Tranøy is a former municipality that was located in the old

Troms Troms (; se, Romsa; fkv, Tromssa; fi, Tromssa) is a former county in northern Norway. On 1 January 2020 it was merged with the neighboring Finnmark county to create the new Troms og Finnmark county. This merger is expected to be reversed by ...

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

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 is situated on the southern coast of the large island of Senja. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 2020 when it was merged into the new

Senja Municipality Senja is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It was established on 1 January 2020 when the municipalities of Berg, Lenvik, Torsken, and Tranøy were merged into one municipality. It is located in the traditional district of ...

. 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, L ...

was the village of

Vangsvik Vangsvik or Vangsvika is a village in Senja Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The village has a population of about 350. The village has a school, Vangsvik Chapel, store, and medical office. There is also a large fish farming f ...

in the eastern part of the municipality. Other important villages included Stonglandseidet, Skrollsvika, and Å. The nearly-abandoned island of Tranøya, with the 18th-century wooden

Tranøy Church Tranøy Church ( no, Tranøy kirke) is a historic parish church of the Church of Norway in Senja Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is located on the small island of Tranøya, just off the shore of the large island of Senja. It ...

, used to be the centre of activities for the municipality. From Tranøybotn it is only a short walk to the

Ånderdalen National Park Ånderdalen National Park ( no, Ånderdalen nasjonalpark) is located on the large island of Senja in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The park lies within Senja Municipality. The park was established by royal decree on 6 February 1970 and it w ...

, with varied landscapes within a very limited area, including deep

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family (biology), family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanic ...

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s. At the time of its dissolution as a municipality on 1 January 2020, the municipality was the 204th largest by area out of the 422 municipalities in Norway. Tranøy was also the 352nd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 1,536. The municipality's

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical ...

was and its population has decreased by 2.7% over the previous decade.

General information

The large municipality of Tranøy was established 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 Janua ...

). The original municipality included all the land surrounding the large

Solbergfjorden Solbergfjorden is a fjord (or more accurately, a strait) on the southeastern side of the large island of Senja in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It lies in the municipalities of Dyrøy, Sørreisa, and Senja. The long strait flows into the ...

. On 1 September 1886, the municipality was divided into three separate municipalities: Tranøy (population: 1,239) on the west,

Dyrøy Dyrøy ( sme, Divrráid suohkan) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Brøstadbotn. Other villages include Dyrøyhamn, Espenes, Holm, and Hundstrand. The mun ...

(population: 1,281) in the south, and

Sørreisa Sørreisa ( sme, Ráisavuona suohkan) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Sørreisa. Other villages include Grunnreisa, Skøelva, and Smørsgård. The munic ...

(population: 1,361) in the east. 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 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWI ...

. On 1 January 1964 several changes took place: *The mainland areas of Tranøy (population: 382) were transferred to

Dyrøy Municipality Dyrøy ( sme, Divrráid suohkan) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Brøstadbotn. Other villages include Dyrøyhamn, Espenes, Holm, and Hundstrand. The ...

. *The Hellemo, Paulsrud, Johnsgård, and Stormo farms (population: 106) were transferred to

Lenvik Municipality Lenvik ( sme, Leaŋgáviika) is a former municipality that was located in the old Troms county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 2020. The municipality was partly situated on the mainland and partly on the i ...

. *The parts of Bjarkøy Municipality on the island of Senja and Lemmingsvær islands (population: 480) were transferred to Tranøy Municipality. *The Rødsand area of

Torsken Municipality Torsken is a former municipality that was located on the western coast of the large island of Senja in the old Troms county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1902 until its dissolution in 2020 when it was merged into the new Senja Municipa ...

(population: 160) was also transferred to Tranøy Municipality. In March 2017, the

Parliament of Norway The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years bas ...

voted to merge the municipalities of Berg,

Torsken Torsken is a former municipality that was located on the western coast of the large island of Senja in the old Troms county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1902 until its dissolution in 2020 when it was merged into the new Senja Municipa ...

Lenvik Lenvik ( sme, Leaŋgáviika) is a former municipality that was located in the old Troms county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 2020. The municipality was partly situated on the mainland and partly on the isla ...

, and Tranøy. The new municipality will encompass the whole island of Senja plus part of the mainland. The new municipality will be established on 1 January 2020 and it will be called ''

''.

Name

The municipality (originally 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 ...

) is named after the small

island An island or isle is a piece of subcontinental land completely surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island in a river or a lake island may be ...

of Tranøya (

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is 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 of Scandinavia and t ...

: ''Tranøiar''), since the first

was built there. The first element is comes from ''trana'' which means "

crane Crane or cranes may refer to: Common meanings * Crane (bird), a large, long-necked bird * Crane (machine), industrial machinery for lifting ** Crane (rail), a crane suited for use on railroads People and fictional characters * Crane (surname) ...

" and the last element is ''øy'' which means "island". Prior to 1909, the name was written ''Tranø''.

Coat of arms

The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in it ...

was granted on 15 May 1987. The arms are silver or white with a black

Atlantic halibut The Atlantic halibut (''Hippoglossus hippoglossus'') is a flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae. They are demersal fish living on or near sand, gravel or clay bottoms at depths of between . The halibut is among the largest teleost (bony) fish in ...

''(Hippoglossus hippoglossus)'' in the center. The fish is a main species of local fish, which symbolizes the importance of

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques ...

for the local community. In addition to this, the fish played a major role in local

legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess ...

s, similar to the role of

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the N ...

s in land-based legends.

Churches

The

Church of Norway The Church of Norway ( nb, Den norske kirke, nn, Den norske kyrkja, se, Norgga girku, sma, Nöörjen gærhkoe) is an Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. ...

has one parish ''(sokn)'' within the municipality of Tranøy. It is part of the Senja prosti (

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Roman 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 reside ...

) in the

Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland Nord-Hålogaland ( no, Nord-Hålogaland bispedømme) is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers the Church of Norway churches in Troms og Finnmark county as well as in the territory of Svalbard. The diocese is seated in the city of Troms� ...

Geography

The municipality of Tranøy is located on the southern end of the large island of Senja. The Andfjorden, Vågsfjorden, and

surround the municipality to the west, south, and southeast. The municipalities of

and Berg lie to the north and the municipality of

is to the east.

lies in the northwestern part of the municipality.

Climate

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Tranøy, are responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient

health services Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health profes ...

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 usag ...

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 during the refer ...

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 adminis ...

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 s ...

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 a ...

, 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 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, rural coun ...

of elected representatives, which in turn elect 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 as ...

. The municipality falls under the

Senja District Court Senja District Court ( no, Senja tingrett) was a district court (Norway), district court located in the town of Finnsnes in Troms county, Norway. The court served the central and southeastern part of the county which included the municipalities of ...

and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The

of Tranøy was made up of 17 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 ...

breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows:

References

External links

Municipal fact sheet
from

Statistics Norway Statistics Norway ( no, Statistisk sentralbyrå, 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 ye ...

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tranoy Senja Former municipalities of Norway 1838 establishments in Norway 2020 disestablishments in Norway Populated places disestablished in 2020