Stryn 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 ...

in the

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 ...

Vestland Vestland is a 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 city of Bergen, where t ...

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 ...

. It is located in the traditional district of

Nordfjord Nordfjord ( en, Northern fjord—in contrast to Sunnfjord) is a traditional district of Norway. Geography The region is located in the northern part of Vestland county in Western Norway. It centers on the Nordfjorden and it comprises the muni ...

. The

administrative center 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 Stryn. The municipality is located along the innermost part of the Nordfjorden. Some of the main villages in Stryn include Loen, Innvik, Utvik,

Randabygda Randabygda or Hopland is a village in Stryn Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The village is located on the northern shore of the Nordfjorden on a rather steep sloping area along the fjord. The village lies about east of the village of L ...

, Olden, and Flo. Resort Overview

Farming, forestry, fruit growing, animal breeding for furs, small manufacturing industries, tourism, and the service trades provide the main occupations. The wide river Stryneelva enters the village of Stryn from the east after meandering through the fertile Stryn Valley, from the large lake Oppstrynsvatn. The Jostedalsbreen National Park Centre is situated on the shore of this lake. At the east end of the lake, the road enters the narrower Hjelledalen and shortly zigzags up some to Ospeli and the entrance of the first of the three tunnels of the mountain highway ( Riksvei 15) leading to Geiranger and Grotli. Stryn is known for its all year

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...

ski A ski is a narrow strip of semi-rigid material worn underfoot to glide over snow. Substantially longer than wide and characteristically employed in pairs, skis are attached to ski boots with ski bindings, with either a free, lockable, or partia ...

ing at Stryn Sommerski. It is also the home of the footballer-brothers

Tore André Flo Tore André Flo (born 15 June 1973) is a Norwegian former professional football striker and coach who is the manager of 1. divisjon club Sogndal. He was capped 76 times, scoring 23 goals for Norway, and represented his country in 1998 FIFA Wor ...

, Jarle Flo and

Jostein Flo Jostein Flo (born 3 October 1964) is a Norwegian former footballer who played as a forward. Usually a centre-forward or striker, he was known for his physical playing style and aerial dominance, and was also capable of playing on the right fla ...

, who grew up in the village of Stryn, as well as their footballing-cousin

Håvard Flo Håvard Flo (born 4 April 1970) is a Norwegian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He played for Stryn TIL and Sogndal Fotball, before he left Norway in 1994 and played for AGF, SV Werder Bremen, and Wolverhampton Wanderers ...

who is from the village of Flo. The municipality is the 67th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Stryn is the 138th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 7,207. 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 increased by 2% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

'' Innvik'' was established as a

on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). The original municipality was identical to the Innvik

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 ...

''(prestegjeld)'' with the sub-parishes () of Oppstryn, Nedstryn, Loen, Olden, Innvik, and Utvik. In 1843, the sub-parishes of Loen, Oppstryn, and Nedstryn were separated from the municipality of Innvik and became a separate municipality named ''Stryn''. The population of ''Stryn'' at this time was 2,401. On 10 January 1922, the area of Raksgrenda was transferred from Innvik to Stryn. The population in this area was 120 at that time. 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 1965, a merger took place combining the following areas into a new ''Stryn'' municipality: *the municipality of Innvik (population: 3,003) *the municipality of Stryn (population: 2,982) *the parts of

Hornindal Municipality Hornindal is a former municipality in the old Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. It existed from 1867 until 1965 and then again from 1977 until 2020. It was located in the traditional district of Nordfjord. The administrative centre of the munic ...

located east of the villages of Navelsaker and Holmøyvik (population: 1,184) *the Hoplandsgrenda area in the municipality of

Gloppen Gloppen is a municipality in the county of Vestland, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Nordfjord. Gloppen is generally subdivided into three areas: Hyen in the west, Gloppen in the center, and Breim in the east. Each of the ...

(population: 42) Initially, this new municipality of Stryn had a population of 7,211. On 1 January 1977, the parts of the old

that were merged with Stryn in 1965 were transferred back to the newly re-constituted Hornindal municipality. The population of Stryn was reduced by 1,202 in this transaction. On 1 January 2019, the Maurset area in the southern part of the neighboring municipality of

Hornindal Hornindal is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in the old Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. It existed from 1867 until 1965 and then again from 1977 until 2020. It was located in the Districts of Norway, traditional di ...

(population: 19) was transferred from Hornindal to Stryn. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became part of the newly created

county after

Sogn og Fjordane Sogn og Fjordane (; English: "Sogn and Fjordane") was, up to 1 January 2020, a county in western Norway, when it was merged to become part of Vestland county. Bordering previous counties Møre og Romsdal, Oppland, Buskerud, and Hordaland, the cou ...

and

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 Munici ...

counties were merged.

