Stord Municipality

Stord is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnhordland. Stord Municipality is sometimes called "Norway in miniature" since it has such a variety of landscapes: coastline, fjords, forests, agricultural land, and mountain areas. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Leirvik, which is also the largest town in the municipality and the whole region of Sunnhordland. Leirvik was declared a town in 1997. Other population centres in the municipality include the large village of Sagvåg and the smaller villages of Litlabø and Grov. The 143.72-square-kilometre (55.49 sq mi) municipality is the 317th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Stord Municipality is the 70th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 19,350. The municipality's population density is 134.6 inhabitants per square kilometre (349/sq mi) and its population has increased by 4.7% over the previous 10-year period. General information The parish of Stordøen (later spelled Stord) was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). In 1863, Stordøen Municipality was divided: the northern district (population: 2,313) became the new Fitjar Municipality and the southern district (population: 2,634) remained as a smaller Stordøen Municipality. On 15 May 1868, Stordøen Municipality was divided again: the southern mainland district (population: 900) became the new Valestrand Municipality and the northern district (population: 1,734) remained as a smaller Stordøen Municipality. On 1 January 1898, the southern part of the island of Huglo (population: 117) was transferred from the neighboring Fjelberg Municipality to Stord Municipality. On 1 January 1970, the small uninhabited part of the island of Stord along the Valvatnavågen that belonged to Bømlo Municipality was transferred to Stord Municipality. Name The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the large island of Stord (Old Norse: Storð). The meaning of the name is uncertain, but it may come from the word storð which means "ground" or "earth" (this is an old word that is still used in Icelandic literature). Before 1889, the name was spelled "Stordøen". Coat of arms The first coat of arms was adopted on 3 December 1955, but since it did not meet the government regulations, it was not formally approved by the King in council. The blazon is "Azure, a chevron and fire pit argent with flames Or (heraldry)". This means the arms have a blue field (background) and the charge is a chevron and a fire pit. The chevron and fire pit have a tincture of argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The flame on the fire pit has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. Due to the fact that it uses two metals for tinctures, it was not approved since it violated heraldic principles. The chevron in the arms is derived from the arms of the Smør family, who used a chevron in their arms. The family was an important noble family in the 14th and 15th century who originated from this area. The flame symbolises the old industries in the village. The arms were designed by Magnus Hardeland. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms. A new coat of arms was designed during the 1980s in order to meet the national heraldry requirements. It was granted on 19 June 1987. The official blazon is "Gules, a holly branch Or" (Norwegian: På raud grunn ein gul kristtorn-kvist). This means the arms have a red field (background) and the charge is a holly branch with seven leaves and seven berries. The charge has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. The holly was chosen since it is a common tree in the municipality. The arms were designed by Truls Nygaard after an original idea by Harry Herstad. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms. Churches The Church of Norway has two parishes (sokn) within Stord Municipality. It is part of the Sunnhordland prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. Geography Stord Municipality is located on the southern half of the island of Stord (the northern part is part of Fitjar Municipality). The municipality also includes the islands of Huglo, Nautøya, and Føyno. The Hardangerfjorden runs along the southern border of the island municipality, separating it from the municipalities of Kvinnherad, Vindafjord, and Sveio. The Langenuen strait runs along the eastern side, separating it from Tysnes Municipality. The Stokksund and Digernessundet straits runs along the western border, separating it from Bømlo Municipality. The highest point in the municipality is the 749.25-metre (2,458.2 ft) tall mountain Mehammarsåta. History The Battle of Stord was fought on or by this island between the Norwegian king Hakon Haraldsson and the Danish king Harald "Bluetooth" Gormsson, supported by Hakon's brother's sons led by Harald "Greycloak" Eiriksson. Population Economy The 3 largest private employers in Stord municipality are: Aker Solutions, Wärtsilä Norway AS and Leirvik AS. Together these three companies employ more than 3000 people. Aker Solutions, situated south of Leirvik on the peninsula of Eldøyane, is the largest yard in Norway. Aker Solutions has built the biggest oil production platforms in the world, Gullfaks C and Troll. Transport An extensive tunnel and bridge system, the Triangle Link, connected Stord to the mainland on 27 December 2000 and to the neighboring island of Bømlo on 30 April 2001. The bridges involved are the Bømla Bridge and Stord Bridge and the tunnel is the Bømlafjord Tunnel. The airport in Stord is Stord Airport, Sørstokken, is located northwest of Sagvåg on the Sørstokken peninsula. On 10 October 2006, Atlantic Airways Flight 670 skidded off the runway at the airport. Four people died. Healthcare Stord Hospital is a local hospital for the municipalities in Sunnhordland, with a total of around 50,000 inhabitants. The hospital has specialist health services in medicine, surgery, X-ray, and gynecology. Stord District Psychiatric Center (DPS) is close by and has specialist health services within mental health care for adults and children. Stord ambulance station has premises in the same area and Sunnhordland inter-municipal emergency room is co-located with the hospital. Government Stord Municipality is responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor is indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Haugaland og Sunnhordland District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal. Municipal council The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Stord Municipality is made up of 35 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party. Mayors The mayor (Nynorsk: ordførar) of Stord Municipality is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position: Notable people Lars Eskeland (1867–1942), an educator, writer, and proponent of Nynorsk Olaf Lange (1875–1965), a painter who visualised the complexity of the modern urban life with symbolistic paintings who lived in Stord around 1950 Olaf Kullmann (1892–1942), a Norwegian naval officer and then peace activist Magne Rommetveit (1918–2009), a Norwegian lexicographer Ragnar Rommetveit (1924–2017), a psychologist and academic Ivar Eskeland (1927–2005), a philologist, publisher, translator, biographer, literary critic, newspaper editor, theatre worker, and radio personality Hans J. Røsjorde (born 1941), a politician and County Governor of Oslo and Akershus from 2001 to 2011 Jan Kåre Hystad (born 1955), a jazz musician who plays saxophone, clarinet, and flute Rune Belsvik (born 1956), a novelist, playwright, short story writer, and children's writer Magne Rommetveit (born 1956), a Norwegian politician and mayor of Stord from 1992–2007 Ole Jacob Hystad (born 1960), a jazz musician who plays tenor saxophone and clarinet Janove Ottesen (born 1975), a musician who sings and plays guitar and barrels Synnøve Macody Lund (born 1976), a journalist, film critic, model, and actress Obtained Enslavement (formed 1989 in Stord - 2000), a black metal band from Stord Sport Geirmund Brendesæter (born 1970), a former footballer with nearly 300 club caps Gro Espeseth (born 1972), a former footballer with 105 caps for Norway women Odd Christian Eiking (born 1994), a cyclist Anders Mol (born 1997), a beach volleyball player References External links Municipal fact sheet from Statistics Norway (in Norwegian)