HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Vågsøy is a former municipality in the old
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
Nordfjord Nordfjord (—in contrast to Sunnfjord) is a traditional district in Vestland county, Norway. Geography The region is located in the northern part of Vestland county in Western Norway. It centers on the Nordfjorden and it comprises Stad Muni ...
. The municipality's
administrative center 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 Belgiu ...
was the town
Måløy Måløy () is a List of towns and cities in Norway, town in the List of municipalities of Norway, municipality of Kinn in Vestland county, Norway. It is located on the southeastern side of the Vågsøy (island), island of Vågsøy, about northea ...
. Other population centers in Vågsøy included the villages of
Bryggja Bryggja is a village in southwestern part of Stad Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located on the mainland, along the northern shore of the Nordfjorden (Sogn og Fjordane), Nordfjorden. The village is located about east of the urb ...
, Deknepollen, Holvika, Kvalheim, Langeneset, Raudeberg, Refvika, Silda, Tennebø,
Totland Totland is a village, civil parish and electoral ward on the Isle of Wight. Besides the village of Totland, the civil parish comprises the western tip of the Isle of Wight, and includes The Needles, Tennyson Down and the hamlet of Middleton. T ...
, Vedvika, and
Vågsvåg Vågsvåg is a village in Kinn Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located on the southern shore of the island of Vågsøy (island), Vågsøy along the Vågsfjorden, a part of the main Nordfjorden (Sogn og Fjordane), Nordfjorden. The ...
. The municipality included the island of Vågsøy, several small surrounding islands, and part of the mainland. On 1 January 2020, the municipality was dissolved and divided between Kinn Municipality and
Stad Municipality Stad is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Nordfjord. The municipality includes much of the northern shore of the Nordfjorden as well as the Stad peninsula. The administrative centre of the ...
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. At the time of its dissolution in 2020, the municipality is the 345th largest by area out of the 422 municipalities in Norway. Vågsøy is the 175th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 6,001. 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 0.1% over the last decade. The municipality of Vågsøy was the second largest fishing municipality in
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 ...
, and it was home to one of Norway's most modern fish-processing plants.


General information

Historically, Vågsøy was part of Selje Municipality (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). On 1 January 1910, the municipality of Selje was split into three separate municipalities: Nord-Vågsøy (population: 1,111),
Sør-Vågsøy Sør-Vågsøy is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in the old Sogn og Fjordane Counties of Norway, county in Norway. The municipality existed from 1910 until 1964 and it encompassed the southern part of the Vågsøy ...
(population: 1,517), and Selje (population: 3,367). Nord-Vågsøy included the northern half of the island of Vågsøy and Sør-Vågsøy included the southern part of the island and some of the mainland. 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, a new municipality of Vågsøy was created by merging the following areas together: * Nord-Vågsøy municipality (population: 1,476) *
Sør-Vågsøy Sør-Vågsøy is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in the old Sogn og Fjordane Counties of Norway, county in Norway. The municipality existed from 1910 until 1964 and it encompassed the southern part of the Vågsøy ...
municipality (population: 3,926) *from Selje: the island of Silda, the Hagevik- Osmundsvåg area, and Sørpollen (population: 344) *from Davik: the islands of Husevågøy, Grindøy, Gangsøy, and Risøy; and all of Davik that was north of the Nordfjorden and west of Lefdal (population: 1,216) The new municipality had an initial population of 6,962. On 1 January 2020, Vågsøy Municipality was dissolved. The
Bryggja Bryggja is a village in southwestern part of Stad Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located on the mainland, along the northern shore of the Nordfjorden (Sogn og Fjordane), Nordfjorden. The village is located about east of the urb ...
-Totland area in the eastern part of Vågsøy was merged with the neighboring municipalities of Eid and Selje to become the new
Stad Municipality Stad is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Nordfjord. The municipality includes much of the northern shore of the Nordfjorden as well as the Stad peninsula. The administrative centre of the ...
. The rest of Vågsøy was merged with the municipality of
Flora Flora (: floras or florae) is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. The corresponding term for animals is ''fauna'', and for f ...
to the south to create a new (non-contiguous) municipality called
Kinn Kinn is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It was established on 1 January 2020. It is in the traditional districts of Nordfjord and Sunnfjord. The municipality is the only non-contiguous municipality in Norway since the municipality ...
.


