Gausdal is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Gudbrandsdal. 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 Segalstad bru. Other villages in Gausdal include Follebu, Forset, and Svingvoll. The municipality is the 91st largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Gausdal is the 157th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 6,079. The municipality's population density is and its population has decreased by 1.3% over the previous 10-year period.

Logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks or skeleton cars. Logging is the beginning of a supply chain ...

, farming, and tourism are important industries in the municipality.

General information

The parish of Gausdal was established as a civil municipality on 1 January 1838 (see

formannskapsdistrikt () is the name for Norwegian local self-government districts that were legally enacted on 1 January 1838. This system of municipalities was created in a bill approved by the Parliament of Norway and signed into law by King Carl Johan on 14 January ...

law). On 1 January 1867, a small area of neighboring Øyer Municipality (population: 40) was transferred into Gausdal. In 1879, the municipality of Gausdal was divided into two separate municipalities: Vestre Gausdal in the northwest (population: 2,362) and Østre Gausdal in the southeast (population: 5,911). On 27 July 1956, a small area of

Sør-Fron Sør-Fron is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hundorp. Other villages in the municipality include Gålå, Harpe ...

municipality (population: 7) was transferred to the neighboring municipality of Vestre Gausdal. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1962, the two municipalities of Vestre Gausdal (population: 2,590) and Østre Gausdal (population: 3,942) were merged into a new Gausdal Municipality.

Name

The municipality (and parish) were named after the valley in which it is located. The Old Norse form of the name was non, Gausdalr. The first element comes from the river Gausa which flows through the valley and the last element is ''dalr'' which means " valley" or "dale". The river name is derived from the verb non, gjósa which means "stream forcefully".

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 19 September 1986. The official blazon is "

Per fess In heraldry, the field (heraldry), field (background) of a escutcheon (heraldry), shield can be divided into more than one area, or subdivision, of different tincture (heraldry), tinctures, usually following the lines of one of the ordinary (heral ...

azure Azure may refer to: Colour * Azure (color), a hue of blue ** Azure (heraldry) ** Shades of azure, shades and variations Arts and media * ''Azure'' (Art Farmer and Fritz Pauer album), 1987 * Azure (Gary Peacock and Marilyn Crispell album), 2013 ...

and argent, a single stair step section slanting outwards" ( no, Delt av blått og sølv ved enkelt trappesnitt skrått utover). This means the arms have a field (background) that is divided horizontally in the shape of a stair step that is slanting to the right. The field has a tincture of blue on the top part and argent on the bottom part. Argent means it is colored white most of the time, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The arms were designed to mimic the shape of one of the main mountains in the municipality,

Skeikampen Skeikampen is a mountain located in Gausdal Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. The tall mountain is located about to the northwest of the village of Svingvoll. The area is heavily dependent on recreation which is dominated by the Skeikam ...

. The bottom argent part represents the snowy mountain and the top blue part represents the sky. The arms were designed by Inger Line Thallaug.

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 b ...

has five parishes () within the municipality of Gausdal. It is part of the Sør-Gudbrandsdal prosti (

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 residenc ...

) 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 divided ...

History

The old

Follebu Church Follebu Church ( no, Follebu kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Gausdal Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the village of Follebu. It is the church for the Follebu parish which is part of the Sør-Gudbrand ...

was built of stone in the early Middle Ages (around 1250). It is unusual in that the chancel and nave were built as one continuous piece. In the 1880s, there was mining for nickel in the

Espedalen Espedalen is a valley in the Sør-Fron and Gausdal municipalities of Innlandet county, Norway. The long valley is a continuation of the Gausdalen valley, which itself is a side valley that branches off of the main Gudbrandsdal valley in Eastern ...

valley in the northwest part of the municipality. The search for nickel was taken up again in 2004 by Blackstone Venture, a Canadian company. As of 2006, they are still drilling for mineral samples only.

Geography

Gausdal is bordered on the northwest by Sør-Fron Municipality, on the northeast by Ringebu Municipality and Øyer Municipality, on the southeast by

Lillehammer Municipality Lillehammer Municipality is the local government for Lillehammer, Norway. The administration is located in the town of Lillehammer. The municipality is governed by a 47-member municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a ...

