Sogn og Fjordane
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| County | NO-14 |
| Region | Vestlandet |
| Administrative centre | Leikanger |
| County mayor | Nils R. Sandal |
| Area - Total - Percentage |
Ranked 8 18,623 km² 5.81 % |
| Population - Total (2007) - Percentage - Change (10 years) - Density |
Ranked 17 106,259 2.34 % -0.3 % 6/km² |
| Gross Regional Product - Total (2001) - Percentage - GRP/capita |
Ranked 16 24,923 million NOK 1.63 % 231,982 NOK |
Sogn og Fjordane is a county in Norway, bordering Møre og Romsdal, Oppland, Buskerud and Hordaland. The county administration is in the town of Hermansverk in Leikanger municipality.
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[edit] Name
- See also: Hordaland
The name Sogn og Fjordane was created in 1919. The first element is the name of the region Sogn. The last element is the plural form of fjord - referring to the two regions Nordfjord and Sunnfjord.
Until 1919 the name of the county was Nordre Bergenhus amt - with the meaning '(the) northern (part of) Bergenhus amt'. (The old Bergenhus amt, created in 1662, was divided in 1763.)
[edit] Coat of arms
The coat of arms was approved in 1983. The three blue points represent the three regions of the county (Sognefjord, Sunnfjord and Nordfjord).
[edit] Geography
It is mainly a rural area with scattered population. It includes the biggest glacier in mainland Norway, Jostedalsbreen in the mountain range Breheimen, and the deepest lake, Hornindalsvatnet. There are many famous waterfalls located in the area, including Ramnefjellsfossen (previously called Utigardfossen), the tallest in Norway, and third tallest in the World; Vettisfossen, one of Norway's highest waterfalls, with a vertical drop of 275 m, is located in the Jotunheim mountains. Cruise ships visit the district all summer, because of the unique vistas of high mountains and deep blue fjords.
[edit] Culture
Although Sogn og Fjordane has some industry, predominantly hydroelectricity and aluminium, it is predominantly agricultural. The terrain changes quite rapidly with mostly smaller mountains on the coastline, gradually increasing to mountains reaching more than 2000 m. Because of the steep rise in elevation, and fjords cutting through the terrain, the amount of precipitation is very high. Low pressure systems come in from the west and meet the mountains (a phenomenon known as orographic lifting) and cause rain and snowfall. Sogn og Fjordane is also home to the Urnes stave church, which is listed by UNESCO as a world heritage site.
Høgskulen i Sogn og Fordane (Sogn og Fordane University College)[1] has campuses in Sogn, Sandane, and Førde.
[edit] Districts
The county is conventionally divided into traditional districts. These are Sogn, Sunnfjord and Nordfjord. Sogn surrounds Sognefjorden. Its length, from Solund on the offshore island of Sula in the North Sea to Skjolden, at the head of its longest branch, the Lustrafjorden, is 204 km.
Sogn og Fjordane is the only county in which all municipalities have declared Nynorsk to be their official written form of the Norwegian language.
[edit] Municipalities
Sogn og Fjordane has a total of 26 municipalities:
[edit] External links
- County web site
- NRK County encyclopedia
- Firda - the countys largest newspaper
- forum.firda.no - the countys largest discussion group
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