Bjarkøy is a former municipality in

Troms Troms (; ; ; ) is a Counties of Norway, county in northern Norway. It borders Finnmark county to the northeast and Nordland county in the southwest. Norrbotten Län in Sweden is located to the south and further southeast is a shorter border with ...

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. The municipality existed from 1838 until it was merged with

Harstad Municipality Harstad (; ) is the second-most populated municipality in Troms county, Norway. It is mostly located on the large island of Hinnøya. The municipal center is the Harstad (town), town of Harstad, which is the most populous town in Central Håloga ...

on 1 January 2013. The

administrative centre An administrative centre 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 the administrative language, such as Belgi ...

of the municipality was the village of Nergården on the island of Bjarkøya. The island municipality was spread across several islands: Bjarkøya, Sandsøya,

Grytøya or is an island in Harstad Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The island lies just north of the large island of Hinnøya and south of the island of Bjarkøya. It is surrounded by the Vågsfjorden in the east and the Andfjorden in the west ...

(northern half), Krøttøya, and many smaller ones. Originally, the municipality also included the southwestern tip of the large island of Senja. Prior to its dissolution in 2013, the municipality was the 399th largest by area out of the 429 municipalities in Norway. Bjarkøy Municipality was the 427th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 455, making it the 3rd smallest in the country. The municipality's

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...

was and its population had decreased by 17.9% over the previous 10-year period. One of the reasons why Bjarkøy merged with

in 2013 was due to the promised funding of the

Bjarkøy Fixed Link The Bjarkøy Fixed Link () is a fixed link which connects the three islands of Bjarkøya, Sandsøya, Troms, Sandsøya, and Grytøya in Harstad Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The fixed link was completed in late 2018. A subsea road tunnel () ...

project. It would link the main islands of Bjarkøy together with a bridge and undersea road tunnel enabling residents to drive further which would drastically shorten the ferry ride to the mainland in Harstad.

General information

The

prestegjeld A ''prestegjeld'' was a geographic and administrative area within the Church of Norway (''Den Norske Kirke'') roughly equivalent to a parish. This traditional designation was in use for centuries to divide the kingdom into ecclesiastical areas tha ...

(church parish) of ''Sand'' was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see

formannskapsdistrikt () was the name of a Norwegian self-governing municipality. The name was used from the establishment these municipalities in 1838 until the name fell out of use in 1863. The municipalities had their legal basis from two laws enacted on 14 Jan ...

law). The name was later changed to "Bjarkøy". During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the

Schei Committee The Schei Committee () was a committee named by the Government of Norway to look into the organization of municipalities in Norway post-World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a ...

. On 1 January 1964, the southernmost part of the island of Senja (the ''Senjehesten''

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

) and the ''Lemmingsvær'' island (total population of the two locations: 480) was transferred from Bjarkøy to

Tranøy Municipality Tranøy () is a former municipality in Troms county, Norway. The municipality was situated on the southern coast of the large island of Senja. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 2020 when it was merged into the new Senj ...

. On 1 January 2013, Bjarkøy Municipality was merged with

to the south, forming a new, larger Harstad Municipality.

Name

The municipality (originally the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

) was originally named "Sand" after the old ''Sand'' farm () on the island of Sandsøya, since the first Bjarkøy Church was built there. The name comes from the word is which means "

sand Sand is a granular material composed of finely divided mineral particles. Sand has various compositions but is usually defined by its grain size. Sand grains are smaller than gravel and coarser than silt. Sand can also refer to a textural ...

" or " sandbank". In 1887, the church was moved to the island of Bjarkøya, so the municipal name was changed to ''Bjarkø''. This new name comes from the

island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

of Bjarkøya (). The first element is 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 ca ...

of which means "

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 3 ...

". The last element is which means "

". (The name of the island, since it is an old trading place, is perhaps inspired by the name of the old and well-known town of

Birka Birka (''Birca'' in medieval sources), on the island of Björkö, Ekerö, Björkö (lit. "Birch Island") in present-day Sweden, was an important Viking Age trading center which handled goods from Scandinavia as well as many parts of Continent ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

, which has the same meaning). Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled ''Bjarkø''. On 6 January 1908, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to ''Bjarkøy'', to give the name a more Norwegian and less Danish spelling due to Norwegian language reforms.

Coat of arms

The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

was granted on 11 April 1986. The official

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct an accurate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The visual d ...

is ''"

Azure Azure may refer to: Color * 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 * ...

, a demi-griffin passant Or"'' (). This means the arms have a blue

field Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a grass ...

(background) and the

charge Charge or charged may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Charge, Zero Emissions/Maximum Speed'', a 2011 documentary Music * ''Charge'' (David Ford album) * ''Charge'' (Machel Montano album) * '' Charge!!'', an album by The Aqu ...

is a demi-

griffin The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (; Classical Latin: ''gryps'' or ''grypus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk ...

(upper half showing, no legs). The griffin has a

tincture A tincture is typically an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol (ethyl alcohol). Solvent concentrations of 25–60% are common, but may run as high as 90%.Groot Handboek Geneeskrachtige Planten by Geert Verhelst In chemistr ...

of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. Bjarkøy wanted to have its coat of arms to be the same as those used by the medieval Bjarkøy noble family, however, the old 13th century family arms were already in use by

county. So a variation was adopted - a demi-griffin was used instead. This family was one of the most influential families in the northern part of Norway during medieval times. They used a

for the arms of the family starting in the late 13th century. The arms were designed by Øystein H. Skaugvolldal. The arms of Bjarkøy were retired after the merger in 2013 since Harstad retained its old coat of arms after the merger.

