Bygland
| Bygland kommune | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Municipality | |||
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View of Bygland | |||
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 Bygland within Aust-Agder | |||
| Coordinates: 58°55′27″N 7°45′53″E / 58.92417°N 7.76472°ECoordinates: 58°55′27″N 7°45′53″E / 58.92417°N 7.76472°E | |||
| Country | Norway | ||
| County | Aust-Agder | ||
| District | Setesdal | ||
| Administrative centre | Bygland | ||
| Government | |||
| • Mayor (2011) | Leiv Rygg (Sp) | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 1,311.66 km2 (506.43 sq mi) | ||
| • Land | 1,150.25 km2 (444.11 sq mi) | ||
| • Water | 161.41 km2 (62.32 sq mi) | ||
| Area rank | 70 in Norway | ||
| Population (2016) | |||
| • Total | 1,204 | ||
| • Rank | 386 in Norway | ||
| • Density | 1.0/km2 (3/sq mi) | ||
| • Change (10 years) | -7.1 % | ||
| Demonym(s) | Byglending[1] | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| ISO 3166 code | NO-0938 | ||
| Official language form | Nynorsk | ||
| Website |
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Bygland is a municipality in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Setesdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Bygland. Other villages in the municipality include Åraksbø, Austad, Byglandsfjord, Grendi, Langeid, Lauvdal, Litveit, Longerak, Moi, Ose, Sandnes, Skåmedal, and Tveit. The Norwegian National Road 9 runs through the municipality, following the river Otra where most of the population of Bygland lives.
The 1,311.66-square-kilometre (506.43 sq mi) municipality is the 70th largest by area in Norway. Bygland is the 386th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 1,204. The municipality's population density is 1 inhabitant per square kilometre (2.6/sq mi) and its population has decreased by 7.1% over the last decade.[2]
General information
Bygland was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). Since that time, the municipal boundaries have not changed.[3]
Name
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Bygland farm (Old Norse: Byggland), since the first Bygland Church was built there. The first element is bygg which means "barley" and the last element is land which means "land" or "farm".[4]
Coat-of-arms
The coat-of-arms is from modern times; they were granted on 15 November 1991. The green arms show a yellow European lynx (Lynx lynx), which symbolises the wild and rich nature in the rural highlands of the municipality. The green background symbolises the agriculture and forests in the municipality.[5][6]
Churches
The Church of Norway has two parishes (sokn) within the municipality of Bygland. It is part of the Otredal deanery in the Diocese of Agder og Telemark.
| Parish (Sokn) | Church Name | Location of the Church | Year Built |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bygland | Austad Church | Tveit | 1880 |
| Bygland Church | Bygland | 1838 | |
| Sandnes Church | Åraksbø | 1844 | |
| Årdal | Årdal Church | Grendi | 1828 |
Geography
Bygland lies in the middle of the Setesdal valley which is also a traditional district in Aust-Agder county. The valley includes the municipalities of Bykle, Valle, Bygland, Iveland, and Evje og Hornnes. The Otra river flows from the glacially scoured Hardangervidda plateau in the north, through the Setesdal valley (and through Bygland), and into the sea near the city of Kristiansand. The municipality is bordered on the north by Valle, in the east by Fyresdal (Telemark county) and Åmli (Aust-Agder county), in the south by Froland and Evje og Hornnes, and in the west by Åseral, Kvinesdal, and Sirdal (all in Vest-Agder county).
Bygland is Aust-Agder's second largest municipality in area. The majority of the area of the municipality lies in the Setesdalsheiene mountains, at an elevation of over 700 metres (2,300 ft) above sea level. The municipality stretches from the small town Byglandsfjord in the south to the farms at Langeid in the north. Lake Byglandsfjorden is 40 kilometres (25 mi) long and lies on the river Otra. Other lakes include the Åraksfjorden, Gyvatn, Hovatn, Kvifjorden, Longerakvatnet, Straumsfjorden, and Topsæ. The rivers Otra and Topdalsfjorden both run through Bygland on their way south. The Reiårsfossen waterfall is one of many waterfalls in the municipality.
History
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The Setesdal Line was a narrow gauge steam railway which went between Vennesla and Byglandsfjord in Bygland. It was built in 1896. The Setesdal Line's operation was terminated in 1962 and the track was removed between Byglandsfjord and Beihølen.
Other transport up the Setesdal valley was provided by the steamships SS Bjoren and Dølen. First placed in operation in 1866, the SS Bjoren is still in operation as a tourist attraction on lake Byglandsfjorden during the summers.
Government
All municipalities in Norway, including Bygland, are responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, unemployment and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of elected representatives, which in turn elect a mayor.
Municipal council
The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Bygland is made up of 15 representatives that are elected to every four years. Currently, the party breakdown is as follows:[7]
| Party Name | Name in Norwegian | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Party | Arbeiderpartiet | 3 | |
| Centre Party | Senterpartiet | 5 | |
| Local Lists | Lokale lister | 7 | |
| Total number of members: | 15 | ||
Attractions
- Byglandsfjord Station, a former railway station constructed in 1896
- SS Bjoren, a wood-fuelled heritage steamboat that travels the route between Byglandsfjord-Bygland and Bygland-Ose on the lake Byglandsfjorden in the summer.
- Bygland tower, a folk museum.
References
- ↑ "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet. Retrieved 2015-12-01.
- ↑ Statistisk sentralbyrå (2016). "Table: 06913: Population 1 January and population changes during the calendar year (M)" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 2017-03-20.
- ↑ Jukvam, Dag (1999). "Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Statistisk sentralbyrå.
- ↑ Rygh, Oluf (1905). Norske gaardnavne: Nedenes amt (in Norwegian) (8 ed.). Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. p. 204.
- ↑ "Civic heraldry of Norway - Norske Kommunevåpen". Heraldry of the World. Retrieved 2017-04-23.
- ↑ "Kommunevåpenet" (in Norwegian). Bygland kommune. Retrieved 2017-04-23.
- ↑ "Table: 04813: Members of the local councils, by party/electoral list at the Municipal Council election (M)" (in Norwegian). Statistics Norway. 2015.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bygland. |
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Look up Bygland in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
- Municipal fact sheet from Statistics Norway (in Norwegian)
Aust-Agder travel guide from Wikivoyage- Culture in Bygland on the map (in Norwegian)
- The Steamboat Bjoren (in Norwegian)
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