# Flosta

Flosta is a former municipality in the old Aust-Agder county in Norway. The 22.8-square-kilometre (8.8 sq mi) municipality existed from 1902 until its dissolution in 1962. It is currently part of the municipality of Arendal in Agder county. The administrative center of Flosta was at Staubø in the village of Kilsund. The municipality primarily encompassed the two islands of Flostaøya and Tverrdalsøya and about 9 square kilometres (3.5 sq mi) on the mainland just north of the islands including the villages of Eikeland, Borås, and Vatnebu.

## History

The municipality of Dybvaag was established on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law), and this municipality included all of what would later become Flosta municipality. On 1 January 1902, the new municipality of Flosta was established when the islands of Flostaøya and Tverrdalsøya and some of the mainland north of those islands (population: 1,892) separated from the municipality of Dybvaag.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1962, the municipalities of Stokken (population: 2,783), Austre Moland (population: 1,607), and Flosta (population: 1,205) as well as Strengereid area in neighboring Tvedestrand (population: 375) were all merged to create the new municipality of Moland. Later, on 1 January 1992, Moland (including the area of Flosta) was merged into the municipality of Arendal.

### Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the island of Flostaøya (Old Norse: Flóstr) since the historic Flosta Church was built there. The meaning of the name is unknown, but one theory is that it comes from the word flóðr which means "high tide" or "flood".

## Government

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 Flosta was made up of 13 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.
Flosta herredsstyre 1960–1961 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 5 |
| | Conservative Party (Høyre) | 4 |
| | Liberal Party (Venstre) | 4 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 13 |
Flosta herredsstyre 1956–1959 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 5 |
| | Conservative Party (Høyre) | 4 |
| | Liberal Party (Venstre) | 4 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 13 |
Flosta herredsstyre 1952–1955 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 4 |
| | Liberal Party (Venstre) | 4 |
| | List of workers, fishermen, and small farmholders (Arbeidere, fiskere, småbrukere liste) | 4 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 12 |
Flosta herredsstyre 1948–1951 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 3 |
| | Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) | 9 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 12 |
Flosta herredsstyre 1945–1947 :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 5 |
| | Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 7 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 12 |
Flosta herredsstyre 1938–1941* :
| Party name (in Norwegian) | Party name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives |
| | Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 2 |
| | Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) | 2 |
| | Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 8 |
| Total number of members: | Total number of members: | 12 |
| 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. |||