Churches

The

Church of Norway The Church of Norway (, , , ) is an Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. Christianity became the state religion of Norway around 1020, and was established a ...

had one parish () within Bjarkøy Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the

Trondenes prosti Trondenes is a neighborhood and parish in the town of Harstad in Harstad Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The area is located on the northern end of the town, on a peninsula in the Vågsfjorden. The village is notable for the Trondenes Fo ...

(

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the 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 residence of ...

) in the

Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland Nord-Hålogaland () is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers the Church of Norway churches in Troms and Finnmark counties as well as in the territory of Svalbard. The diocese is seated in the city of Tromsø at the Tromsø Cathedral, t ...

History

This is old

Viking Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...

territory, and it was a chieftain seat during the

Viking Age The Viking Age (about ) was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonising, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. The Viking Age applies not only to their ...

and the

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

. Among the more famous chieftains you find

Thorir Hund Thorir Hund (, Modern Norwegian: ''Tore Hund''; ) (born ca. 990) was one of the greatest chiefs in Hålogaland. Tore Hund was one of the leaders of the Stiklestad farmer faction opposing Norwegian King Olaf II of Norway, later named St. Olaf. H ...

, who killed Norway's Patron Saint,

Saint Olav Saint Olaf ( – 29 July 1030), also called Olaf the Holy, Olaf II, Olaf Haraldsson, and Olaf the Stout or "Large", was King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. Son of Harald Grenske, a petty king in Vestfold, Norway, he was posthumously given the ...

in the

Battle of Stiklestad The Battle of Stiklestad (; ) in 1030 is one of the most famous battles in the history of Norway. In this battle, King Olaf II of Norway () was killed. During the pontificate of Pope Alexander III, the Roman Catholic Church declared Olaf a saint ...

in 1030. In 1323, the chieftain seat was raided and burned by Karelian and Novgorod warriors.

Geography

The municipality of Bjarkøy was located entirely on islands. The largest island,

, was shared with the municipality of Harstad. Other islands included Bjarkøya, Sandsøya, Helløya, Flatøya, and Meløyvær. The

Andfjorden or is a fjord on the border of Nordland and Troms counties in Norway. It is located in Andøy Municipality, Senja Municipality, Harstad Municipality, and Kvæfjord Municipality. The fjord primarily flows between the large islands of Andøya ...

flowed along the northern and western side of the municipality and the Vågsfjorden flowed on the eastern and southern sides of the municipality. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Skjellesvikgalten on the island of

Climate

Government

While it existed, Bjarkøy Municipality was responsible for

primary education Primary education is the first stage of Education, formal education, coming after preschool/kindergarten and before secondary education. Primary education takes place in ''primary schools'', ''elementary schools'', or first schools and middle s ...

(through 10th grade), outpatient

health services Health care, or healthcare, is the improvement or maintenance of health via the preventive healthcare, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, treatment, wikt:amelioration, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other disability, physic ...

senior citizen Old age is the range of ages for people nearing and surpassing life expectancy. People who are of old age are also referred to as: old people, elderly, elders, senior citizens, seniors or older adults. Old age is not a definite biological sta ...

services,

welfare Welfare may refer to: Philosophy *Well-being (happiness, prosperity, or flourishing) of a person or group * Utility in utilitarianism * Value in value theory Economics * Utility, a general term for individual well-being in economics and decision ...

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. Also available amachine-converted HTML They may be provided by individuals, private and i ...

zoning In urban planning, zoning is a method in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into land-use "zones", each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for ...

economic development In economics, economic development (or 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 object ...

, and municipal

road A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. Th ...

s and utilities. 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, borough cou ...

of directly elected representatives. The

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, 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 responsibilitie ...

indirectly elected An indirect election or ''hierarchical voting,'' is an election in which voters do not choose directly among candidates or parties for an office ( direct voting system), but elect people who in turn choose candidates or parties. It is one of the o ...

by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the

Hålogaland Court of Appeal The Hålogaland Court of Appeal () 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 well as the island territor ...

Municipal council

The

of Bjarkøy was made up of 13 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a Hospitality, 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 oft ...

Mayors

The

() of Bjarkøy was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who have held this position (incomplete list): *1873: Martinus Knutsen *1887: Ditlef W. Lund *1904-1907: G. Lund *1917-1918: Jens L. Jensen *1918-1919: D.B. Tollefsen *1922-1925: T.O. Nordvik *1926-1931: S. Kildal *1932-1941: Ole Slagstad *1941-1945: Ingvald Høve ( NS) *1945-1945: Ole Slagstad *1945-1947: Peder J. Bjarke *1948-1951: Ditlef Eriksen ( Ap) *1952-1955: Peder J. Bjarke *1955-1959: Ditlef Eriksen ( Ap) *1960-1967: Arnljot Eidnes ( LL) *1967-1979: Martin Gideonsen ( Ap) *1979-1983: Kåre Edg Pettersen ( LL) *1983-1991: Brynjulf Lauritzen ( Ap) *1991-1995: Arne Ludolf Petter Kaspersen ( Ap) *1995-1999: Markus Johan Sakariassen ( LL) *1999-1999: Harald-Arne Bjarke ( LL) *1999-2001: Geir Ove Ystmark ( V) *2001-2003: Trond Markussen ( LL) *2003-2007: Jorunn Berg ( LL) *2007-2011: Eddmar Osvoll ( LL) *2011-2012: Jorunn Berg ( LL)

Media gallery

Boathouse on Krottoy.jpg, Boathouse located on Krøttøy Skerry in shallow water.jpg, Skerry in shallow water, located just outside Krøttøy

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bjarkoy Former municipalities of Norway Populated places of Arctic Norway 1838 establishments in Norway 2013 disestablishments in Norway Populated places established in 1838 Populated places disestablished in 2013