Name

The municipality (originally the
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 ...
) is named after the island of Vågsøy (). The first element is the
genitive case In grammar, the genitive case ( abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive ca ...
of which means "
bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...
" or "
inlet An inlet is a typically long and narrow indentation of a shoreline such as a small arm, cove, bay, sound, fjord, lagoon or marsh, that leads to an enclosed larger body of water such as a lake, estuary, gulf or marginal sea. Overview In ...
". The last element is which means "
island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...
".


Coat of arms

The coat of arms of Vågsøy was granted on 27 March 1987 and they were in use until 1 January 2020 when the municipality was dissolved. 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 ''" Azure, two
rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, airship, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (usually air or water). On an airplane, the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw ...
s in bend,
argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to b ...
"'' (). This means the arms have a blue
field Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a grass ...
(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 set of two
rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, airship, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (usually air or water). On an airplane, the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw ...
s lined up diagonally. The charge 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
argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to b ...
which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The arms depict the type of rudders used in the one-man boats which have been used for a long time in this area. This design was chosen to symbolize "steering on land and sea". The arms were designed by Inge Rotevatn. 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 ...
has one parish () within the municipality of Vågsøy. It 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 ...
.


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
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 Vågsøy was made up of 27 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 Vågsøy: * 1965–1965: Marius Larsen ( H) * 1966–1967: Leif Våge ( V) * 1968–1969: Leif Iversen ( H) * 1970–1977: Jon Lillestøl ( KrF) * 1978–1981: Otto Hoddevik ( V) * 1982–1983: Jon Lillestøl ( KrF) * 1984–1987: Rolf Domstein ( H) * 1988–1993: Olav Horn ( Sp) * 1994–1995: Anfinn Slinning ( KrF) * 1996–1999: Liv Henjum ( V) * 2000–2011: Roger Bernt Silden ( Ap) * 2011–2015: Morten Andreas Hagen ( H) * 2015–2019: Kristin Maurstad ( Ap) In 2007, Vågsøy participated in a trial where the mayor was directly elected. The sitting mayor, Roger B. Silden, received 44.1% of the votes and won the election. His party (the
Norwegian Labour Party The Labour Party (; , A or Ap; ), formerly The Norwegian Labour Party (, DNA), is a Social democracy, social democratic List of political parties in Norway, political party in Norway. It is positioned on the centre-left of the political spectru ...
), however, did poorer than in 2003 and it became the second largest party with only 21.8% of the votes.


Geography

Vågsøy was made up of the mainland and islands on the northern and outer shore of the Nordfjorden. The municipality was named after its largest island, Vågsøy. Other populated islands in Vågsøy included Silda, Moldøen, and Husevågøy. The lake Degnepollvatnet was located between the villages of Degnepoll and Tennebø. Selje 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) and
Vanylven Municipality Vanylven is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Møre og Romsdal Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Sunnmøre Districts of Norway, region. The administrative centre is the village of Fiskå, Møre og Romsdal, Fi ...
(in
Møre og Romsdal Møre og Romsdal (; ) is a Counties of Norway, county in the northernmost part of Western Norway, Western Norway. It borders the counties of Trøndelag, Innlandet, and Vestland. The county administration is located in the Molde (town), town of M ...
county) bordered it to the north, Eid Municipality was located to the east,
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 ...
was to the south, and the
North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
bordered Vågsøy Municipality to the west.


