Norway ( nb, Den norske kirke, nn, Den norske kyrkja, se, Norgga girku, sma, Nöörjen gærhkoe) is an evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. The church ...

has two parishes () within the municipality of Eidskog. It is part of the

Solør, Vinger og Odal prosti The list of churches in Hamar is a list of the Church of Norway churches in the Diocese of Hamar which includes all of Innlandet county (plus two municipalities in Viken county) in Norway. The list is divided into several sections, one for each d ...

(

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Roman 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 reside ...

) in the

Diocese of Hamar The Diocese of Hamar ( no, Hamar Bispedømme) is a diocese within the Church of Norway. The Diocese of Hamar includes all of the churches in Innlandet county plus the churches in Lunner in Viken county. Administratively, the diocese is divid ...

Geography

The municipality is located in the southeastern part of

county. It is bordered to the north by the municipality of

Kongsvinger Kongsvinger () is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Glåmdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kongsvinger. Other settlements in the municipality include Aus ...

(in Innlandet) and in the west by

Aurskog-Høland Aurskog-Høland is a municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the Romerike traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Bjørkelangen. The municipality of Rømskog, in Østfold c ...

, Nes (both in

Viken Viken may refer to: *Viken, Scandinavia, a historical region *Viken (county), a Norwegian county established in 2020 *Viken, Sweden, a bimunicipal locality in Skåne County, Sweden *Viken (lake), a lake in Sweden, part of the part of the Göta cana ...

and Sør-Odal (in Innlandet). Eidskog also borders

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 ...

, both to the east and south. The lakes Digeren, Mangen, and

Skjervangen Skjervangen is a lake in the municipality of Eidskog in Innlandet county, Norway. The lake lies less than northwest of the border with Sweden and about southwest of the village of Skotterud. See also *List of lakes in Norway This is a li ...

are all located in Eidskog.

History

The name ''Eidskog'' is ancient and was used for the southern part of Vinger, the region between today's

in Norway and

Arvika Arvika is a locality and the seat of Arvika Municipality, Värmland County, Sweden with 14,244 inhabitants in 2010. Geography The town of Arvika is situated at Kyrkviken, a bay of Glafsfjorden, Sweden's only inland fjord, a remnant of the time f ...

in Sweden. The Vinger Royal Road ( no, Eskoleia) historically traveled through Eidskog (and continues today as the

Norwegian National Road 2 Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

). It was one of the most important traffic arteries between Norway and Sweden. The name Eidskog was already in use during 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 ...

period and became, after the

canonization Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of ...

of Saint Olaf and important pilgrim's route from

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

Nidaros Cathedral Nidaros Cathedral ( no, Nidarosdomen / Nidaros Domkirke) is a Church of Norway cathedral located in the city of Trondheim in Trøndelag county. It is built over the burial site of King Olav II (c. 995–1030, reigned 1015–1028), who became t ...

. During the 12th century, the

Eidskog Church Eidskog Church ( no, Eidskog kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Eidskog Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the village of Matrand. It is one of the churches for the Eidskog parish which is part of the Sol� ...

was built. It was a

stave church A stave church is a medieval wooden Christian church building once common in north-western Europe. The name derives from the building's structure of post and lintel construction, a type of timber framing where the load-bearing ore-pine posts ar ...

built in Midtskog (which means no, middle of the woods). The present

is built on the same site (now called

) and this building was constructed in 1665. The way through Eidskog was also militarily important and many times through history has been the point of Swedish strikes into Hedmark. To defend against these assaults, a number of

fortifications A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''face ...

were built in the vicinity, including ones at

and Matrand, but the chief fortification was

Kongsvinger Fortress Kongsvinger Fortress ( no, Kongsvinger festning) is located in the city and municipality of Kongsvinger in the county of Hedmark, Norway. It is situated on a hill west and north of the Glomma river, standing astride the ancient Vinger Royal Ro ...

(to the north). The last Swedish attack through Eidskog was in 1814 when

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

Carl Pontus Gahn Carl Pontus Gahn (1 March 1759 – 9 May 1825) was a Swedish military officer who participated in the Russo-Swedish War in Finland in 1788–1789, the Finnish War campaign in Norway in 1808 and the unsuccessful invasion of Norway at Eidskog in ...

on July 31 crossed the border and marched against Kongsvinger. His forces were stopped at Lier outside Kongsvinger on 2 August 1814 by troops led by

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colon ...

