Lebesby ( sme, Davvesiida and fkv, Lebespyy) 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 ...

Troms og Finnmark Troms og Finnmark (; sme, Romsa ja Finnmárku ; fkv, Tromssa ja Finmarkku; fi, Tromssa ja Finnmark, lit. Troms and Finnmark in English), is a county in northern Norway that was established on 1 January 2020 as the result of a regional reform. ...

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 ...

. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Kjøllefjord. Other villages in the municipality include

Ifjord Ifjord ( se, Idjavuotna) is a village in the municipality of Lebesby in Finnmark, Norway. It is located at the bottom of Ifjorden, a branch of Laksefjorden Laksefjorden ( en, Lakse Fjord; sme, Lágesvuotna) is a fjord located entirely in Lebesb ...

, Kunes,

Lebesby Lebesby ( sme, Davvesiida and fkv, Lebespyy) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Kjøllefjord. Other villages in the municipality include Ifjord, Kunes, Lebesb ...

, and Veidnes. The municipality is the 8th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Lebesby is the 316th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 1,221. 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% over the previous 10-year period. The municipality consists of the western half of the

Nordkinn Peninsula Cape Nordkinn ( no, Kinnarodden or ) at is the northernmost point on the Nordkinn Peninsula in county, Norway. It is notable for being the northernmost point of mainland Norway, and by extension the northernmost point of mainland Europe. The ...

, along with areas around the

Laksefjorden Laksefjorden ( en, Lakse Fjord; sme, Lágesvuotna) is a fjord located entirely in Lebesby Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. At long, it is the third-longest fjord in Finnmark county after the Porsangerfjorden and Varangerfjorden. ...

. Most people live in the village of Kjøllefjord. This municipality is dominated by ethnic Norwegians, whereas the areas around the Laksefjorden are predominantly

Sami Acronyms * SAMI, ''Synchronized Accessible Media Interchange'', a closed-captioning format developed by Microsoft * Saudi Arabian Military Industries, a government-owned defence company * South African Malaria Initiative, a virtual expertise ...

Fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

is the mainstay of the population. The world's northernmost ''melkebruk'' (or small farm that produces milk), is in Bekkarfjord.

History

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 Lebesby was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). In 1864, the eastern part of Lebesby that surrounds the

Tanafjorden The Tanafjord or Tanafjorden ( sme, Deanuvuotna) is a large fjord in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is located in the municipalities of Tana, Gamvik, and Berlevåg. Its orientation is mainly north–south, reaching approximately from the sm ...

(population: 1,388) was separated to become the new municipality of

Tana Tana may refer to: Places Africa * Lake Tana, a lake in Ethiopia (and a source of the Nile River) * Tana Qirqos, an island in the eastern part of Lake Tana in Ethiopia, near the mouth of the Gumara River * Tana River County, a county of Coast P ...

. Tana was later separated into Tana,

Gamvik ( sme, Gáŋgaviika) is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Troms og Finnmark Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Mehamn. The other main villages in Gamvik include ...

, and

Berlevåg ( sme, Bearalváhki) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Øst-Finnmark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Berlevåg. There are two settlements in th ...

. The borders of Lebesby have remain unchanged since that time. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became part of the newly formed

county. Previously, it had been part of the old

Finnmark Finnmark (; se, Finnmárku ; fkv, Finmarku; fi, Ruija ; russian: Финнмарк) was a county in the northern part of Norway, and it is scheduled to become a county again in 2024. On 1 January 2020, Finnmark was merged with the neighbouri ...

county.

Name

''Lebesby'' is may be a Norwegianized form of a

Northern Sami Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ...

name ''Leaibbessiida''. The first element is then derived from ''leaibi'' which means "

alder Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few sp ...

" and the last element is ''siida'' which means "dwelling place" ( no, by). The other possible option is that ''Lebesby'' is a corruption of 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 settlemen ...

''Liðvarðsbýr''. That name is made up of ''Liðvarð'', a man's name, and ''býr'' which also means "dwelling place" ( no, by).

