Vest-Agder

Vest-Agder ("West Agder") was one of 18 counties (fylker) in Norway up until 1 January 2020, when it was merged with Aust-Agder to form Agder county. In 2016, there were 182,701 inhabitants, around 3.5% of the total population of Norway. Its area was about . The county administration was located in its largest city, Kristiansand.
Vest-Agder was a major source of timber for Dutch and later English shipping from the 16th century onwards. Historically, the area exported timber, wooden products, salmon, herring, ships, and later nickel, paper, and ferrous and silica alloys. Compared to other counties of Norway, today's exports-intensive industry produces shipping and offshore equipment (National Oilwell Varco), cranes (Cargotec), ships (Umoe Mandal, Flekkefjord Slip), wind turbine equipment, nickel (Glencore), and solar industry microsilica (Elkem). A major tourist attraction is Kristiansand Dyrepark.
Vest-Agder grew to political prominence with the decision of King Christian IV to establish Kristiansand as a key naval base, trading centre, and bishopric in 1641, forcing urban citizens and merchants from all over Agder to settle in the city. The county had large-scale emigration to North America from the 1850s onwards.
General information
Name
The meaning of the name is "(the) western (part of) Agder".
Lister og Mandal amt was created on 1 January 1662 and it consisted of the two old lens of Lister and Mandal. This name continued until 1 January 1919, when the name was changed to Vest-Agder.
Coat-of-arms
The coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 12 December 1958. They show an oak tree in yellow on a green background, representing the historic rich nature and oak woods in the area.
Geography
Vest-Agder is the western and southernmost part of the current county of Agder, extending inland from the North Sea and its arm, the Skagerrak, to the southern fringes of Setesdalen, surrounded by the mountain range Setesdalsheiene. It includes the southernmost point of the entire country, Pysen island south of Mandal, and the southernmost part of continental Norway, Lindesnes. It has a very broken and hilly surface. From the coast there are six valleys that stretch north into the county: Audnedalen, Lyngdalen, Kvinesdalen, Mandalen, Sirdalen, and Otradalen (which continues into Aust-Agder where it is called Setesdalen).
Most of the habitation lies along the coast, including the towns Kristiansand, Mandal, Flekkefjord, and Farsund. About 31 fjords are located there. The northern portion is mountainous and sparsely settled, while the central upland moors are used for pasturing of cattle and sheep. Since the Gulf Stream touches the coast of Vest-Agder, it is also called "the Norwegian Riviera", and Agder as a whole is also called "The California of Norway".
History
{{stack|{{Historical populations
|footnote = Source: Statistics Norway.
|shading = off
|1951|96942
|1961|109083
|1971|124171
|1981|136718
|1991|145091
|2001|156878
|2011|172408
}}}}
The oldest ever remains of an 8,000+ year old human in Norway has been found at Søgne, she endured an almost exclusively marine diet. In Kristiansand, a Sarup''-style Neolithic funeral site from 3,400 BC has been excavated. Just before and after the onset of the common era, the region was uniquely rich in sites dedicated to the God Ull (Ullr), and also had a semi-urban settlement at Oddernes (Kristiansand). Norway's first possible all-national king, Halvdan Svarte, was raised probably in the Kvinesdal valley at a matrimonial manor, his mother was presumably the daughter of King Harald of Agder. He was followed by his son King Harald Fairhair, who had his easternmost manor at Kongsgård near Kristiansand. Churches are known since Viking ages. Vest-Agder was not particularly preeminent in the later Viking and Medieval Ages. Mandal (Vesterrisør) and Kristiansand (Ottrunes) had semi-urban trading centers from the 1300s onwards, but did not enjoy urban economic privileges until the 1632 (Mandal) and 1641 (Kristiansand). A general lack of agricultural fertility made the region remaining a relatively poor part of Norway through the centuries.
In the 16th century, Dutch merchant vessels began to visit ports in southern Norway to purchase salmon and other goods. Soon thereafter the export of timber began, as oak from southern Norway was exceptionally well suited for shipbuilding. As the Netherlands developed in the 17th century, it began to suffer from a severe labor shortage, and many families from Vest-Agder and Aust-Agder emigrated to the Netherlands, especially the coastal areas.
In the 19th century, emigration to the United States started. One of the most important causes of this emigration was the emergence of steamships. While Vest-Agder and Aust-Agder historically had very strong positions in the manufacture and repair of sailing ships, the shift to steamships was poorly utilised and resulted in a cyclical slope for the shipbuilding and shipping industries. Emigration to the United States was a means of escaping from the high unemployment that followed.
Many Americans returning to the county after Norway became prosperous. This feature is particularly predominant in Kvinesdal and Farsund in the west, which maintains strong cultural links with the United States.
During World War II the area had substantial fortifications and German personnel, with major bases and airfields in Lista, Mandal and Kristiansand. Batterie Vara near Kristiansand was constructed as one out of two 40 cm coastal artillery forts covering the Skagerrak Sea in conjunction with a similar fort in northern Denmark. After the war, Kristiansand grew considerably whereas other cities lost much of their relative economic and demographic importance.
Municipalities
On 1 January 1838, all the counties were divided into local administrative units each with their own governments (see formannskapsdistrikt). The number and borders of these municipalities were based on the parishes of the Church of Norway. Over time the number and locations of these have changed, and at present there are 15 municipalities in Vest-Agder. The municipality of Åseral was part of the neighboring county of Nedenes until 1880, when it was moved to Vest-Agder.