Andreas Samuel Krebs Andreas Samuel Krebs (10 March 1766 – 28 March 1818) was a Danish-Norwegian army officer. Early years Born on 10 March 1766 at Tønder in Sønderjylland, Krebs was the son of vicar Peter Ditlev Krebs and Birgitte Marie Lutz. Originally, he was ...

(1769-1818) and retreated to Eidskog. On 4 August 1814, Krebs followed after to drive Swedish troops off Norwegian territory. The two forces met in the

Battle of Matrand The Battle of Matrand ( no, Slaget ved Matrand) was a military battle on 5 August 1814 between Norwegian and Swedish forces as part of the Swedish-Norwegian War of 1814. The battle took place near the village of Matrand in Eidskog and at Sk ...

which was the bloodiest battle of the war and ended with a Norwegian victory. Later in 1814, Norway was joined in union with Sweden and the confrontations at the Eidskog border ended. The

Soot Canal The Soot Canal ( no, Sootkanalen) was a canal system located in Eidskog Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. Constructed in 1849, it has Norway's oldest sluice gates. It was the work of Engebret Soot (1786-1859). It was built to allow timber ...

, constructed in 1849, has Norway's oldest

sluice Sluice ( ) is a word for a channel controlled at its head by a movable gate which is called a sluice gate. A sluice gate is traditionally a wood or metal barrier sliding in grooves that are set in the sides of the waterway and can be considered ...

gates. It was the work of

Engebret Soot Engebret Olsen Soot (26 May 1786 – 3 March 1859) was a Norwegian engineer. He was one of Norway's first canal builders and joined the timber channels at Otteid and Mangen-Grasmo. He is known as the father of the Fredrikshald Canal (now known a ...

(1786–1859). It was built to allow timber to be transported (floated) to the

Halden Halden (), between 1665 and 1928 known as Fredrikshald, is both a town and a municipality in Viken county, Norway. The municipality borders Sarpsborg to the northwest, Rakkestad to the north and Aremark to the east, as well as the Swedish ...

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

s. The canal was long and had 16 locks which extended from Lake

at above sea level up to Lake Mortsjølungen at above sea level. The route through Eidskog became an important connection between the two countries; this was strengthened with the opening of the ''Grenseban'' railway in 1862, which connected Christiania to

Stockholm Stockholm () is the capital and largest city of Sweden as well as the largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people live in the municipality, with 1.6 million in the urban area, and 2.4 million in the metropo ...

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Eidskog, 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 ...

(through 10th grade), outpatient

health services Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health profe ...

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 refe ...

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 adminis ...

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 o ...

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 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 ...

. The municipality falls under the Romerike og Glåmdal District Court and the

Eidsivating Court of Appeal The Eidsivating Court of Appeal ( no, Eidsivating lagmannsrett) is one of six courts of appeal in the Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Hamar. The court has jurisdiction over the counties of Innlandet and eastern Viken. Thes ...

Municipal council

The

of Eidskog is made up of 25 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 featu ...

breakdown of the council is as follows:

Mayors

The mayors of Eidskog: *1864-1872: Henry T. Fearnley *1872-1879: Haagen Pedersen Malmer *1879-1895: Meldal Johnsen *1895-1897: O. Løken *1897-1905: Hans Taugbøl *1905-1907: O. Løken *1908-1913: Otto Pramm *1913-1915: Ole Syversen Fagernæs ( V) *1915: M. T. Huse *1915-1916: Olof Nilsson *1917-1919: Otto Pramm *1920-1922: H. A. Rambøl *1923-1928: Thorvald Taugbøl *1929-1934: Kaspar Billerud *1935-1945: Selmer Alm ( Ap) *1945-1947: Hallgrim Sørli ( Ap) *1948-1963: Sigurd Skjørberg *1964-1981: Ivar Delviken *1982-1983: Kaare Fjeld *1984-1999: Kåre Delviken *1999-2005:

Ivar Skulstad Ivar Arne Skulstad (born 16 May 1953) is a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. He was born in Eidskog as a son of an industrial laborer and a shop worker. He spent his career in the Norwegian Army from 1972 to 1973, Magnor Glassverk from ...