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 22 July 1988. The arms are divided yellow over black by two embattlements. The idea is that the arms represent the ''Finnkirka'' ("the Finn Church"), a

cliff In geography and geology, a cliff is an area of rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. Cliffs are common on co ...

by the sea in the municipality. This cliff formation has the appearance of a church, and in former times was used by Sami people as a place of sacrifice.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Lebesby, 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

Øst-Finnmark District Court Øst-Finnmark District Court ( no, Øst-Finnmark tingrett) was a district court located in the town of Vadsø in Finnmark county, Norway. The court served the eastern part of the county which includes the municipalities of Berlevåg, Båtsfjor ...

and the

Hålogaland Court of Appeal The Hålogaland Court of Appeal ( no, Hålogaland lagmannsrett) is one of six courts of appeal in the Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Tromsø. The court has jurisdiction over the counties of Nordland, Troms, and Finnmark as ...

Municipal council

The

of Lebesby is made up of 17 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:

Mayors

The mayors of Lebesby (incomplete list): *2019–present: Sigurd Rafaelsen ( Ap) *2010-2019: Stine Akselsen (Ap)

Geography

The municipality consists of the areas around the

, including the eastern part of the

Sværholt Peninsula The Sværholt Peninsula ( no, Sværholthalvøya) is a peninsula in Finnmark county, Norway. The peninsula lies between the Porsangerfjorden and Laksefjorden in the municipalities of Nordkapp, Lebesby, and Porsanger Porsanger ( se, Porsáŋg ...

and the western half of the

. At the entrance to the Kjøllefjorden at the northwestern tip of the Nordkinn Peninsula, one finds the spectacular ''Finnkirka'' sea cliff, so named because of its soaring spires that look like a church. On the other side of the Oksefjorden on the northern end of the peninsula, the

Kinnarodden Cape Nordkinn ( no, Kinnarodden or ) at is the northernmost point on the Nordkinn Peninsula in county, Norway. It is notable for being the northernmost point of mainland Norway, and by extension the northernmost point of mainland Europe. The c ...

cape (shared with the municipality of

) is the northernmost point on the European mainland. There are several large lakes in the municipality including Kjæsvannet, Store Måsvannet, and Suolojávri.

Birdlife

The same seacliffs mentioned above hold large numbers of breeding

seabird Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same enviro ...

s. In fact Norway's third largest seabird colony can be found in the municipality. Experiencing a seabird colony is one of nature's great experiences, here you can see and listen to thousands of birds with such species as

fulmar The fulmars are tubenosed seabirds of the family Procellariidae. The family consists of two extant species and two extinct fossil species from the Miocene. Fulmars superficially resemble gulls, but are readily distinguished by their flight on ...

and Atlantic puffin being a part of a fascinating

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...

Flora

The world's northernmost

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains ...

forest is located in this municipality, near Oksefjorden, east of Kjøllefjord ().

Climate

Culture

Churches

The Church of Norway has two parishes () within the municipality of Lebesby. It is part of the Hammerfest prosti ( deanery) in the

Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland Nord-Hålogaland ( no, Nord-Hålogaland bispedømme) is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers the Church of Norway churches in Troms og Finnmark county as well as in the territory of Svalbard. The diocese is seated in the city of Trom ...

Notable people

* Einar Wøhni (1920 in Lebesby – 1987) a Norwegian politician *

Gørild Mauseth Gørild Mauseth (born 24 April 1972) is a Norwegian actress. After graduating from the Norwegian National Academy of Theatre, she has worked at both Den Nationale Scene and Nationaltheatret (the National Theatre). She is best known for her movie a ...

(born 1972 in Kjøllefjord) a Norwegian actress IMDb Database
retrieved 17 August 2020

References

External links

*
Municipal fact sheet
from Statistics Norway
About Lebesby
{{use dmy dates, date=October 2022 Municipalities of Troms og Finnmark Populated places of Arctic Norway 1838 establishments in Norway