Name

The name ( non, Strjónar) originally (probably) belonged to the river of Stryneelva. The name is derived from ''strjónn'' which means "(strong) stream".

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 11 December 1987. The arms are green with a gold-colored linden ( tilia) branch with four leaves. The linden was chosen to represent the vast deciduous forests in the region and the four leaves were chosen to represent the four main village areas along the fjord. Olden kyrkje, Stryn, Northeast view 20150603 1

Olden kyrkje, Stryn, Northeast view 20150603 1

Churches

The Church of Norway has eight parishes () within the municipality of Stryn. It is part of the

Nordfjord prosti Nordfjord ( en, Northern fjord—in contrast to Sunnfjord) is a traditional district of Norway. Geography The region is located in the northern part of Vestland county in Western Norway. It centers on the Nordfjorden and it comprises the mun ...

( deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Stryn, 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

Sogn og Fjordane District Court Sogn og Fjordane District Court ( no, Sogn og Fjordane tingrett) is a district court (Norway), district court located in Vestland county, Norway. This court is based at two different courthouses which are located in Førde (town), Førde and Sognd ...

and the Gulating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The

of Stryn 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 featur ...

breakdown of the council is as follows:

Mayor

The

of a municipality in Norway is a representative of the majority party of the municipal council who is elected to lead the council. The mayors of Stryn (incomplete list): *2019–present: Per Kjøllesdal ( Sp) *2011-2019: Sven Flo ( H) *1999-2011: Nils Petter Støyva (Ap) *1992-1999: Oddvin Drageset (Sp)

Geography

Location

Stryn is located on the northern border of

county. To the north, Stryn is bordered by the municicaplities of

Volda Volda is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the Sunnmøre region. The administrative centre is the village of Volda. Other villages in the municipality include Dravlaus, Fyrde, Straumshamn, Leira, Bjørke, and ...

and Stranda (in Møre og Romsdal county), to the east is

Skjåk Skjåk 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 Bismo. Most of the municipal residents live in the Billingsdalen a ...

(in

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). The ...

county), to the southeast is Luster, to the southwest is Sunnfjord, and to the west is

and Stad.

Nature

Stryn is known for its scenery,

s and the mountains running into the mirroring

fjord In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Förden and East Jutland Fjorde, Germany, ...

s and lakes. The glacier

Briksdalsbreen Briksdalsbreen ( en, the Briksdal glacier) is one of the most accessible and best known arms of the Jostedalsbreen glacier. Briksdalsbreen is located in the municipality of Stryn in Vestland county, Norway. The glacier lies on the north side of t ...

lies in the

Oldedalen Oldedalen is a river valley in Stryn Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The long valley runs north-south and ends at the Nordfjorden at the village of Olden. The south end of the valley reaches up to the great Jostedalsbreen glacier in ...

valley. The Stryn area also has a number of other valley glaciers including

Tindefjellbreen Tindefjellbreen is a glacier in the municipality of Stryn in Vestland county, Norway. The glacier lies about east of the mountain Skåla, roughly halfway between the villages of Bødalen and Erdalen. The glacier is in the mountains east of ...

, Tystigsbreen, and Myklebustbreen. Most of the valley glaciers in Stryn are originating from the great

Jostedal Jostedal is a former municipality in the old Sogn og Fjordane county in Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1963. It was located in the Jostedalen valley in the northern part of the present-day municipality of ...

glacier (

Jostedalsbreen Jostedal Glacier or is the largest glacier in continental Europe. It is in Vestland county in Western Norway. Jostedalsbreen lies in the municipalities of Luster, Sogndal, Sunnfjord, and Stryn. The highest peak in the area is Lodalskåpa at a ...

) between the

and

Sogn Sogn is a traditional district in Western Norway ''(Vestlandet)''. It is located in the county of Vestland, surrounding the Sognefjord, the largest/longest fjord in Norway. The district of Sogn consists of the municipalities of Aurland, Balestr ...

areas. Ramnefjellsfossen, the third highest free-falling waterfall in the world, is located in the municipality. Stryn also has the largest linden forest in Northern Europe. The largest lakes are Oppstrynsvatn,

Lovatnet Lovatnet (also Loenvatnet) is a lake in the municipality of Stryn in Vestland county, Norway. It is located about southeast of the village of Loen and about east of the village of Olden. The lake lies just southwest of the mountain Skåla ...

, and Oldevatnet. The mountains Skåla (Sogn og Fjordane), Skåla, Lodalskåpa, and Høgstre Breakulen are all located in Stryn.

