Sauda ''()'' 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 ...

Rogaland Rogaland () is a county in Western Norway, bordering the North Sea to the west and the counties of Vestland to the north, Vestfold og Telemark to the east and Agder to the east and southeast. In 2020, it had a population of 479,892. The admin ...

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 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

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 town of Sauda, where most of the population lives. Other villages in the municipality include

Saudasjøen Saudasjøen is a village in Sauda municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The village is located along the northern coast of the Saudafjorden about southwest of the town of Sauda. For statistical purposes it is considered a part of the urban ...

and

Amdal Amdal is a small farming village in Sauda municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The village is located just a short distance inland from the Saudafjorden, about north of the village of Saudasjøen and about west of the town of Sauda Sa ...

. Despite being in the northern part of the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

Ryfylke Ryfylke is a traditional district in the northeastern part of Rogaland county, Norway. The district is located northeast of the city of Stavanger and east of the city of Haugesund and it encompasses about 60% of the county's area. It includes ...

, Sauda participates in the

Haugaland Haugaland or Haugalandet is a traditional district situated on the western coast of Norway. Haugaland is one of the 15 traditional districts located within the Vestlandet region. Geographically, Haugaland is a peninsula between Bømlafjorden ...

et Council and is under the jurisdiction of the

Haugaland og Sunnhordland District Court Haugaland og Sunnhordland District Court ( no, Haugaland og Sunnhordland tingrett) is a district court located in Vestland and Rogaland counties in Norway. This court is based at two different courthouses which are located in Haugesund and Lei ...

. The municipality is the 197th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Sauda is the 190th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 4,525. 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 4.8% over the previous 10-year period. The town of Sauda is the fifth largest town in Rogaland county with 4,254 inhabitants (2016), and the city center is home to Northern Europe's largest melting plant, Eramet Norway AS. The municipality is situated in the mountain valleys surrounding the

Saudafjorden Saudafjord or Saudafjorden is a fjord in Rogaland county, Norway. The fjord stretches from the town of Sauda in the municipality of Sauda in the north to the village of Sand in the municipality of Suldal where the Saudafjorden and Hylsfjorden jo ...

General information

The municipality of Sauda was established in 1842 when it was separated from the large municipality of

Suldal Suldal is a municipality in the northeast corner of Rogaland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Ryfylke. Since 1965, the administrative centre of Suldal is the village of Sand i Ryfylke (prior to that it was the villa ...

. Initially, Sauda had a population of 1,584. The municipal boundaries have never changed. The municipality declared the urban area of

Sauda Sauda ''()'' is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sauda, where most of the population lives. Other villages in the municipality include Saudasjøen and Amdal. Despite being i ...

as a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an o ...

in 1999.

Name

The municipality (originally 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 or ...

) is named after the old ''Sauda'' farm ( non, Sauðar), since the first

Sauda Church Sauda Church ( no, Sauda kyrkje) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Sauda Municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located in the town of Sauda. It is the main church for the Sauda parish which is part of the Ryfylke prosti ...

was built there. The farm is now part of the village of

. The name is the plural form of ''sauðr'' which means "

spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season), a season of the year * Spring (device), a mechanical device that stores energy * Spring (hydrology), a natural source of water * Spring (mathematics), a geometric surface in the shape of a h ...

" or "issue of water". Before 1918, the name was written as "Saude" or "Søvde".

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 14 May 1976. The arms show three, vertical, jagged, silver/white lines on a blue background. The jagged lines symbolically represent a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of ...

as a means for

hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...

. Historically, power was generated by

watermill A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production ...

s, providing a possibility for the development of an

industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

in the village. Presently, the power is used for melting metal ore in smelters in the municipality.

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 one parish () within the municipality of Sauda. It is part of the

Ryfylke prosti This list of churches in Rogaland is a list of the Church of Norway churches in Rogaland county, Norway. The churches are all part of the Diocese of Stavanger. The diocese is based at the Stavanger Cathedral in the city of Stavanger. The list ...

(

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 Stavanger The Diocese of Stavanger ( no, Stavanger bispedømme) is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers all of Rogaland county in western Norway. The cathedral city is Stavanger, where the Stavanger Cathedral is located. The bishop is Anne Lise � ...

History

Archaeological excavation in

shows that people have been living in Sauda since the latest

Ice Age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...

. In 1349, the Plague/

Black Death The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...

wiped out about two-thirds of the population in Sauda, causing a decline in both population and economy. Despite this, the population was increasing during the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

period, and a new type of industry started to grow. Along the fjord, the power from several waterfalls was used to build and run sawmills, and large-scale lumber production was started. People from all over the world, especially from the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, started to trade with the people of Sauda. This resulted in major ship traffic, giving impetus to further development of the villages and farms in Sauda. By the end of the 19th century, a new type of adventure would change the lives of the inhabitants forever. The mining industry started in the mountains of

Hellandsbygd Hellandsbygda or Hellandsbygd is a village in Sauda municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The village is located in a river valley about northeast of the town of Sauda. The village is surrounded by forested mountains with the County Road 520 ...

