Dønna is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

Nordland Nordland (; , , , ) is one of the three northernmost Counties of Norway, counties in Norway in the Northern Norway region, bordering Troms in the north, Trøndelag in the south, Norrbotten County in Sweden to the east, Västerbotten County to t ...

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 ...

. It is part of the

Helgeland Helgeland is the most southerly Districts of Norway, district in Northern Norway. Generally speaking, Helgeland refers to the part of Nordland county that is located south of the Arctic Circle. It is bordered in the north by the Saltfjellet moun ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

. 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 island municipality is the village of Solfjellsjøen. Other villages include Bjørn, Dønnes, Hestad, Sandåker, and Vandve. The main island of Dønna is connected to the neighboring Herøy Municipality to the south by the

Åkviksundet Bridge The Åkviksundet Bridge () is a box girder bridge that crosses the Åkviksundet strait between the islands of Dønna and Staulen in Nordland county, Norway. Together with the Hoholmen Bridge, it forms the road connection between Herøy Munici ...

. The municipality is the 305th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Dønna is the 305th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 1,427. 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 ...

is and its population has increased by 0.5% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

Municipal history

The municipality of Dønna was established on 1 January 1962 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 ...

. The new municipality was created by merging these areas: *all of Nordvik Municipality (population: 1,293) *the part of Herøy Municipality on the southern tip of the island of Dønna (population: 19) *the part of

Nesna Municipality Nesna is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland Districts of Norway, traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Nesna (village), v ...

on the island Løkta (population: 80) *the majority of Dønnes Municipality (population: 1,348), except for the part located on the island of

Tomma Tomma is an island in Nesna Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The island sits to the west of the islands of Handnesøya and Hugla. The island is at the southern entrance to the Sjona fjord. The main settlement on this island is the vi ...

. The borders of Dønna Municipality have not changed since that time.

Name

The municipality is named after the island of Dønna (). The name is probably derived from the

Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...

verb which means to "rumble" or "roar" (referring to the swell of the

waves United States Naval Reserve (Women's Reserve), better known as the WAVES (for Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service), was the women's branch of the United States Naval Reserve during World War II. It was established on July 21, 1942, ...

on the island).

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 29 May 1981. 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 ''" Or a schnecke azure from base sinister to

dexter Dexter may refer to: People * Dexter (given name) * Dexter (surname) * Dexter (singer), Brazilian rapper Marcos Fernandes de Omena (born 1973) * Famous Dex, also known as Dexter, American rapper Dexter Tiewon Gore Jr. (born 1993) Places United ...

"'' (). This means the arms have a

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) that is divided by a line called a ''schnecke'' (a swirling clockwise spiral design that is looks like a

wave In physics, mathematics, engineering, and related fields, a wave is a propagating dynamic disturbance (change from List of types of equilibrium, equilibrium) of one or more quantities. ''Periodic waves'' oscillate repeatedly about an equilibrium ...

). The field located above the line 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. The tincture below the line is blue. The arms are a

canting ' (International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: , Van Ophuijsen Spelling System, VOS Spelling: , ) is a pen-like tool used to apply liquid hot wax () in the batik-making process in Indonesia, more precisely (). Traditional consists of copper wax-con ...

symbol for the municipality since the Norwegian word ''dønning'' means "wave" or " swell". The arms were designed by Odd Fjordholm.

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 ...

has one parish () within Dønna Municipality. It is part of the Nord-Helgeland prosti (

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 Sør-Hålogaland Sør-Hålogaland is a diocese in the Church of Norway. The Diocese covers the Lutheran Church of Norway churches located within Nordland county in Norway. The diocese is headquartered in the Bodø (town), town of Bodø at Bodø Cathedral, the sea ...

. Lovøygården.JPG, The old trading house at Lauvøy, surrounded by

Sitka spruce ''Picea sitchensis'', the Sitka spruce, is a large, coniferous, evergreen tree growing to just over tall, with a trunk diameter at breast height that can exceed 5 m (16 ft). It is by far the largest species of spruce and the fifth- ...

Dønneskirke.jpg, Dønnes Church Doennamannen.jpg, View of the Dønnmannen mountain

Economy

Much of the industry focuses on

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

aquaculture Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. Nelu ...

, and

fish processing The term fish processing refers to the processes associated with fish and fish products between the time fish are caught or harvested, and the time the final product is delivered to the customer. Although the term refers specifically to fish, in ...

. There is also some

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

, and some public services.

