Krødsherad

Krødsherad kommune
Municipality

Coat of arms
Buskerud within
Norway

Krødsherad within Buskerud
Coordinates: 60°11′42″N 9°39′52″E / 60.19500°N 9.66444°ECoordinates: 60°11′42″N 9°39′52″E / 60.19500°N 9.66444°E
Country Norway
County Buskerud
Administrative centre Noresund
Government
 • Mayor (2003) Olav Skinnes (Tverrpolitisk bygdeliste)
Area
 • Total 375 km2 (145 sq mi)
 • Land 340 km2 (130 sq mi)
Area rank 248 in Norway
Population (2004)
 • Total 2,201
 • Rank 327 in Norway
 • Density 6/km2 (20/sq mi)
 • Change (10 years) -4.6 %
Demonym Krylling[1]
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
ISO 3166 code NO-0622
Official language form Neutral
Website www.krodsherad.kommune.no
Data from Statistics Norway

Krødsherad (Krødsherad kommune) is a municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Noresund. The municipality of Krødsherad was established when it was separated from the municipality of Sigdal on 1 January 1901.

General information

Name

The Old Norse form of the name was Krœðisherað. The first element is the genitive case of the name of the lake Krøderen, the last element is herað meaning "district". Prior to 1918, the name was spelled Krødsherred.

See also: Names of the municipalities of Kvinnherad and Sauherad.

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 11 September 1981. The arms are supposedly canting arms. In older times, the name, Krødsherad, was commonly misunderstood as the word kross meaning "cross" or the area where two valleys crossed. Thus the saltire cross was taken as a symbol in the arms. New insights, however, derive the name from Krøderen, or a lake with a sharp curve (hooked-lake).[2]

Geography

The district lies on the Krøderfjord in Hallingdal, and borders on the municipalities of Ringerike, Flå, Sigdal and Modum. The municipality lies only 10 old Norwegian miles from Oslo. Settlement is scattered, with some concentration around the municipality's two principal centers, Noresund situated on the east side of Lake Krøderen and Krøderen at the southern end of Lake Krøderen.

Economy

Agriculture is the primary industry with most agricultural land arable and mostly used for grain cultivation. The forestry industry also has historically been important. With the shoreline at Krøderen and the high mountains at Norefjell, the municipality enjoys a spectrum of natural environments from lake to mountain. As a result there are many vacation homes in the municipality and tourism, especially winter sports in the Norefjell area, is an important contribution element in the economy.

Villa Fridheim
NSB type 24b No. 236 at Krøderen

Attractions

Villa Fridheim

Villa Fridheim, a manor house which houses a folk museum, is one of Norway's largest timber buildings. The style is representative of romantic nationalism. The building was erected in 1890-92 as the country house of Drammen based timber merchant Svend Haug and his wife Thea Haug. The architect was Herman Major Backer (1856-1932), whose other commissions included old Skaugum and St John's Church, Bergen. [3]

The building functioned as a hotel and boarding house between 1914-60. The building was restored and opened as a folktale museum in the summer of 1986. In 1996 the museum opened a section dedicated to the great collectors of Norwegian fairy tales, Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe and to noted illustrators Theodor Kittelsen and Christian Skredsvig. [4]

Krøderbanen

Krøderbanen Museum (Museet Krøderbanen) is a railroad museum headquartered in the former Krøderen Railroad Station at Krøderen. Krøderbanen was opened in 1872 as a narrow gauge line. It was converted to standard gauge in connection with the Bergen Railway opening in 1909 and remained in operation until 1985. Both rolling stock and fixed installations along the line is kept in running condition. Krøderbanen is also a center for the restoration and maintenance of railway equipment. [5]

Norefjell Ski Resort

Norefjell Ski Resort was host to the downhill and giant slalom competitions of the 1952 Winter Olympics. Norefjell is only a 90-minute drive away from Oslo, making the ski resort the closest high mountain area to the Norwegian capital.[6]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Krødsherad.

References

  1. ↑ "Personnemningar til stadnamn i Noreg" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet.
  2. ↑ Norske Kommunevåpen (1990). "Nye kommunevåbener i Norden". Retrieved 2009-01-10.
  3. ↑ Herman Major Backer (Store norske leksikon)
  4. ↑ Villa Fridheim (Go.Norway)
  5. ↑ Velkommen til Kroderbanen (Stiftelsen Krøderbanen)
  6. ↑ Alpine skiing at Norefjell (Innovation Norway)

External links