Hadsel
Hadsel () is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Stokmarknes. Other villages in Hadsel include Fiskebøl, Gjerstad, Grønning, Grytting, Hanøyvika, Hennes, Kaljord, Melbu, Sanden, and Sandnes. The municipality is the southernmost municipality in the Vesterålen region. It is spread over several main islands: Hadseløya, Børøya, Hinnøya, Langøya, and Austvågøya. About 70% of the population live on Hadseløya island. Hadseløya island is connected to Langøya by the Hadsel Bridge and Børøy Bridge. Also, the Stokmarknes Airport, Skagen, is located nearby. It is  the busiest small aircraft airport in Norway, serving 100,000 passengers annually (1997). The municipality is the 192nd largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Hadsel is the 130th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 8,061. The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 1% over the previous 10-year period. The municipality is surrounded by several other municipalities: Sortland lies to the north, Bø to the west, Vågan to the south, and Lødingen to the east. Part of the municipality is called "Innlandet" [the inland], consisting of the villages Kaljord , Hennes, Kvitnes, Kvantoelv and Fiskfjord. History. Hadsel was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The northern district of Hadsel was separated in 1841 to form the new Sortland Municipality. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1963, the Indre Eidsfjord district of Hadsel (population: 1,360) was transferred to Sortland municipality. Name. The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old "Hadsel" farm (Old Norse: "Hǫfðasegl"), since the first Hadsel Church was built there. The first element is the genitive case of  hǫfði which means "high and steep cliff" and the last element is "segl" which means "sail". (A cliff near the farm has been compared in form to a sail.) Coat of arms. The coat of arms is from modern times; they were granted on 11 March 1976. The arms show four golden rings on a blue background. This design represents the four main islands of that make up Hadsel: Hadseløya, Austvågøya, Hinnøya, and Langøya. Churches. The Church of Norway has three parishes "(sokn)" within the municipality of Hadsel. It is part of the Vesterålen prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of  Sør-Hålogaland. Geography. The municipality is located upon four main islands in the Vesterålen archipelago: Hinnøya, Langøya, Hadseløya, and Austvågøya, plus the small islands of Børøya and Brottøya. The mountain Higravstinden on the border with Vågan is one of the tallest mountains in the region. Climate. Hadsel has a subpolar oceanic climate (Cfc). The warmest temperature recorded is in July 2014. The coldest temperature recorded is in March 2019. Stokmarknes Airport, Skagen in Hadsel has recorded temperature since June 1972. Data for extremes available since 2004, there might be warmer or colder temperatures recorded before 2004. Government. All municipalities in  Norway, including Hadsel, 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. The municipality falls under the Vesterålen District Court and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal. Municipal council. The municipal council () of Hadsel is made up of 25 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the council is as follows: Mayor. The mayors of Hadsel (incomplete list):