, making Sauda a small industrial area and trading center for the surrounding region. In 1910, the American company Electric Furnace Company (EFP) began the construction of

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 ...

's largest smelting plant here in Sauda. This could only be done because of the large number of waterfalls and rivers that made it possible to build

power plant A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid. Many ...

s situated a short distance from the smelter, which uses large amounts of electricity. Sauda's time as a farming village was now over, and the people of today still live on the foundation of the new town that emerged. By the end of

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 ...

, the

Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...

had finished building a large

Aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It ha ...

Melting Plant in Saudasjøen, but the production was moved to

Årdal Årdal is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located at the end of the Årdalsfjorden in the traditional district of Sogn. The village of Årdalstangen is the administrative center of the municipality. The other main village is � ...

in 1946. The remaining buildings were demolished by the municipality in the 1950s, leaving the industrial area in Saudasjøen empty for decades. In the 1980s, a glass production factory was established together with a couple of mechanic production factories. The population of Sauda reached its peak in the mid-1960s, approximately 6,700 inhabitants. In 1998, the urban area of Sauda was declared to be a town (mostly a symbolic name, with no new municipal authority).

Geography

Sauda is located in the valleys and mountains surrounding the

. Outside of the main valley, most of the municipality is very mountainous terrain, with mountains like

Skaulen Skaulen is a mountain in Rogaland county, Norway. The mountain lies on the border of the municipalities of Sauda and Suldal. The mountain lies in the Ryfylkesheiane mountains, about southeast of the village of Hellandsbygda in Sauda and about ...

() and

Kyrkjenuten Kyrkjenuten is a mountain in the municipality of Sauda in Rogaland county, Norway. The tall mountain is the highest mountain in Sauda and also the 7th highest mountain in the county. It is located in northeastern Sauda, about north of the vill ...

(). The town of Sauda is located about two hours by boat from the city of

Stavanger Stavanger (, , American English, US usually , ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the a ...

, about three hours by car from the 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 ...

, and about five hours by car from the national capital,

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

. The mountains surrounding the village of

contain one of the biggest ski resorts on the west coast of Norway. The town of Sauda is located on flat land, a delta created by the rivers that empty into the fjord just outside the town centre.

Climate

Sauda has something in between a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freez ...

(Dfb) and a temperate

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...

(Cfb). Situated at the innermost part of the long and narrow Saudafjord, the oceanic influences are less than in Stavanger, but still enough to moderate winters. Atlantic lows coming from the west goes up against the mountains surrounding Sauda and the result is a large amount of precipitation. The wettest part of the year is late autumn and winter and the driest season is spring and early summer, which demonstrates an oceanic precipitation pattern. The weather station in Sauda has been operating since March 1928. The all-time high temperature was recorded July 2019, and the record low was set in January 2010 (extremes available back to 2003).The average date for the first overnight freeze (below ) in autumn is October 15 (1981-2010 average).

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Sauda, 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 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

and the

Gulating Court of Appeal The Gulating Court of Appeal ( no, Gulating lagmannsrett) is one of six courts of appeal in the Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Bergen. The court has jurisdiction over the counties of Vestland and Rogaland plus Sirdal Muni ...

Municipal council

The

() of Sauda is made up of 19 representatives that are elected to four year terms. Currently, 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 is as follows:

Economy

The main activity is industry, with large companies represented like

Eramet Eramet is a French multinational mining and metallurgy company, listed on the Euronext Paris exchange under the symbol ERA. The company was founded with the funding of the Rothschild family (although they were careful to avoid being listed as fou ...

Saint-Gobain Compagnie de Saint-Gobain S.A. () is a French multinational corporation, founded in 1665 in Paris and headquartered on the outskirts of Paris, at La Défense and in Courbevoie. Originally a mirror manufacturer, it now also produces a variety of ...

Statkraft Statkraft AS is a hydropower company, fully owned by the Norwegian state. The Statkraft Group is a generator of renewable energy, as well as Norway’s largest and the Nordic region's third largest energy producer. Statkraft develops and genera ...

, Sauda Building Center,

Statnett Statnett is a Norwegian state owned enterprise responsible for owning, operating and constructing the stem power grid in Norway. The company has its headquarters in Oslo, Norway. Statnett also owns 30% of the Nord Pool Spot along with other Nor ...

Elkem Elkem is a company that produces silicones, silicon, alloys for the foundry industry, carbon and microsilica, and other materials. Elkem was founded in 1904, has more than 7,000 employees and fields 30 production sites worldwide. Elkem has an ope ...