, on the south by Nordre Land Municipality, and on the southwest by Nord-Aurdal Municipality and Øystre Slidre Municipality. The famous Peer Gynt mountain road begins here and leads to the town of

Vinstra Vinstra is a town in Nord-Fron Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. The town is the administrative centre of the municipality. The town is located in the Gudbrandsdalen valley, at the confluence of the Gudbrandsdalslågen river and the Vins ...

. A popular ski area is located on the south slope of

mountain. Western tributaries of the Gudbrandsdalslågen river include the Gausa River, which flows through Gausdalen valley. The lake Dokkfløyvatn is located in the municipality. Norway's smallest national park, Ormtjernkampen National Park, lies within the municipality.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Gausdal, 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 Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the preventive healthcare, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, treatment, wiktionary:amelioration, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other disability, physical and menta ...

, senior citizen services, unemployment 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, economic development, and municipal roads. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of elected representatives, which in turn elects a mayor. The municipality falls under the

Vestre Innlandet District Court Vestre Innlandet District Court ( no, Vestre Innlandet tingrett) is a district court (Norway), district court located in Innlandet county, Norway. This court is based at four different courthouses which are located in Gjøvik (town), Gjøvik, Fag ...

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. These ...

Municipal council

The municipal council of Gausdal is made up of 23 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the council is as follows:

Mayors

The mayors of Gausdal (incomplete list): *1962-1970: Reidar Engjom ( Ap) *1970-1975: Bjørn Midtlien ( Ap) *1976-1982: Kristian Baukhol ( Ap) *1983-1991: Nils Nygard ( Ap) *1992-1993: Liv Røe Johnsen ( SV) *1994–2001: Inger Enger ( Sp) *2001-2007: Olav Olstad ( Sp) *2007-2011: Mona B. Nicolaysen ( Sp) *2011-2019: Hans Oddvar Høistad ( Ap) *2019–present: Anette Musdalslien ( Sp)

Notable residents

Public service

Abraham Pihl Abraham Pihl (3 October 1756 – 20 May 1821) was a Norwegian clergyman, astronomer, and architect. Biography Abraham Pihl was born in Gausdal, in Oppland county, Norway. He completed priest study at the University of Copenhagen in 1783 wher ...

(1756 in Gausdal – 1821) a Norwegian clergyman, astronomer and architect *

Hakon Adelsteen Sommerfeldt Håkon Adelsteen Sommerfeldt (25 January 1811 – 22 January 1888) was a Norwegian naval officer and ship designer. He was born in Gausdal in Oppland, Norway. In 1826 he entered the Royal Norwegian Naval Academy (''Sjøkrigsskolen'') in F ...

(1811 in Gausdal – 1888) a Norwegian naval officer and ship designer * Sigurd Fougner (1879 in Østre Gausdal – 1959) a

Norwegian Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Norway (Norwegian language, Norwegian Bokmål: ''(Norges) Høyesterett''; Norwegian Nynorsk: ''(Noregs) Høgsterett''; lit. ‘Highest Court’) was established in 1815 on the basis of section 88 in the Constitution of Norway ...

judge * Reidar Engjom, (Norwegian Wiki) (1907 - Gausdal - 1970) a Norwegian politician

The Arts

Simen Fougner Simen Fougner (1701–1783) was a Norwegian farmer, poet and non-fiction writer. Simen Amundsen Fougner was born at Fougner in Follebu parish of Gausdal district (''Fougner søndre, Follebu, Østre Gausdal'') in Oppland, Norway. He was the son o ...

(1701 in Follebu – 1783) a Norwegian farmer, poet and non-fiction writer * Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson (1832–1910) a Norwegian author and

Nobel Prize in Literature ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , caption = , awarded_for = Outstanding contributions in literature , presenter = Swedish Academy , holder = Annie Ernaux (2022) , location = Stockholm, Sweden , year = 1901 , ...

winner in 1903; lived in ''Aulestad'' in Follebu, 1874-1910 *

Iver Holter Iver Paul Fredrik Holter (13 December 1850 – 27 January 1941) was a Norwegian composer. He was conductor and music director of the Oslo Philharmonic for a quarter century. Biography Iver Paul Fredrik Holter was born in Gausdal, Oppland, N ...

