Oddernes is a former municipality that was located in the old

Vest-Agder Vest-Agder (; "West Agder") was one of 18 counties (''fylker'') in Norway up until 1 January 2020, when it was merged with Aust-Agder to form Agder county. In 2016, there were 182,701 inhabitants, around 3.5% of the total population of Norway. I ...

county in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The

administrative centre An administrative center 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 administrative language (such as Belgium, Lu ...

was the village of

Lund Lund (, , ) is a city in the southern Swedish provinces of Sweden, province of Scania, across the Øresund, Öresund strait from Copenhagen. The town had 91,940 inhabitants out of a municipal total of 121,510 . It is the seat of Lund Municipali ...

on the east side of the river

Otra The Otra is the largest river in the Sørlandet region of Norway. It begins in Setesdalsheiene mountains at the lake Breidvatnet in Bykle municipality in Agder county, just south of the border with Vinje municipality in Vestfold og Telemark count ...

near where Lund Church is located. The former area of the municipality makes up the area just west of the urban town of Kristiansand within the municipality of

Kristiansand Kristiansand is a seaside resort city and municipality in Agder county, Norway. The city is the fifth-largest and the municipality the sixth-largest in Norway, with a population of around 112,000 as of January 2020, following the incorporation ...

Agder Agder is a county (''fylke'') and traditional region in the southern part of Norway. The county was established on 1 January 2020, when the old Vest-Agder and Aust-Agder counties were merged. Since the early 1900s, the term Sørlandet ("south ...

county. The old municipality encircled the town of Kristiansand, and it included the villages such as

Flekkerøy Flekkerøy or Flekkerøya is an island and residential district in Kristiansand municipality in Agder county, Norway. The district is located within the borough of Vågsbygd, and it consists of 4 main neighborhoods: Berge/Andås, Kjære, Lindeb� ...

Vågsbygd Vågsbygd is a borough and disrict in the city of Kristiansand which lies in the municipality of Kristiansand in Agder county, Norway. It is the largest borough and district in Kristiansand. Until 1965, Vågsbygd was a part of Oddernes municipal ...

Slettheia Slettheia is a district in the borough Vågsbygd in the city of Kristiansand in Agder county, Norway. The population was about 4,000 in 2014. It is the most populated immigrant settlement in Kristiansand. The district was the childhood home for ...

Strai Strai is a village and a district in the municipality of Kristiansand in Agder, Norway. It is located in the borough of Grim. Its population (2014) is about 1,000. The district of Mosby lies to the north, the districts of Lund, Kvadraturen, and ...

, Mosby, and

Justvik Justvik or Gjusvik is a village and district in the municipality of Kristiansand in Vest-Agder county, Norway. Its population (as of January 2014) is 2,770. The village of Justvik is located on the west shore of the Topdalsfjorden, just north of ...

. Today, the town of Kristiansand has a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

named

Oddernes Oddernes is a borough in the city of Kristiansand which lies in the municipality of Kristiansand in Agder county, Norway. The borough covers eastern Kristiansand on the east side of the Topdalsfjorden and the Varodd Bridge. The borough include ...

, but it has very different boundaries than the old municipality had.

History

The

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

of ''Oddernæs'' was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see

formannskapsdistrikt () is the name for Norwegian local self-government districts that were legally enacted on 1 January 1838. This system of municipalities was created in a bill approved by the Parliament of Norway and signed into law by King Carl Johan on 14 January ...

law). According to the 1835 census, the municipality had a population of 2,373. On 31 December 1893, the area on the east side of the

Topdalsfjorden Topdalsfjorden or Tofdalsfjorden is a fjord in the municipality of Kristiansand in Agder county, Norway. The long fjord runs from the village of Ålefjær south to the city centre of Kristiansand. The river Topdalselva empties into the fjord at ...

(population: 1,113) was separated to form the new municipality of

Randesund Randesund is a village and district within the city of Kristiansand in Agder county, Norway. The district is located within the borough of Oddernes along the southern coastline between the two fjords Kvåsefjorden and Topdalsfjorden and south of ...

. The split left Oddernes with 3,076 inhabitants. On 1 July 1921, the area of Lund (population: 2,164) which is located on the

headland A headland, also known as a head, is a coastal landform, a point of land usually high and often with a sheer drop, that extends into a body of water. It is a type of promontory. A headland of considerable size often is called a cape.Whittow, John ...

between the mouth of the river

and the

was transferred from Oddernes municipality to the town of

, constituting a new

in the town. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the

Schei Committee The Schei Committee ( no, Schei-komitéen) was a committee named by the Government of Norway to look into the organization of municipalities in Norway post-World War II. It convened in 1946, and its formal name was (The 1946 Committee on Municip ...

. On 1 January 1965, the town of

(population: 27,100) was greatly expanded by merging with the neighboring municipalities of Oddernes (population: 18,668),

(population: 1,672), and

Tveit Tveit is a village and surrounding district in Oddernes borough in the city of Kristiansand in Agder county, Norway. The Tveit district is located in the northeastern part of Kristiansand, northeast of the Topdalsfjorden along the lower part of ...

(population: 2,802). Today, the borough of Oddernes hardly corresponds to the old municipality. In fact, the

Hånes Hånes is a district in the city of Kristiansand in Agder county, Norway. It has a population of about 4,000 (2014). Hånes is a part of the borough of Oddernes and it borders the districts of Søm and Randesund to south, the district of Tveit to ...

area in Oddernes borough is the only part of the borough that was also in the old municipality of Oddernes. Other places in Kristiansand that were a part of Oddernes was the entire

borough (except for

Voiebyen Voiebyen is a district in the city of Kristiansand in Agder county, Norway. The district has a population of about 6,000 people in 2014 and it is a part of the borough of Vågsbygd in the southwestern part of the city. The district of Vågsbygd l ...

) as well as

Hellemyr Hellemyr is a district in the city of Kristiansand in Agder county, Norway. It has a population of 2,990 (in 2014). The district is located in the borough of Grim. The district of Tinnheia lies to the east, the district of Slettheia lies to the so ...

, Mosby,

, and

Oddernes Church Oddernes Church ( no, Oddernes kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Kristiansand Municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the district of Lund in the borough of Lund in the city of Kristiansand. It is one of the ch ...

is now actually located in the borough of Lund, but it still has the same name today. Similarly, the old Oddernes High School is located in Vågsbygd Centrum, but it changed the name to Vågsbygd High School since it is no longer in Oddernes.

Name

The municipality (originally the

) is named after the old ''Oddernæs'' farm ( non, Otruness) since this is where the

was located. The first part of the name comes from its location along the

river, and ''nes'' means

peninsula A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on all ...

, so the peninsula along the Otra river.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Oddernes, are responsible for

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

(through 10th grade), outpatient health services,

senior citizen Old age refers to ages nearing or surpassing the life expectancy of human beings, and is thus the end of the human life cycle. Terms and euphemisms for people at this age include old people, the elderly (worldwide usage), OAPs (British usage ...

services,

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

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. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administe ...

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

economic development In the economics study of the public sector, 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 o ...

, and municipal

road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

s. The 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, rural counci ...

elected Elected may refer to: * "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973 * ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008 *The Elected, an American indie rock band See also *Election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population ...

representatives, which in turn elected a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a 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 responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Municipal council

The

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

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a 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 often feature f ...

breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows:

References

{{use dmy dates, date=November 2020 Kristiansand Former municipalities of Norway 1838 establishments in Norway 1965 disestablishments in Norway