Averøy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Averøy kommune | |||
| — Municipality — | |||
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| Coordinates: | |||
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| Country | Norway | ||
| County | Møre og Romsdal | ||
| District | Nordmøre | ||
| Municipality ID | NO-1554 | ||
| Administrative centre | Averøy | ||
| Government | |||
| - Mayor (2003) | Jarle Haga (V) | ||
| Area (Nr. 349 in Norway) | |||
| - Total | 176 km² (68 sq mi) | ||
| - Land | 173 km² (66.8 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2004) | |||
| - Total | 5,472 | ||
| - Density | 32/km² (82.9/sq mi) | ||
| - Change (10 years) | -1.5 % | ||
| - Rank in Norway | 179 | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| Official language form | Neutral | ||
| Demonym | Averøying[1] | ||
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| Website: www.averoy.kommune.no | |||
Averøy is a municipality in the county of Møre og Romsdal, Norway.
The municipality was created in 1964. (The former municipalities of Kvernes, Kornstad and (most of) Bremsnes was then merged together.)
The tourist attraction Atlanterhavsveien (Atlantic Road) connects the island and municipality of Averøy to the municipality Eide, which is on the mainland. In 2005, it was awarded the "Building of the Century" prize by the Norwegian Construction Industry. A ferry goes from Bremsnes on Averøy to Kristiansund, but is eventually to be replaced by an undersea tunnel known as Atlanterhavstunnelen (Atlantic Tunnel), which is scheduled for completion in 2008/2009.
[edit] The name
The municipality is named after the island Averøya or Averøy (Old Norse Afrøy). The meaning of the first element is unknown (maybe afr 'great, big').
[edit] Coat-of-arms
The coat-of-arms is from modern times (1986). It shows three arrowheads made of slate from the Stone Age, found in the municipality.
[edit] History
Averøy is an island full of historic landmarks, like the Bremsnes cave with Mesolithic findings from the Fosna culture. Langøysund, now a remote fishing community, was once a buzzling port along the main coastal route, and the site of the Compromise of 1040 between King Magnus I and the farmers along the coast. Also, the Medieval Kvernes stave church (built around 1300 - 1350).
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