( Ap) *2005-2007:

Greta Storm Ofteland Greta may refer to: *Greta (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name Places * Greta Bridge, village in County Durham, England * Greta, New South Wales, town in Australia ** Greta railway station ** Greta Army Camp, form ...

( Ap) *2007-2015: Knut Gustav Woie ( Sp) *2015–present: Kamilla Thue ( Ap) Morokulien

Attractions

- the first

lock Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

constructed in Norway, used for log floating * Grenselosmuseet - museum on the route for escape to Sweden during the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

* Oppistun Børli - poet Hans Børli's home * Morokulien - memorial to the long lasting peace with Sweden * Rønning Treski - last wood ski producer in Norway

Notable residents

Portrett av Erik Werenskiold, 1880(cropped)

Erik Werenskiold Erik Theodor Werenskiold (11 February 1855 – 23 November 1938) was a Norwegian painter and illustrator. He is especially known for his drawings for the Asbjørnsen and Moe collection of '' Norske Folkeeventyr'', and his illustrations for ...

(1855 in Eidskog – 1938) a Norwegian painter and illustrator * Konrad Hirsch (1900 in Eidskog – 1924) Swedish footballer, played in

1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1924), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIIe olympiade) and also known as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The o ...

Julla Sæthern Julie Therese "Julla" Sæthern (4 December 1901 – 1981) was a Norwegian barrister, feminist and politician. She was born in Eidskog to Lauritz Sæthern and Martha Nilsson, and graduated as cand.jur. in 1938. From 1953 to 1959 she chaired ...

(1901 in Eidskog – 1981) a Norwegian barrister, feminist and politician *

Hans Børli Hans Børli (8 December 1918 – 26 August 1989) was a Norwegian poet and writer, who besides his writings worked as a lumberjack all his life. Biography Hans Georg Nilsen Børli was born at Eidskog in Hedmark, Norway. He was the fifth of ...

(1918 at Eidskog – 1989) a Norwegian poet, writer and

lumberjack Lumberjacks are mostly North American workers in the logging industry who perform the initial harvesting and transport of trees for ultimate processing into forest products. The term usually refers to loggers in the era (before 1945 in the Unite ...

Torgrim Sollid Torgrim Sollid (born 17 June 1942) is a Norwegian self-taught traditional folk musician, composer and jazz musician (trumpet, flugelhorn, and drums), known for combining folk music with jazz, and for playing in the Jan Garbarek Quartet and War ...

(born 1942 in Eidskog) a composer and folk and jazz musician *

(born 1953) politician, Mayor of Eidskog 1999 to 2005 * Kristin Solli Schøien (born 1954) an author and composer, lives in Eidskog * Max Ivan Lindkjølen (born 1956) chef and entrepreneur *

Remi Eriksen Remi Eriksen (born 1967) is the current Group President and Chief Executive Officer of DNV, an international classification society and certification body Professional certification, trade certification, or professional designation, often calle ...

(born 1967) Group President and CEO of DNV GL, a classification society *

Wilhelm Brenna Wilhelm Brenna (born 8 October 1979) is a retired Norwegian ski jumper. In the World Cup he finished once among the top 15, with a thirteenth place from Kuopio Kuopio (, ) is a Finnish city and municipality located in the region of Northern ...

(born 1979) a retired Norwegian ski jumper, junior world champion *

Andreas Ulvo Andreas Ulvo (born 22 July 1983 in Kongsvinger, Norway) is a Norwegian jazz pianist, organist, keyboardist and composer, known from cooperations with Shining, Ingrid Olava, Mathias Eick Quartet, Solveig Slettahjell & Slow Motion Orchestra, K ...

(born 1983) a jazz pianist, organist, keyboardist and composer

References

External links

* *
Municipal fact sheet
from

Statistics Norway Statistics Norway ( no, Statistisk sentralbyrå, 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 ye ...

Culture in Eidskog on the map
{{use dmy dates, date=March 2022 Municipalities of Innlandet 1864 establishments in Norway