Jølster is a former municipality in

Sogn og Fjordane Sogn og Fjordane (; literally "Parish and the Fjords") was a Counties of Norway, county in western Norway, from 1 January 1919 to 31 December 2019, after it was merged to become part of Vestland county. Bordering previous counties Møre og Romsda ...

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 was located in the traditional district of

Sunnfjord Sunnfjord ( - in contrast to Nordfjord) is a traditional district in Western Norway located in Vestland county. It includes the municipalities of Askvoll, Fjaler, the southernmost parts of Kinn, Sunnfjord, and the southernmost parts of Brem ...

. 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 ...

was the village of Skei. Other villages in the municipality included

Helgheim Helgheim is a village in Sunnfjord Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The village is located on the northern shore of the lake Jølstravatnet, about west of the municipal centre of Skei. The village lies along the European route E39 ...

Ålhus Ålhus is a small village in the municipality of Sunnfjord in Vestland county, Norway. It is located along the European route E39 highway on the northern side of the lake Jølstravatnet, in a largely agricultural area. Ålhus is located about ...

Vassenden Vassenden is a village in Sunnfjord Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located along the river Jølstra on the western shore of the lake Jølstravatnet, and about north of the lake Holsavatnet. The village has a population (2019 ...

, and Langhaugane. Jølster was located at the centre of the old Sogn og Fjordane county and was known for its rich cultural traditions in home crafts,

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...

, song, dancing, and creative arts.

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 ...

was the largest industry in the municipality. The principal attraction in Jølster was the scenery, with easy access to the glaciers

Grovabreen The Grovabreen glacier is located in Vestland county, Norway. It covers an area of about in Sunnfjord Municipality in the Sunnfjord region. The highest point on the glacier sits at an elevation of above sea level. The glacier is part of Jost ...

Jostedalsbreen Jostedal Glacier or is the largest glacier in continental Europe. It is in Vestland county in Western Norway. Jostedalsbreen lies in the municipalities of Luster, Sogndal, Sunnfjord, and Stryn. The highest peak in the area is Lodalskåpa a ...

, and Myklebustbreen. Jølster was home to part of the largest glacier of continental Europe, the

as well as a clear green lake named Jølstravatnet. The

trout Trout (: trout) is a generic common name for numerous species of carnivorous freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of which are members of the subfamily Salmoninae in the ...

caught in Jølstravatn were renowned throughout Norway and beyond. At the time of its dissolution in 2020, the municipality is the 168th largest by area out of the 422 municipalities in Norway. Jølster is the 260th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 3,047. 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 3.3% over the last decade. In 2016, the chief of police for

Vestlandet Western Norway (; ) is the region along the Atlantic coast of southern Norway. It consists of the counties Rogaland, Vestland, and Møre og Romsdal. The region has no official or political-administrative function. The region has a population of ...

formally suggested a reconfiguration of police districts and stations. He proposed that the police station in Jølster be closed.

General information

The parish of Jølster 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 original municipality was identical to the Jølster

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 ...

''(

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 ...

)'' with the sub-parishes () of

and

. 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 farm area of Førde in the neighboring municipality of

Breim Breim is a Former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in the old Sogn og Fjordane Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Nordfjord in the eastern part of the present-day Gloppe ...

(population: 38) was transferred to Jølster municipality. On 1 January 2020, the neighboring municipalities of Jølster,

Førde Førde is a former municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It was located in the traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative center was the town of Førde which in 2016 had 10,255 inhabitants. Other villages in Før ...

Naustdal Naustdal is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in the old Sogn og Fjordane Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It was located in the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative centre wa ...

, and

Gaular Gaular is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in Sogn og Fjordane Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It was located in the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative centre was the villa ...

were merged to form the new

Sunnfjord Municipality Sunnfjord is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Førde. Other villages in the municipality include Naustdal, Sande, ...

Name

The municipality (originally the

) is named after the local river

Jølstra The Jølstra is a river in Sunnfjord Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The long river flows from the lake of Jølstravatnet (at an elevation of above sea level) down to the Førdefjorden (which is at sea level). The river begins at the ...

