Frøya Church () is a
parish church
A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...
of 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 ...
in
Bremanger Municipality
Bremanger is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The village of Svelgen is the administrative centre of the municipality. Other villages include Bremanger, Berle, Davik, Isane, Kalvåg, Svelgen, Rugsund, and Ålfoten. Bremanger i ...
in
Vestland
Vestland is a Counties of Norway, county in Norway. The county is located in Western Norway, and its administrative centre is Bergen, where the executive and political leadership is based. The County governor (Norway), County Governor is based in ...
county,
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 located in the village of
Kalvåg
Kalvåg is a village in Bremanger Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located on the southeast side of the island of Frøya, Bremanger, Frøya on the coast along the Frøysjøen strait, the southern entrance to the Nordfjorden (Vestland ...
, on the southern coast of the small island of
Frøya. It is the church for the Frøya
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 ...
which is part of the
Nordfjord 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 Bjørgvin
The Diocese of Bjørgvin () is one of the 11 dioceses that make up the Church of Norway. It includes all of the churches located in the county of Vestland in Western Norway, and those outside of Norway in the Seamen's Church. The cathedral cit ...
. The white, wooden church was built in a
long church
Church building in Norway began when Christianity in Norway, Christianity was established there around the year 1000. The first buildings may have been post churches erected in the 10th or 11th century, but the evidence is inconclusive. For inst ...
style in 1865. The architect was the painter artist
Anders Askevold
Anders Askevold (25 December 1834 – 22 October 1900) was a Norwegian painter. His art was characterized by romantic national expression. He was best known for his fjord landscapes from Western Norway.
Biography
Anders Monsen Askevold was ...
from the nearby
Askvoll
is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative centre is the village of Askvoll. Other villages in the municipality include Holmedal, Kvammen, and Stongfjorden. The ...
municipality. The church seats about 400 people.
History
The parish of Bremanger had a
church at Grotle on the island of
Bremangerlandet
Bremangerlandet is an island in Bremanger Municipality in the traditional district of Nordfjord in Vestland county, Norway. The island is one of the largest islands in the county. The highest point on the island is the tall mountain Svartevass ...
, just west of the main village of
Bremanger
Bremanger is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The village of Svelgen is the administrative centre of the municipality. Other villages include Bremanger, Berle, Davik, Isane, Kalvåg, Svelgen, Rugsund, and Ålfoten. Bremanger is t ...
for many hundreds of years. It was decided to move the location of the Bremanger parish church from Grotle to the village of
Kalvåg
Kalvåg is a village in Bremanger Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located on the southeast side of the island of Frøya, Bremanger, Frøya on the coast along the Frøysjøen strait, the southern entrance to the Nordfjorden (Vestland ...
, about to the south, since it would be more centrally located within the parish. So, the aging church at Grotle was torn down and the new church in Kalvåg was completed in 1865. The church was
consecrated
Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...
on 11 December 1865 by the local dean
Johan Carl Christie. Originally, the church had a high
spire
A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spire ...
atop the tower, but there were such major problems with this that a new tower was built in 1933 with a larger base (and thus also a larger
church porch
A church porch is a room-like structure at a church's main entrance. A porch protects from the weather to some extent. Some porches have an outer door, others a simple gate, and in some cases the outer opening is not closed in any way.
The porch ...
). The upper part of the tower and the spire are both quite low since they were rebuilt. The interior of the church building remodeled and redecorated in 1940. In 1961, a
sacristy
A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christianity, Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records.
The sacristy is us ...
was built. The
altarpiece
An altarpiece is a painting or sculpture, including relief, of religious subject matter made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting or sculpture, ...
dates back to 1720 when it was used in the
old church, located in Grotle (just west of the village of
Bremanger
Bremanger is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The village of Svelgen is the administrative centre of the municipality. Other villages include Bremanger, Berle, Davik, Isane, Kalvåg, Svelgen, Rugsund, and Ålfoten. Bremanger is t ...
).
Name
The new church at Kalvåg carried over the old ''Bremanger Church'' name to this new church site, since it was the main church for the Bremanger parish. Later, in 1908, a new chapel was built in the village of
Bremanger
Bremanger is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The village of Svelgen is the administrative centre of the municipality. Other villages include Bremanger, Berle, Davik, Isane, Kalvåg, Svelgen, Rugsund, and Ålfoten. Bremanger is t ...
, but that was named
Bremangerpollen Chapel. This caused some controversy since Bremanger Church was located in Kalvåg (not Bremanger village). In 1952, after the church at Bremanger village had existed for 37 years, a change of names was finally decided. On 1 January 1953, the church on the island of Frøya was re-named ''Frøya Church'' and Bremangerpollen Chapel was given the name ''Bremanger Church''.
See also
*
List of churches in Bjørgvin
The list of churches in Bjørgvin is a list of the Church of Norway churches in the Diocese of Bjørgvin in Norway. It includes all of the parishes in Vestland county. The Diocese is based at the Bergen Cathedral in the city of Bergen (city), Berg ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Froya Church
Bremanger
Churches in Vestland
Long churches in Norway
Wooden churches in Norway
19th-century Church of Norway church buildings
Churches completed in 1865
1865 establishments in Norway