Lavik Church

Lavik Church (Norwegian: Lavik kyrkje) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Høyanger Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the village of Lavik on the northern shore of the Sognefjorden. It is the church for the Lavik parish which is part of the Sunnfjord prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The white, wooden church was built in an octagonal style in 1865 using designs by the architect Christian Heinrich Grosch. The church seats about 380 people.[1][2]

Lavik Church
Lavik kyrkje
View of the church
Lavik Church Location of the church Show map of Vestland Lavik Church Lavik Church (Norway) Show map of Norway
61.1052°N 5.5077°E / 61.1052; 5.5077
Location	Høyanger Municipality, Vestland
Country	Norway
Denomination	Church of Norway
Churchmanship	Evangelical Lutheran
History
Status	Parish church
Founded	12th century
Consecrated	10 Dec 1865
Architecture
Functional status	Active
Architect(s)	Christian Heinrich Grosch
Architectural type	Octagonal
Completed	1865
Specifications
Capacity	380
Materials	Wood
Administration
Parish	Lavik
Deanery	Sunnfjord prosti
Diocese	Bjørgvin

History

The earliest existing historical records of the church date back to the year 1327, but it was not new that year. The first church was likely a stave church that was built in the 12th century. Not much is known of the first church. In 1594, the old church was torn down and replaced with a new building on the same location. It was described as a small, timber-framed long church.[3]

Prior to 1809, Lavik church was an annex church in the Evindvig parish, but since 1809 it has been its own parish.[4] The building that was constructed in 1594 was eventually deemed to be was too small for the parish, so it was torn down in 1864 and the present church was built. The new church was designed with an octagonal floorplan with a 13-by-12.7-metre (43 ft × 42 ft) nave and a 6-by-5-metre (20 ft × 16 ft) choir. It was consecrated on 10 December 1865 by the local Dean Thomas Erichsen.[5]

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See also

• List of churches in Bjørgvin

References

1. "Lavik kyrkje". Kirkesøk: Kirkebyggdatabasen. Retrieved 2019-12-01.
2. "Oversikt over Nåværende Kirker" (in Norwegian). KirkeKonsulenten.no. Retrieved 2019-12-01.
3. "Lavik kyrkjestad" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage. Retrieved 2019-12-02.
4. "Prestegjeld og sokn i Sogn og Fjordane" (in Norwegian). National Archives of Norway. Archived from the original on 2014-02-01. Retrieved 2014-01-20.
5. Henden Aaraas, Margrethe; Vengen, Sigurd; Gjerde, Anders. "Lavik kyrkje" (in Norwegian). Fylkesarkivet. Retrieved 2019-12-02.