() since it runs through the lower parts of the municipality. The may be derived from the word which means "noise", likely referring to the noise and rumble of the river.

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 22 July 1983. 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 ''"

Gules In heraldry, gules () is the tincture with the colour red. It is one of the class of five dark tinctures called "colours", the others being azure (blue), sable (black), vert (green) and purpure (purple). Gules is portrayed in heraldic hatch ...

, a

cross fleury A cross fleury (or flory) is a cross adorned at the ends with flowers in heraldry. It generally contains the fleur-de-lis, trefoils, etc. Synonyms or minor variants include ''fleuretty'', ''fleuronny'', ''floriated'' and ''flourished''. In early ...

Or"'' (). This means the arms have a red field (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

. The cross 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 arms are loosely inspired by the

medieval 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 World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

arms of

Audun Hugleiksson Audun Hugleiksson (Hestakorn) ({{circa 1240 – 2 December 1302) was a Norwegian nobleman at the end of the 13th century. He was the king's right hand, both under King Magnus Lagabøte and King Eirik Magnusson. He was seen as an important poli ...

who was from Hegranes in Jølster. He was a medieval nobleman (died in 1302) who built Audunborg, one of only two private stone castles in Norway. On his seals, he used a shield with a rose that was surrounded with double

tressure In heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, Imperial, royal and noble ranks, r ...

-. He also used the

fleur-de-lis The ''fleur-de-lis'', also spelled ''fleur-de-lys'' (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a common heraldic charge in the (stylized) shape of a lily (in French, and mean and respectively). Most notably, the ''fleur-de-lis'' ...

as ornamentation throughout his castle. The arms of Jølster were derived from this tressure and the fleur-de-lis. The modern arms were designed by Elsa Norunn Håheim Nydal who based it off an idea by Magnus Hardeland. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

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 two parishes () within the municipality of Jølster. It was part of the

Sunnfjord prosti Sunnfjord ( - in contrast to Nordfjord) is a Districts of Norway, traditional district in Western Norway located in Vestland counties of Norway, county. It includes the List of municipalities of Norway, municipalities of Askvoll, Fjaler, the sout ...

(

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 ...

Government

While it existed, this 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,

unemployment Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is the proportion of people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work du ...

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. During its existence, this municipality was 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 ...

was

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 Sogn og Fjordane District Court and the

Gulating Court of Appeal The Gulating Court of Appeal () 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 Municipality in Agder county ...

Municipal council

The

of Jølster was made up of 25 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The

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 ...

breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows:

Mayors

The

mayors 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 ...

() of Jølster: *1838-1841: Thor Hansen Veiteberg *1842-1843: Samuel N. Dvergsdal *1844-1847: Anders J. Aalhus *1848-1855: Michael Fasting *1856-1857: Samuel N. Dvergsdal *1858-1861: Anders J. Aalhus *1861-1863: Ludvig G. Klakegg *1864-1871: Nils O. Øvrebø *1872-1873: Anders K. Myklebust *1874-1875: Anton K. Øygard *1876-1877: Bendikt J. Nedrebø *1878-1879: Anders K. Myklebust *1880-1889: Sjur B. Heggheim *1890-1891: Ole O. Viken *1892-1899: Nils S. Dvergsdal *1900-1909: Sjur B. Heggheim *1910-1919: Thor H. Veiteberg, Jr. *1920-1929: Ludvig D. Klakegg *1929-1936: Nils O. Øvrebø *1936-1942: Anton K. Øygard *1942-1945: Arne Egge ( NS) *1945-1951: Anton K. Øygard *1952-1965: Nils J. Helgheim ( Sp) *1966-1973: Erling Slåtten ( LL) *1974-1981: Sverre P. Befring ( Sp) *1982-1985: Anders Helgheim ( LL) *1986-1987: Arne Sandnes ( Ap) *1988-1991: Normann Aarseth ( KrF) *1992-1995: Knut O. Øygard ( Sp) *1995-2011: Gerd Dvergsdal ( Sp) *2011-2019: Oddmund Klakegg ( Sp)

Geography

The Jølstravatnet lake splits the municipality in half, which creates a centre of population at each end of the lake: Skei in the eastern end of the lake and

(English: ''the water-end'') in the western part, where the river Jølstra starts. A small end of the lake Breimsvatnet crosses over into the municipality of Jølster. Jølster is bordered to the north by the municipalities of

Stryn Stryn is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in the Counties of Norway, county of Vestland, Norway. It is located in the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Nordfjord. The administrative center of the municipality is the vi ...

and

Gloppen Gloppen is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in the Counties of Norway, county of Vestland, Norway. It is located in the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Nordfjord. Gloppen is generally subdivided into three areas: Hyen ...