, and Effektivt Renhold

Tourism

160px, Industrial museum, Sauda, in winter. Sauda has a well-developed nightlife, which is suited for all adult ages. There are young-adult bars, as well as more mature-adult bars accessible. A movie theater, many tourist attractions, and restaurants exist as a way of relaxing after skiing. However, the most highly recommended first stop is the

après-ski A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area – a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In North ...

at Sauda Skisenter. Also notable athletes, alpine racers, and summer-winter athletes call Sauda home.

Attractions

* Rondahaugen – with views over the city and out towards

, Solbrekk Chapel,

Hellandsbygd Chapel Hellandsbygda or Hellandsbygd is a village in Sauda municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The village is located in a river valley about northeast of the town of Sauda. The village is surrounded by forested mountains with the County Road 5 ...

, and

Saudasjøen Chapel Saudasjøen Chapel ( no, Saudasjøen kapell) is a chapel of the Church of Norway in Sauda Municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Saudasjøen. It is an annex chapel in the Sauda parish which is part of the R ...

– local churches *

Allmannajuvet Allmannajuvet is a ravine or canyon located along the river ''Storelva'' in the municipality of Sauda in Rogaland county, Norway. The ravine is located in a rural, forested area along the Norwegian County Road 520 between the town of Sauda and ...

– old mines with guided tour *

Sauda Smelteverk Sauda Smelteverk is a smelting plant in Sauda, Norway. It was a plant for producing manganese alloys. It was founded in 1915, and the production was ready in 1923. Together with the hydropower deliverer company Saudefaldene it was owned by Un ...

– melting plant that is still active, guided tour after appointment * Nordag – former aluminium melting plant in

* Old Graveyard in

– containing tombs of Russian POWs who died when building the Nordag aluminium melting plant during

* Tveittunet in Saudasjøen – old refurbished estate in

* Jonegarden på Hustveit – old refurbished farm and a lumber mill * Løyning – old farm about 10 kilometers away from Sauda * Risvoldtunet – food service, conference center, guided tour on a mini power plant * Åbøbyen – best conserved North-American styled village area in Norway * Honganvikfossen – a waterfall * Svandalsfossen – a waterfall * Jetegrytene in Åbødalen – rivers and waterfalls * Sauda museum – collection in downtown Sauda featuring local heritage * Industriarbeidermuseet – museum about the life of local workmen (1920s to 1950s) * Fagerheimsaminga – exhibition of carved wooden figures in Saudahallen * City walk – arrangement in summer time with a guided tour through the city of Sauda * City center – during winter, heated streets are free of snow

Notable residents

* Jakob Aano (1920–2016) politician, Member of the

Parliament of Norway The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years bas ...

Paul Engstad Paul Øistein Engstad (13 October 1926 – 13 May 2012) was a Norwegian writer and politician for the Labour Party. He was born in Sauda. He was a journalist in the Labour-aligned newspaper ''Arbeiderbladet'', and held several positions in the La ...

(1926–2012) a Norwegian politician, journalist and author * Hans Frette (1927–1989) politician, local Mayor & Member of the

* Dr. Arne Fjørtoft (born 1937) a Norwegian politician, journalist and author *

Odd Bondevik Odd Bondevik (20 June 1941 – 6 September 2014) was a Norwegian theologian who was the Bishop of the Diocese of Møre in the Church of Norway from 17 November 1991 until retirement in 2008. He also served as Preses of the Bishop's Conference o ...

(1941–2014) Bishop of the Diocese of Møre in the

Kjartan Fløgstad Kjartan Fløgstad (born 7 June 1944) is a Norwegian author. Fløgstad was born in the industrial city of Sauda in Ryfylke, Rogaland. He studied literature and linguistics at the University of Bergen. Subsequently, he worked for a period as an indu ...

(born 1944) author, associated with magic realism in Norway * Svein Mathisen (1952–2011) footballer with 329 club caps and 25 for

Bjørn Eidsvåg Bjørn Eidsvåg (born 17 March 1954) is a Norwegian pop singer, songwriter, and ordained Lutheran minister. He was born in Sauda, and is a graduate of the MF Norwegian School of Theology. He has released more than 25 albums since his 1976 deb ...

(born 1954) a pop singer, songwriter and ordained Lutheran minister * Torfinn Opheim (born 1961) former mayor and member of the

* Hildeborg Juvet Hugdal, (Norwegian Wiki) (born 1983) powerlifter, the ''World's Strongest Woman''

Twin towns — sister cities

Sauda has

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...

agreements with the following places: *

San Juan del Sur San Juan del Sur is a municipality and coastal town on the Pacific Ocean, in the Rivas department in southwest Nicaragua. It is located south of Managua. San Juan del Sur is popular among surfers and is a vacation spot for many Nicaraguan ...

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the coun ...

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 ...

{{use dmy dates, date=June 2020 Municipalities of Rogaland 1842 establishments in Norway