Government

Dønna Municipality is 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 is under the jurisdiction of the Helgeland District Court and 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 Dønna is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and 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 Dønna is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who have held this position: *1995-2003: Anne Sofie Sand Mathisen ( Ap) *2003-2007: Steinar Horsgård ( Sp) *2007-2011: Ingunn Laumann ( Ap) *2011-2015: Anne Sofie Sand Mathisen ( Ap) *2015-2019: John-Erik Skjellnes Johansen ( Ap) *2019–2023: Nils Jenssen ( Sp) *2024–present: John-Erik Skjellnes Johansen ( Ap)

Geography

Dønna is located in the outer, coastal part of

which also consists of

Leirfjord Municipality Leirfjord is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland Districts of Norway, traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Lel ...

Alstahaug Municipality Alstahaug is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sandnessjøen. Some of the villages in Alstahaug include Søvika and Tjøtta. Most resi ...

, and Herøy Municipality. The municipality is made up of a large

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands. An archipelago may be in an ocean, a sea, or a smaller body of water. Example archipelagos include the Aegean Islands (the o ...

consisting of islands, islets, and reefs. The three largest islands in the municipality are Dønna, Løkta, and Vandve. The Åsværet islands (and the

Åsvær Lighthouse Åsvær Lighthouse () is a coastal lighthouse in Dønna Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located on the island of Åsvær, about north of the village of Vandve, about northwest of the island of Dønna (island), Dønna, and about ...

) lie in the western part of the municipality. The island municipality is situated at the mouth of the

Ranfjorden RanfjordenIn English this means ''the Ran fjord''; the ''-en'' in the full name is a suffix meaning 'the' in Norwegian. is a fjord in the Helgeland district of Nordland county, Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic ...

. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Dønnmannen on the island of Dønna.

Notable people

* Gjeble Pederssøn (ca.1490 at Teigstad – 1557), a priest who was the first Lutheran bishop in Norway *

Petter Dass Petter Pettersen Dass (c. 1647 – 17 August 1707) was a Lutheran priest and the foremost Norwegian poet of his generation, writing both baroque hymns and topographical poetry. Biography Dass was born on the island of Dønna in what was the ...

(ca.1647 – 1707), a Lutheran priest and poet; (birthplace disputed). * Erasmus Zahl (1826 in Nordvika – 1900), a privileged trader and figure of the social hierarchy * Anton Christian Bang (1840 on Dønna – 1913), a theologian, historian, politician, and Bishop of

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) 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 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

from 1896 to 1912 * Fredrikke Tønder-Olsen, (Norwegian Wiki) (1856 on Dønna - 1931), a feminist pioneer * Julius J. Olson (1875 on Dønna – 1955), a

Minnesota Supreme Court The Minnesota Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The court hears cases in the Supreme Court chamber in the Minnesota State Capitol or in the nearby Minnesota Judicial Center. History The court was first assemb ...

justice *

Ole Edvart Rølvaag Ole Edvart Rølvaag (; Rølvåg in modern Norwegian, Rolvaag in English orthography) (April 22, 1876 – November 5, 1931) was a Norwegian-American novelist and professor who became well known for his writings regarding the Norwegian American im ...

(1876 on Dønna – 1931), a Norwegian-American author * Axel Coldevin (1900 on Dønna – 1992), a historian who wrote about trade and industry *

Steinar Bastesen Steinar Bastesen (26 March 1945 – 18 February 2024) was a Norwegian politician, fisherman and whaler. He was first elected to the Norwegian Storting in 1997 as an independent candidate, and in 1999 broke out and founded the Coastal Party (''K ...

(born 1945 on Dønna), a Norwegian politician, fisherman, and whaler *

Roy Jacobsen Roy Jacobsen (born 26 December 1954) is a Norwegian novelist and short-story writer. Born in Oslo, he made his publishing début in 1982 with the short-story collection ''Fangeliv'' (Prison Life), which won Tarjei Vesaas' debutantpris. He has wo ...

(born 1954), a novelist and short-story writer who lives periodically on Dønna * Odd Eriksen (born 1955), a politician who stopped an Algerian hijacker; brought up on Dønna *

Jostein Pedersen Jostein Pedersen (born 11 August 1959 in Dønna) is a Norwegian musical journalist and reporter, television commentator and "music intelligencia". He was the Norwegian commentator to the Eurovision Song Contest in 1994, and from 1996 to 2006. S ...

(born 1959 in Dønna), a musical journalist, reporter, and TV commentator

References

External links

Municipal fact sheet
from

Statistics Norway Statistics Norway (, 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 year on its web site. All rele ...

Photos from Dønna
{{DEFAULTSORT:Donna Municipalities of Nordland 1962 establishments in Norway Populated places established in 1962