, to the east by Luster, to the southeast by

Sogndal Sogndal is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is located on the northern shore of the Sognefjorden in the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Sogn. The village of Hermansv ...

, and to the south and west by

. The

Jostedalsbreen National Park Jostedalsbreen National Park () is a national park in Norway that encompasses the largest glacier on the European mainland, Jostedalsbreen. The park was established by royal decree on 25 October 1991, and then in 1998, it was enlarged to the nort ...

lies partially in this municipality.

Economy

Tourism is one of the largest industries in Jølster, and there are hotels, campsites, and a number of tourist facilities in each centre of the municipality. In addition to tourism, agriculture and construction are the other most important industries.

Attractions

Astruptunet

Astruptunet was the home of the painter Nikolai Astrup (1880–1928) for the last fourteen years of his life. The Astrup Farm ''(Astruptunet)'' was the artist's home and small farm, but today it is a museum and art gallery, kept as it was in Astrup's days, nestled among the steep but fertile slopes on the south side of Jølstravatn. The barn was torn down and rebuilt as a gallery, but in the same style as the old barn. The gallery has permanent exhibitions of Astrup's work such as paintings, graphics, wood-engraving plates and sketches. Most of his scenes have been taken from Jølster and Nikolai Astrup has since remained one of the most Norwegian of our national artists. Nikolai Astrup lived most of his life in Jølster. Astrup often is regarded as the artist of

Western Norway Western Norway (; ) is the Regions of Norway, region along the Atlantic coast of southern Norway. It consists of the Counties of Norway, counties Rogaland, Vestland, and Møre og Romsdal. The region has no official or political-administrative fu ...

, as he found virtually all of his motives in his home surroundings. He's considered the "most Norwegian" of all the national artists of Norway.

Eikaas Gallery

Another Norwegian painter and graphic artist,

Ludvig Eikaas Ludvig Eikaas (20 December 1920 – 5 September 2010) was a Norway, Norwegian painter, graphic artist and sculptor. Eikaas was among the first artists in Norway to work in a purely non-figurative idiom. Biography Ludvig Eikaas was born in the sma ...

, is closely connected to Jølster. The artist grew up in Jølster, but later moved to

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 ...

. He is among other things famous for his non-figurative art and portraits/self-portraits. The Eikaas Gallery was originally an old dairy farm in

that was purchased by the municipality of Jølster and converted to a modern art gallery. The collection contains about 300 works of art by Ludvig Eikaas.

Jølstra Museum

The Jølstra museum is a private village green with many original Jølstra buildings and a collection of around 3,000 artifacts. There are also exhibitions of paintings by

and

Oddvar Torsheim Oddvar Torsheim (born 2 November 1938) is a Norwegian painter, illustrator and musician. Torsheim was born in Bergen to teachers Herman Johan Torsheim and Jenny Pauline Høvik. Among his publications are ''Syner i syttiåra'' from 1980, and ''Sva ...

and of Jølster textiles.

Jølster Alpine Ski Centre

Jølster alpine ski centre lies at

. There are lighted ski trails in the villages of Årdal and Dvergsdalen. Jølster also has mountains for

Telemark skiing Telemark skiing is a skiing technique that combines elements of Alpine skiing, Alpine and Nordic skiing, Nordic skiing, using the rear foot to keep balance while pushing on the front foot to create a carving turn on downhill skis with toe-only ...

enthusiasts.

Notable people

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jolster Sunnfjord Former municipalities of Norway 1838 establishments in Norway 2020 disestablishments in Norway