# Evje

Evje is a former municipality in the old Aust-Agder county in Norway. The 177-square-kilometre (68 sq mi) municipality existed from 1877 until 1960. It was located in what is now the eastern part of the present-day municipality of Evje og Hornnes in the Setesdal valley of Agder county. The administrative centre was the village of Evje where the Evje Church is located. The lake Høvringsvatnet is located about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) northeast of the village.

## History

The municipality of Evje was created on 1 January 1877 when the old municipality of Evje og Vegusdal was divided into Evje (population: 870) and Vegusdal (population: 935). During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1960, Evje (population: 1,646) was merged with the neighboring municipality of Hornnes (population: 1,280) to form the new municipality of Evje og Hornnes.

### Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Evje farm (Old Norse: Efja) since the first Evje Church was built there. The name is identical to the word efja which means "backwater" or "mud" (likely referring to a shallow, backwater part of the local river Otra).

## Government

While it existed, this municipality was responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, unemployment, social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads. During its existence, this municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.

### Municipal council

The municipal council (Herredsstyre) of Evje was made up of 17 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.
Evje herredsstyre 1956–1959 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 11 |
| | Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 2 |
| | Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet) | 2 |
| | Liberal Party (Venstre) | 2 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 17 |
Evje herredsstyre 1952–1955 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 10 |
| | Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 2 |
| | Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) | 4 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 16 |
Evje herredsstyre 1948–1951 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 8 |
| | Communist Party (Kommunistiske Parti) | 2 |
| | Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 2 |
| | Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) | 4 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 16 |
Evje herredsstyre 1945–1947 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 10 |
| | Communist Party (Kommunistiske Parti) | 2 |
| | Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet) | 1 |
| | Joint list of the Liberal Party (Venstre) and the Radical People's Party (Radikale Folkepartiet) | 3 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 16 |
Evje herredsstyre 1938–1941* :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 10 |
| | Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet) | 2 |
| | Liberal Party (Venstre) | 4 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 16 |
| Note: Due to the German occupation of Norway during World War II, no elections were held for new municipal councils until after the war ended in 1945. |||

### Mayors

The mayors (Norwegian: ordfører) of Evje:
* 1877-1877: Salve E. Bjoraa
* 1878-1881: Ola N. Løvland
* 1882-1893: Ola G. Lauvland
* 1894-1901: Ola N. Galteland
* 1902-1910: Ola N. Løvland
* 1910-1919: Eirik S. Bjoraa
* 1920-1922: Nils T. Odde
* 1923-1925: Ola N. Galteland
* 1926-1928: John A. Syrtveit
* 1928-1940: Torvald Haavardstad
* 1945-1959: Torvald Haavardstad

## Notable people

* Torvald Haavardstad (1893–1965), a Norwegian politician
* Helena Iren Michaelsen (born 1977), a Norwegian rock singer