Municipalities before 2020
Cities
Alleen
Farsund
Flekkefjord
Kristiansand
Lyngdal
Mandal
Parishes
Austad
Bakke
Bjelland
Eiken (Egen)
Farsund
Feda
Finsland
Fjotland
Flekkefjord
Flekkerøy
Frelseren
Greipstad
Grim
Grindheim (Grindum)
Gyland
Halse (Halsaa)
Harkmark
Haughom
Hellemyr
Herad (Herred)
Hidra (Hitterø)
Holum (Holme)
Hægebostad (Øvre Kvinesdal)
Hægeland (Heggeland)
Hånes
Justvik
Konsmo
Korshamn
Kristiansand
Kvinesdal
Kvævemoen
Kvås (Qvås)
Laudal
Liknes, see Kvinesdal
Lista (Vanse)
Ljosland
Lund
Lunde
Lyngdal
Mandal
Nes
Nord-Audnedal
Netlandsnes
Oddernes
Randesund
Sirdal
Spangereid
Spind
Søgne
Old Søgne
Søm
Sør-Audnedal
Tonstad
Torridal
Tveit
Valle
Vanse
Vennesla
Vestbygda
Vigmostad
Voie
Vågsbygd
Øvrebø
Øvre Sirdal
Øyslebø
Åknes
Åseral
Flekkefjord Branch (LDS, 1899–1904)
Kristiansand Branch (LDS, 1856–1912)
Kristiansand (Katolske Apostoliske, 1896–1925)
Villages
Alleen
Andabeløy
Aukland
Austad
Ausvika
Birkeland
Bjelland
Bjørnestad
Breland
Brennåsen
Eik
Eiken
Eikerapen
Feda
Finsland
Fjotland
Fleseland
Grindheim
Grovane
Gyland
Haddeland
Harkmark
Heddeland
Homstean
Hægeland
Hæåk
Høllen
Høllen
Hånes
Ime
Justvik (Gjusvik)
Kilen
Kirkehavn
Knaben
Koland
Konsmo
Korshamn
Krossen
Kvås
Kyrkjebygda
Langenes
Laudal
Liknes
Ljosland
Lohne
Loshavn
Lunde, Sirdal
Lunde
Mosby
Mushom
Nodeland
Nodelandsheia
Ny-Hellesund
Ore
Randesund
Rasvåg
Røyknes
Sande
Skarpengland
Skofteland
Skomrak
Sira
Sirnes
Skålevik
Snartemo
Storekvina
Strai
Svenevig
Svenevik
Tangvall
Tingvatn
Tonstad
Trysnes
Tveit
Vanse
Ve
Vedderheia
Vennesla
Vestbygd
Vigeland
Vigmostad
Volleberg
Øvre Eikeland
Øvrebø
Øyslebø
Åknes
Ålefjær
Ålo
Åna-Sira
Åros
Åvik
Former Municipalities
Austad
Bakke
Bjelland
Bjelland og Grindum
Eiken
Feda
Finsland
Fjotland
Greipstad
Grindheim
Gyland
Halse og Harkmark
Herad
Hidra
Holum
Hægeland
Konsmo
Kvås
Laudal
Lista
Nes
Nes og Hitterø
Nord-Audnedal
Oddernes
Randesund
Spangereid
Spind
Sør-Audnedal
Tonstad
Tveit
Undal
Vigmostad
Øvre Sirdal
Øvrebø
Øvrebø og Hægeland
Øyslebø
Øyslebø og Laudal
Notable residents
:Category:People from Vest-Agder
Sofus Arctander (1845-1924), Liberal politician, Prime Minister for a brief period in 1905.
Bernt Balchen (1899-1973), aeronaut, WWII pilot, polar navigator, military officer.
Jens Bjørneboe (1920-1976), author and playwright.
Camilla Collett (Wergeland) (1813-1895), author, writer, feminist, emancipator.
Bjøro Håland, country & western musician.
Bjarne Lingås (1933-2011), heavyweight boxer, amateur (198, 14 losses) and professional (14, 2 losses).
Rolf Løvland, musician, composer, director, twice winning European Song Contest.
Herman Wedel Major (1814-1854, born in Ireland), regarded as the founder of modern psychiatry in Norway.
Svein Mathisen (1952-2011), football player for IK Start, Hibernian, and Norway.
Mette-Marit, Crown Princess of Norway (1973-), Crown Princess of Norway.
Jørgen Moe (1813-1882), writer, folklorist (Asbjørnsen og Moe), poet, bishop of Kristiansand.
Nicolai Tangen (1966), hedgefund investor, CEO of the Norwegian Soveregin Wealth Fund (NBIM) since 2020.
Christian Rynning-Tønnesen (1959-), business leader, CEO of Norske Skog, Statkraft.
Emanuel Vigeland (1875-1948), artist, sculptor, painter, creator of Vigeland Park in Oslo.
Gustav Vigeland (1869-1945), artist, sculptor, painter.
Henrik Wergeland (1808-1845), author, writer, playwright, educator, national archivar, bureaucrat, emancipator.
See also
Aust-Agder
Sørlandet
Agder
Former municipalities of Vest-Agder
References
External links
Vest-Agder fylkeskommune
Vest-Agder: Norway's southernmost county
Former counties of Norway
2020 disestablishments in Norway
States and territories disestablished in 2020