Jostedal Glacier National Park

The Jostedalsbreen National Park has an area of approximately . Flora and fauna area is situated between the fjord and

. The museum Jostedalsbreen nasjonalparksenter is located in Oppstryn.

Briksdal glacier

Visitors from all over the world come to see the

glacier outlet, which is situated amid waterfalls and high peaks. Briksdal

is a part of the

glacier ice field, which is the largest glacier on the European mainland. The highest point of the glacier lies at above sea level and in some places it measures in depth. It is located at the end of the

valley.

Lodalen–Kjenndalen

On two occasions, large rockslides from Ramnefjellet hit the lake below. The resulting flood wave wiped out the settlements of Nesdal and Bødal, killing 135 people.

Wildlife

There are many bird species in this area including the golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos''), rough-legged buzzard (''Buteo lagopus''), and the white-backed woodpecker (''Dendrocopus leucotos''). Some of the larger mammals that live in this region are red deer (''Cervus elaphus''), wolverines (''Gulo gulo''), and Eurasian lynx, lynxes (''Lynx lynx'').

National Tourist Route

The Gamle Strynefjellsvegen is a National Tourist Route (Norwegian County Road 258, Fylkesvei 258). It goes from Grotli (

municipality in

county) to Videseter, where a waterfall is, and on to the village of Stryn (

county).

Attractions

Stryn Center

The village of Stryn, a busy and developing small village at the tip of the most northernly of the three short branches at the inner end of Nordfjorden, is the local government and shopping centre for a large community and the junction of roads which connect inner Nordfjord with the rest of

Oldedalen Valley

The southernmost of the three short branches at the inner end of Nordfjorden terminates at the village of Olden from which a lovely valley, Oldedalen, goes due south for about between slopes rising sharply to more than to the edge of the Jostedalsbreen, Jostedals glacier. Olden has two churches. The Old Olden Church in the village, was built in 1759 on the site of a Stave church dating from around 1300. Its pews, doors, and jambs are made from timbers of the Stave church. The "new" Olden Church, a short distance along the valley, was built in 1934 so that the old church could be preserved.

Loen and Lodalen Valley

The Loen Skylift is located in Loen, and Hotel Alexandra (Stryn, Norway/Leon), Hotel Alexandra is a popular tourist retreat. Loen Valley (Lodalen) is a popular attraction, and Kjenndal Glacier is located at the end of the valley (branch of the Jostedal Glacier). Much of the upper Loen valley was devastated from two rockfall slides (one in 1905 and one in 1936) that created huge waves that swept with them most of the houses and vegetation. A total of 135 people were killed in these two incidents.

Innvik and Utvik

On the southern shore of the Nordfjorden, between Hildaneset and Utvikfjellet, lie the villages of Innvik and Utvik, in the area known as Vikane. The main road (Rv 60) skirts the fjord past Innvik and ascends from Utvik to Utvikfjellet mountain. At Hildaneset, beside the main road, there is a sculpture of Mr. Singer. Mr Singer financed the building of the road.

Skiing

Stryn Sommerski is one of Norway's best known skiing facilities. It offers excellent

ing conditions in the summer, with lifts and tracks for all types of skiing, including Cross-country skiing, Alpine skiing, Telemark skiing, and snowboarding.

Notable people

* Alf Torp (1853 in Stryn – 1916) a Norwegian philologist and author * Jacob Aaland (1865 in Randabygda – 1950) a teacher, local historian, and government scholar * Thoralf Klouman (1890 in Innvik – 1940) a Norwegian satirical illustrator and actor IMDb Database
retrieved 18 September 2020 * Johannes Andenæs (1912 in Innvik – 2003) a distinguished Norwegian jurist and academic * Inge Fænn (born 1945 in Markane) a Norwegian editor, journalist and author

Sport

* Per Knut Aaland (born 1954 in Randabygda) a retired cross-country skier, team silver medallist at the 1980 Winter Olympics * brothers Kjell Rune Flo (born 1961),

(born 1964), Jarle Flo (born 1970),

(born 1973) and cousins

(born 1970), Per-Egil Flo (born 1989) and nephew Ulrik Flo (born 1988) are footballers from Flo & Stryn * Mats Solheim (born 1987 in Loen) a Norwegian footballer with over 320 club caps * Johannes Thingnes Bø (born 1993 in Stryn) a biathlete, gold medallist and twice team silver medallist at the Biathlon at the 2018 Winter Olympics, 2018 Winter Olympics

References

External links

Municipal fact sheet
from Statistics Norway
Official Website of Stryn

Official travel guide to StrynStryn summer skiingNRK: Stryn Kommune

Gamle Strynefjellsvegen
{{use dmy dates, date=October 2022 Stryn, Municipalities of Vestland 1843 establishments in Norway Ski areas and resorts in Norway