(1850 in Gausdal – 1941) a

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

and

conductor Conductor or conduction may refer to: Music * Conductor (music), a person who leads a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra. * ''Conductor'' (album), an album by indie rock band The Comas * Conduction, a type of structured free improvisation ...

of the

Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra The Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra is a Norwegian orchestra based in Bergen. Its principal concert venue is the Grieg Hall. History Established in 1765 under the name ''Det Musicalske Selskab'' (The Musical Society), it later changed its name t ...

1882-1886 *

Ole Amundsen Buslett Ole Amundsen Buslett (May 28, 1855 – June 5, 1924) was a Norwegian-born American author, newspaperman, and politician. Background Ole Amundsen Buslett was born in Gausdal, Oppland, Norway. Buslett was the oldest of eight children born to Amu ...

(1855 in Gausdal – 1924) Norwegian-American author, newspaperman, and politician *

Clara Tschudi Clara Tschudi (9 September 1856 – 10 November 1945) was a Norwegian writer. She was born in Tønsberg. She is best known for her biographies of contemporary and historical women. Among her publications are the book ''Kvindebevægelsen, den ...

(1856–1945) a Norwegian writer; lived in Gausdal *

Hans Aanrud Hans Aanrud (3 September 1863 – 11 January 1953) was a Norwegian writer. He wrote plays, poetry, and stories depicting rural life in his native Gudbrandsdal, Norway. Life Aanrud, who came from a rural family, was born and raised in Auggedal ...

(1863–1953) a writer of plays, poetry and stories of rural life in Gudbrandsdalen; raised in Auggedalen * Inge Krokann (1893 – 1962 in Gausdal) a writer who wrote idiosyncratic nynorsk works *

Carl Gustav Sparre Olsen Carl Gustav Sparre Olsen (April 25, 1903 – November 8, 1984) was a Norwegian violinist and composer. His composition style is lyrical with a strong grounding in Norwegian folk tunes. Life Carl Gustav Sparre Olsen was born in Stavanger, Norway. ...

(1903–1984) a violinist and composer of Norwegian folk tunes; lived in Gausdal 1947-1966 *

Magne Elvestrand Magne Elvestrand (February 17, 1914 – July 31, 1991) was a Norwegian pianist and harpsichordist, best known as an organist. Elvestrand was born in Østre Gausdal. His father was an organist at Østre Gausdal Church and Follebu Church, and he all ...

(1914 in Østre Gausdal – 1991) a pianist, harpsichordist and organist * Else Kveine, (Norwegian Wiki) (1933 in Gausdal - 2013) a Norwegian poet

Sport

* Christen Smed, (Norwegian Wiki) (1797 in Gausdal - 1846) mountaineer, climbed

Romsdalshornet Romsdalshornet is a mountain in the municipality of Rauma in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The mountain is located southeast of the town of Åndalsnes, along the Rauma River in the Romsdalen valley. The Rauma railway line and the European ...

Mattis Stenshagen Mattis Stenshagen (born 13 August 1996) is a Norwegian cross-country skier. At the 2015 Junior World Championships he finished eighth at best, but in 2016 he won a gold medal in relay and the silver medal in the 15 km race. At the 2018 Junior ...

(born 1996 in Follebu) a Norwegian cross-country skier

Sister cities

Gausdal has sister city agreements with the following places:: * –

Mora Mora may refer to: People * Mora (surname) Places Sweden * Mora, Säter, Sweden * Mora, Sweden, the seat of Mora Municipality * Mora Municipality, Sweden United States * Mora, Louisiana, an unincorporated community * Mora, Minnesota, a city * M ...

, Dalarna County,

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 country located on ...

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 yea ...

* *
Tourist informationGausdølen
- local newspaper
Art of the States: Bright Days of Little Sunlight
musical work inspired by the mountains near Gausdal {{use dmy dates, date=August 2022 Municipalities of Innlandet Valleys of Innlandet 1838 establishments in Norway 1879 disestablishments in Norway 1962 establishments in Norway