Vestland

Vestland is a county in Norway established on 1 January 2020.[5][6] The county is located in Western Norway and it is centred around the city of Bergen, Norway's second largest city. The administrative centre of the county is the city of Bergen where the executive and political leadership is based, but the County Governor is based in Hermansverk. The county is one of two counties in Norway that have Nynorsk as their official written language form (the others are neutral as to which form people use).[7]

This article is about the county in Norway. For the traditional region Vestlandet, see Western Norway.
Vestland
County
Myklebustdalen
Coat of arms
Vestland within Norway
Coordinates: 60.93024°N 6.43261°E / 60.93024; 6.43261
CountryNorway
RegionWestern Norway
County IDNO-46
Administrative centresBergen, Leikanger
Other townsFlorø, Førde, Leirvik, Måløy, Odda
Government
 • GovernorLars Sponheim
 • County mayorJon Askeland (Sp)
Area
 • Total33,870.99 km2 (13,077.66 sq mi)
 • Land31,978.41 km2 (12,346.93 sq mi)
 • Water1,892.58 km2 (730.73 sq mi)  5.6%
Area rank5
Population
 (1 January 2020)[2]
 • Total636,533[3]
 • Rank3
Demonym(s)Vestlending
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Official language formNynorsk[4]
Websitevlfk.no

Vestland was created in 2020 when the former counties of Hordaland and Sogn og Fjordane (with the exception of Hornindal municipality, which became part of Volda municipality in Møre og Romsdal county) were merged.[8]

History

Vestland county is a newly created county, but it has been inhabited for centuries. The area was made up of many petty kingdoms under the Gulating during the Middle Ages. The northern part was the known as Firdafylke (now the Fjordane region; Nordfjord-Sunnfjord), the central are was known as Sygnafylke (now the Sogn region), and the southern part was known as Hordafylke.

In the early 16th century, Norway was divided into four len. The Bergenhus len was headquartered in Bergen and encompassed much of western and northern Norway including Firdafylke, Sygnafylke, Hordafylke, and Sunnmørafylke (in the present day Møre og Romsdal county). The new Bergenhus len was administered from the Bergenhus Fortress in the city of Bergen.

In 1662, the lens were replaced by amts. On 19 February 1662, a royal decree changed the name to Bergenhus amt. The new Bergenhus amt originally consisted of the present-day areas of Vestland and the Sunnmøre region of Møre og Romsdal, plus the far northern Nordlandene amt was subordinate to Bergenhus amt. The Sunnmøre region was transferred to Romsdalen amt in 1689 and the Nordlandene amt was separated around that time as well.

In 1763, the amt was divided into northern and southern parts: Nordre Bergenhus amt and Søndre Bergenhus amt. When the amt was split, the present day municipality of Gulen was split with the southern part ending up in Søndre Bergenhus amt. In 1773, the border was re-drawn so that all of Gulen was located in the northern part.

On 1 January 1919, Nordre Bergenhus amt was renamed Sogn og Fjordane fylke and Søndre Bergenhus amt was renamed Hordaland fylke during a period of time when many location names in Norway were changed.[9]

The city of Bergen was removed from the Bergenhus amt in 1831 and it was classified as a city-county (byamt) from 1831–1972. During that time in 1915, the municipality of Årstad was annexed into Bergen. In 1972, the neighbouring municipalities of Arna, Fana, Laksevåg and Åsane were annexed into the city of Bergen. Also at that same time, the city of Bergen lost its county status, and became a part of Hordaland county once again.

On 1 January 2020, Hordaland and Sogn og Fjordane counties were merged back together once again, forming Vestland county.

Geography
Hardanger is one of Norway's most important sources of fruit, providing about 40% of Norway's fruit production, including apples, plums, pears, cherries, and redcurrants.

Vestland is located on the western coast of Norway. It is split up by several long, deep fjords including the Nordfjorden, Sognefjorden, and Hardangerfjorden, some of Norway's most notatble fjords and great tourist attractions. About half of the Hardangervidda National Park is in the county. It also includes the Jostedal, Folgefonna, and Hardangerjøkulen glaciers. The county also includes many well-known waterfalls, such as Vøringsfossen and Stykkjedalsfossen. Ramnefjellsfossen (previously called Utigardfossen) is the tallest in Norway and third tallest in the world and Vettisfossen is one of Norway's highest waterfalls with a vertical drop of 275 metres (902 ft). Both are located in the Jotunheim mountains.

Outside of the Bergen metropolitan area, the county is mostly a rural area with a scattered population. Cruise ships visit Vestland all summer because of the unique vistas of high mountains and deep blue fjords. The famous Nærøyfjord is located in the south of the county. This is a UNESCO listed fjord area. There are several archipelagos, including Øygarden, Austevoll, Bulandet, Bremangerlandet, and Kinn. The westernmost point in Norway proper is Holmebåen in Solund municipality. The island of Unst, part of Shetland Islands is around 300 kilometres (190 mi) west of Holmebåen.

The terrain changes quite rapidly with mostly smaller mountains on the coastline, gradually increasing to mountains reaching more than 2,000 metres (6,600 ft). Because of the steep rise in elevation and fjords cutting through the terrain, the amount of precipitation is very high. Low pressure systems come in from the west and meet the mountains (a phenomenon known as orographic lifting) and cause rain and snowfall.