Attractions


Måløy

Måløy Måløy () is a List of towns and cities in Norway, town in the List of municipalities of Norway, municipality of Kinn in Vestland county, Norway. It is located on the southeastern side of the Vågsøy (island), island of Vågsøy, about northea ...
attained
city status City status is a symbolic and legal designation given by a monarch, national or subnational government. A municipality may receive city status because it already has the qualities of a city, or because it has some special purpose. Historically, ci ...
in 1997. It lies along the Ulvesundet strait on the island of Vågsøy, and is joined to the mainland by the long Måløy Bridge, a structure that forms a gateway for all seagoing traffic. The Coastal Steamer (
Hurtigruten ''Hurtigruten'' (), formally Kystruten Bergen-Kirkenes ("coastal route Bergen-Kirkenes"), is a Norwegian public coastal route transporting passengers that travel locally, regionally, and between the ports of call, and also cargo between ports ...
) has daily departures. The old part of the city lies on the island of Moldøen, from which the city that has expanded onto the mainland and further west to Holvik, has its name.


Kannestein

Over thousands of years, ocean waves have ground the rock to the shape it has today. It is located in the village of Oppedal, approximately west of the center of Måløy. Every year many visitors come to Oppedal to take a closer look at the stone. The ''Kannestein'' or Kanne Stone was formed by loose stones and the pounding of the waves over a period of thousands of years, and stands today as a high, narrow-footed rock. This is caused by stones having split loose, which have knocked and gnawed at the rockface until they have become polished and rounded. Loose stones have then worked themselves deeper into the rock. New stones have come, and in time the potholes have become deeper and wider. Several potholes near to each other have been polished for so long that the sides have been rubbed away, leaving just the middle section, such as the Kanne Stone.


Vågsberget trading post

In 1636, trader Didrik Fester from
Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...
came to Vågsberget to open a trading business. There was probably trading activity and an inn before Fester's arrival, and the trading post at Vågsberget has changed hands several times throughout the years. Restoration work is being carried out on Vågsberget,Vågsberget Handelsstad
/ref> but the café and exhibition is open in summer and guided tours are available. There is also an exhibition featuring old fishing boats and equipment. Vågsberget is now part of the large village of
Vågsvåg Vågsvåg is a village in Kinn Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located on the southern shore of the island of Vågsøy (island), Vågsøy along the Vågsfjorden, a part of the main Nordfjorden (Sogn og Fjordane), Nordfjorden. The ...
.


Silda

Silda, the island in Sildagapet bay, is an old fishing community, which in its heyday had a population of 150 who made a living from fishing and farming. Its current winter population is only about 30, while in summer it is host to several hundred people, staying in holiday houses and cabins. The island has a restaurant perched on a rock out in the southern harbor. There are also cabins for rent there. The jetty in Silda's northern harbor was started in the 1860s and completed in the 20th century. With the exception of a few tractors, the island is "car free", but it has cycling and walking tracks, footpaths and walking terrain. A regular boat service runs to and from Måløy several times a day.


Lighthouses

Vågsøy municipality had four
lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...
s. Three of them are open daily and are available for let for short or long periods. * Kråkenes Lighthouse is a working lighthouse and also a weather station that collects important information. Kråkenes lighthouse, which offers views of the ocean at Stadhavet, lies at the most northerly point on the island of Vågsøy and is accessible by road. * Skongenes Lighthouse is an automatic lighthouse with no road access. It is a one-hour walk from Langeneset in easy hiking terrain. There are also views towards Stadlandet. ''Ytre Nordfjord Turlag'' runs this lighthouse and offers overnight accommodation and day visits. * Hendanes Lighthouse is an automatic lighthouse on the west side of the Torskanger inlet. It is located a short walk from the road and offers views of Stadhavet and Klovningen. * Ulvesund Lighthouse is a lighthouse located south of Stadlandet, about north of Måløy. It was built in 1870, and was staffed until 1985 when it was automated.


Beaches

Refviksanden Beach is a long beach. Refvika is approximately from Måløy.


See also

* Operation Archery *
List of former municipalities of Norway This is a list of former municipalities of Norway, i.e. municipalities that no longer exist. When the local council system was introduced in Norway in 1837-38, the country had 392 municipalities. By 1958, the number had grown to a total of 744 rur ...


References


External links


NRK: Vågsøy KommuneOfficial Site of Vågsøy Municipality

Tourist information from VågsøySilda
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaagsoy Kinn Stad, Norway Former municipalities of Norway 1964 establishments in Norway 2020 disestablishments in Norway