Sunnfjord (municipality)

Sunnfjord is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Førde. Other villages in the municipality include Naustdal, Sande, Vassenden, and Skei.

Sunnfjord kommune
Municipality
Aerial view of the town of Førde
Coat of arms
Vestland within
Norway
Sunnfjord within Vestland
Coordinates: 61.4522°N 5.8572°E / 61.4522; 5.8572
CountryNorway
CountyVestland
DistrictSunnfjord
Established1 Jan 2020
Administrative centreFørde
Government
 • Mayor (2020)Olve Grotle (H)
Area
 • Total2,208.13 km2 (852.56 sq mi)
 • Land2,067.26 km2 (798.17 sq mi)
 • Water140.87 km2 (54.39 sq mi)  6.4%
Area rank27 in Norway
Population
 (2020)
 • Total22,030
 • Rank56 in Norway
 • Density10.7/km2 (28/sq mi)
 • Change (10 years)
7.6%
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeNO-4647
Official language formNynorsk[1]
Websitewww.sunnfjord.kommune.no
Data from Statistics Norway

The 2,208-square-kilometre (853 sq mi) municipality is the 27th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Sunnfjord is the 56th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 22,030. The municipality's population density is 10.7 inhabitants per square kilometre (28/sq mi) and its population has increased by 7.6% over the previous 10-year period.[2][3]

General information

The municipality was established on 1 January 2020 when the old municipalities of Førde, Gaular, Jølster, and Naustdal were merged.

Name

The municipality was named after the traditional district of Sunnfjord, in which it is located. The first part of the name sunn- means "southern" and the last part of the name is fjord, thus it is the southern fjord region (as opposed to the nearby Nordfjord region (the northern fjord region).[4]

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was approved in 2019 for use starting on 1 January 2020. The green arms show a design of four white rivers joining a larger body of water. The rivers symbolize the four main rivers of Sunnfjord: Nausta, Gaula, Anga, and Jølstra. It was meant to symbolize the many waterfalls and rivers in the municipality as well as strength and unity.[5]

Churches

The Church of Norway has six parishes (sokn) within the municipality of Sunnfjord. It is part of the Sunnfjord prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.

Churches in Sunnfjord
Parish (sokn)Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
FørdeFørde ChurchFørde1885
GaularBygstad ChurchBygstad1845
Sande ChurchSande1864
Hestad ChapelHestad1805
Viksdalen ChurchVik1848
HelgheimHelgheim ChurchHelgheim1877
Holsen og
Haukedalen		Haukedalen ChurchHaukedalen1885
Holsen ChurchHolsen1861
NaustdalNaustdal ChurchNaustdal1891
Vevring ChurchIndrevevring1846
ÅlhusVassenden ChurchVassenden2002
Ålhus ChurchÅlhus1795

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Sunnfjord, 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 elects a mayor.[6] The municipality falls under the Sogn og Fjordane District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Sunnfjord is made up of 45 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the council is as follows:

Sunnfjord Kommunestyre 2020–2023 [7]  
Party Name (in Nynorsk)Number of
representatives
 Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet)11
 Progress Party (Framstegspartiet)1
 Green Party (Miljøpartiet Dei Grøne)2
 Conservative Party (Høgre)10
 Christian Democratic Party (Kristeleg Folkeparti)2
 Red Party (Raudt)1
 Centre Party (Senterpartiet)12
 Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti)4
 Liberal Party (Venstre)2
Total number of members:45
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References
  1. "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no.
  2. Statistisk sentralbyrå (2020). "Table: 06913: Population 1 January and population changes during the calendar year (M)" (in Norwegian).
  3. Statistisk sentralbyrå (2020). "09280: Area of land and fresh water (km²) (M)" (in Norwegian).
  4. Askheim, Svein, ed. (2018-11-01). "Sunnfjord". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 2019-11-08.
  5. "Symbol og identitet" (in Norwegian). Prosjekt Sunnfjord. Retrieved 2019-11-08.
  6. Hansen, Tore, ed. (2016-05-12). "kommunestyre". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 2019-03-06.
  7. "Tall for Norge: Kommunestyrevalg 2019 - Nordland". Valg Direktoratet. Retrieved 2019-11-08.
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