Etne
| Etne kommune | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Municipality | |||
|
View of the lake Løkjelsvatnet in Etne | |||
| |||
 Etne within Hordaland | |||
| Coordinates: 59°39′50″N 05°56′00″E / 59.66389°N 5.93333°ECoordinates: 59°39′50″N 05°56′00″E / 59.66389°N 5.93333°E | |||
| Country | Norway | ||
| County | Hordaland | ||
| District | Sunnhordland | ||
| Administrative centre | Etnesjøen | ||
| Government | |||
| • Mayor (2007) | Sigve Sørheim (Sp) | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 735.27 km2 (283.89 sq mi) | ||
| • Land | 692.37 km2 (267.33 sq mi) | ||
| • Water | 42.90 km2 (16.56 sq mi) | ||
| Area rank | 148 in Norway | ||
| Population (2015) | |||
| • Total | 4,103 | ||
| • Rank | 231 in Norway | ||
| • Density | 5.9/km2 (15/sq mi) | ||
| • Change (10 years) | 5.1 % | ||
| Demonym(s) |
Etnebu Etnesbu[1] | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| ISO 3166 code | NO-1211 | ||
| Official language form | Nynorsk | ||
| Website |
www | ||
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Etne is a municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnhordland, although it is also sometimes considered to be part of the district of Haugaland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Etnesjøen. Other villages in the municipality include Skånevik and Fjæra. The two largest villages in the municipality are Etnesjøen with 1,159 residents and Skånevik with 594 residents (all figures from 1 January 2015).[2][3]
Etne is situated south of the city of Bergen and it borders the municipalities of Kvinnherad, Odda, Sauda, Suldal, and Vindafjord, the three latter in the county of Rogaland.
A Norwegian motion picture called United was shot in Etne with local people as actors.
General information
Etne was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). Originally, Etne encompassed the area around the Etnefjorden and the surrounding valleys. On 1 January 1965, the neighboring municipality of Skånevik was dissolved and merged into its neighboring municipalities due to the recommendations of the Schei Committee. All of Skånevik located south of the Åkrafjorden and east of the village of Åkra on the north side of the fjord (population: 1,493) was merged into Etne.[4]
Name
The municipality is named after the Etnefjorden (Old Norse: Eðni). The fjord is probably named after an old river name Etna (now called the "Etneelvi").[5]
Coat-of-arms
The coat-of-arms was granted on 16 December 1983. The arms are blue on the left and silver/white on the right with a dovetailed line vertically down the middle. They represent the strong unity between the two former municipalities of Skånevik and Etne that were joined together to form one municipality in 1965.[6]
Churches
The Church of Norway has two parishes (sokn) within the municipality of Etne. It is part of the Sunnhordland deanery in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.
| Parish (Sokn) | Church Name | Location of the Church | Year Built |
|---|---|---|---|
| Etne | Gjerde Church | Etnesjøen | 1676 |
| Grindheim Church | Etnesjøen | 1728 | |
| Stødle Church | Etnesjøen | 1160 | |
| Skånevik | Skånevik Church | Skånevik | 1900 |
| Fjæra Chapel | Fjæra | 1913 |
Geography
Etne is situated south of the city of Bergen and it borders the municipalities of Kvinnherad and Odda in Hordaland county and the municipalities of Sauda, Suldal, and Vindafjord in Rogaland county.
Etne has a varied landscape, extending from the Etnefjorden, Skånevikfjorden, and Åkrafjorden at sea level, through the villages up to the high mountains. In the far north, there is a barren and heavily eroded mountain glacier, Folgefonna, where the municipality's highest point rises 1,638 metres (5,374 ft) above sea level. Folgefonna National Park is partially located in Etne. In addition to that national park, Etne has three nature reserves: Brattholmen, Skåno, and Langebudalen. Lakes in the area include Løkjelsvatnet. The famous waterfall Langfossen is located in northern Etne.[7]
History
| Historical population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1951 | 2,452 | — |
| 1960 | 2,512 | +2.4% |
| 1970 | 3,930 | +56.4% |
| 1980 | 3,980 | +1.3% |
| 1990 | 4,037 | +1.4% |
| 2000 | 3,917 | −3.0% |
| 2010 | 3,882 | −0.9% |
| 2015 | 4,103 | +5.7% |
| Source: Statistics Norway. | ||
Recent archeological findings indicate that the area was already inhabited around 500 BC.[8]
Government
All municipalities in Norway, including Etne, 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 Etne is made up of 21 representatives that are elected to every four years. For 2011–2015, the party breakdown is as follows:[9]
| Party Name | Name in Norwegian | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Party | Arbeiderpartiet | 6 | |
| Progress Party | Framstegspartiet | 3 | |
| Conservative Party | Høgre | 3 | |
| Christian Democratic Party | Kristelig Folkeparti | 2 | |
| Centre Party | Senterpartiet | 6 | |
| Liberal Party | Venstre | 1 | |
| Total number of members: | 21 | ||
Transportation
The European route E134 highway runs the length of the municipality connecting it to the city of Haugesund in the southwest and to Oslo in the east. The highway runs through Etnesjøen and then northeastwards along the Åkrafjorden before crossing into the neighboring municipality of Odda. There are many tunnels along the route, some quite long, including the Åkrafjord Tunnel, Fjæra Tunnel, Markhus Tunnel, and Rullestad Tunnel.
Interestingly, the Eintveitbrua is a bridge in rural Etne that is not connected to the road network. It is considered to be a bridge to nowhere.
Notable residents
- Magnus V of Norway (1156–1184), King during the Civil war era in Norway
- Erling Skakke (1115–1179), Norwegian Jarl during the 12th century
References
- ↑ "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet. Retrieved 2015-12-01.
- ↑ Statistisk sentralbyrå (1 January 2013). "Urban settlements. Population and area, by municipality.".
- ↑ Store norske leksikon. "Etne" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 2015-04-10.
- ↑ Jukvam, Dag (1999). "Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Statistisk sentralbyrå.
- ↑ Rygh, Oluf (1910). Norske gaardnavne: Søndre Bergenhus amt (in Norwegian) (11 ed.). Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. p. 64.
- ↑ "Civic heraldry of Norway - Norske Kommunevåpen". Heraldry of the World. Retrieved 2015-04-10.
- ↑ "Point on the glacier". Hordaland fylke.
- ↑ "Dette funnet er sensasjonelt" (in Norwegian). NRK.
- ↑ "Members of the local councils, by party/electoral lists and municipality" (in Norwegian). Statistics Norway. 2011.
External links
Media related to Etne at Wikimedia Commons
The dictionary definition of Etne at Wiktionary
Hordaland travel guide from Wikivoyage- Pictures from Etne