Government
Main article: Vestland County Municipality

A county (fylke) is the chief local administrative area in Norway. The whole country is divided into 11 counties. A county is also an election area, with popular votes taking place every 4 years. In Vestland, the government of the county is the Vestland County Municipality. It includes 65 members who are elected to form a county council (Fylkesting). Heading the Fylkesting is the county mayor (fylkesordførar). Since 2020, the Vestland County Municipality has been led by Jon Askeland, the county mayor.

The county also has a County Governor (fylkesmann) who is the representative of the King and Government of Norway. Lars Sponheim is the current County Governor of Vestland.

The municipalities in Vestland are divided among several district courts (tingrett): Nordhordland District Court, Sunnhordland District Court, Bergen District Court, Hardanger District Court, and Sogn og Fjordane District Court. All of these courts are subordinate to the Gulating Court of Appeal district based in Bergen.

Panorama over the island of Sotra.

Municipalities

Vestland County has a total of 43 municipalities:[10]

Municipal
Number		NameAdm. CentreLocation in
the county		EstablishedOld Municipal No.
(before 2020)		Former County
(before 2020)
4601 BergenBergen1 Jan 19721201 BergenHordaland
4602 KinnFlorø1 Jan 20201401 Flora
1439 Vågsøy (part)		Sogn og Fjordane
4611 EtneEtnesjøen1 Jan 18381211 EtneHordaland
4612 SveioSveio1 Jan 18651216 Sveio
4613 BømloSvortland1 Jan 19161219 Bømlo
4614 StordLeirvik1 Jan 18381221 Stord
4615 FitjarFitjar1 Jan 18631222 Fitjar
4616 TysnesUggdal1 Jan 18381223 Tysnes
4617 KvinnheradRosendal1 Jan 18381224 Kvinnherad
4618 UllensvangOdda1 Jan 18381227 Jondal
1228 Odda
1230 Ullensvang
4619 EidfjordEidfjord1 Jan 19771232 Eidfjord
4620 UlvikUlvik1 Jan 18381233 Ulvik
4621 VossVossevangen1 Jan 18381234 Granvin
1235 Voss
4622 KvamNorheimsund1 Jan 18381238 Kvam
4623 SamnangerTysse1 Jan 19071242 Samnanger
4624 BjørnafjordenOsøyro1 Jan 20201241 Fusa
1243 Os
4625 AustevollStorebø1 Jan 18861244 Austevoll
4626 ØygardenStraume1 Jan 19641245 Sund
1246 Fjell
1259 Øygarden
4627 AskøyKleppestø1 Jan 18381247 Askøy
4628 VaksdalDale1 Jan 19641251 Vaksdal
4629 ModalenMo1 Jan 19101252 Modalen
4630 OsterøyLonevåg1 Jan 19641253 Osterøy
4631 AlverKnarvik1 Jan 20201256 Meland
1260 Radøy
1263 Lindås
4632 AustrheimÅrås1 Jan 19101264 Austrheim
4633 FedjeFedje1 Jan 19471265 Fedje
4634 MasfjordenMasfjordnes1 Mar 18791266 Masfjorden
4635 GulenEivindvik1 Jan 18381411 GulenSogn og Fjordane
4636 SolundHardbakke1 Jan 18581412 Solund
4637 HyllestadHyllestad1 Jan 18621413 Hyllestad
4638 HøyangerHøyanger1 Jan 19641416 Høyanger
4639 VikVikøyri1 Jan 18381417 Vik
4640 SogndalHermansverk1 Jan 18381418 Balestrand
1419 Leikanger
1420 Sogndal
4641 AurlandAurlandsvangen1 Jan 18381421 Aurland
4642 LærdalLærdalsøyri1 Jan 18381422 Lærdal
4643 ÅrdalÅrdalstangen1 Jan 18631424 Årdal
4644 LusterGaupne1 Jan 18381426 Luster
4645 AskvollAskvoll1 Jan 18381428 Askvoll
4646 FjalerDale1 Jan 18381429 Fjaler
4647 Sunnfjord Førde1 Jan 20201430 Gaular
1431 Jølster
1432 Førde
1433 Naustdal
4648 BremangerSvelgen1 Jan 18661438 Bremanger
4649 Stad Nordfjordeid1 Jan 20201439 Vågsøy (part)
1441 Selje
1443 Eid
4650 GloppenSandane1 Jan 18381445 Gloppen
4651 StrynStryn1 Jan 18431449 Stryn
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See also

References
  1. Statistisk sentralbyrå (2020). "09280: Area of land and fresh water (km²) (M)" (in Norwegian).
  2. Statistisk sentralbyrå (2020). "Table: 06913: Population 1 January and population changes during the calendar year (M)" (in Norwegian).
  3. https://www.ssb.no/en/befolkning/statistikker/folkemengde
  4. "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar (målvedtaksforskrifta)" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
  5. "Arealstatistikk for Norge". Kartverket (in Norwegian Bokmål). 8 March 2013. Retrieved 2 January 2020.
  6. "19 fylker blir til 11 – dette skal de hete (19 counties becoming 11 – this will be their names)" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  7. "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar (målvedtaksforskrifta)" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  8. "Navn på nye kommuner (Name of new municipalities)" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  9. Natvik, Oddvar (29 August 2005). "Sogn og Fjordane". Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 23 August 2008.
  10. List of Norwegian municipality numbers

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