Hølen is a village and former town and municipality in

Akershus Akershus () is a county in Norway, with Oslo as its administrative centre, though Oslo is not located within Akershus. Akershus has been a region in Eastern Norway with Oslo as its main city since the Middle Ages, and is named after the Akers ...

county, Norway. Hølen was in early times known for the production of timber, and from the 17th century important trade took place. Timber was floated on the river Såna. Ships from the Netherlands visited the place. The small town of Hølen was, together with the small town of

Son A son is a male offspring; a boy or a man in relation to his parents. The female counterpart is a daughter. From a biological perspective, a son constitutes a first degree relative. Social issues In pre-industrial societies and some current ...

, established as a municipality January 1, 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 ...

). Son and Hølen were separated as municipalities of their own January 1, 1848. Hølen was merged with the rural municipality

Vestby Vestby is a municipality in Akershus county, Norway. It is part of the Follo traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Vestby. General information Name The municipality (originally the parish) is nam ...

July 1, 1943 – and it then lost its status as a town. Hølen is the smallest municipality (in area) that has ever existed in Norway – the total area was just 0.12 km². The Østfold Line was completed in 1879. It was placed on the Hølen Viaduct which crosses over the town. Hølen Station opened in 1931 and remained in use until 1996, when it and the viaduct were closed and the railway rerouted via the Hølendalen Bridges.

Name origins

''Hølen'' is the finite form of ''høl'' m 'pool' (in a river).

References

Former municipalities of Norway Former cities in Norway Vestby {{Akershus-geo-stub