Ås
| Ås kommune | |||
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| — Municipality — | |||
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| Coordinates: 59°39′37″N 10°47′1″E / 59.66028°N 10.78361°ECoordinates: 59°39′37″N 10°47′1″E / 59.66028°N 10.78361°E | |||
| Country | Norway | ||
| County | Akershus | ||
| District | Follo | ||
| Administrative centre | Ås | ||
| Area | |||
| - Total | 103 km2 (39.8 sq mi) | ||
| - Land | 101.3 km2 (39.1 sq mi) | ||
| Area rank | 383 in Norway | ||
| Population (2009) | |||
| - Total | 15,863 | ||
| - Density | 156.6/km2 (405.6/sq mi) | ||
| - Change (10 years) | 17.5 % | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| ISO 3166 code | NO-0214 | ||
| Official language form | Neutral | ||
| Website | as.kommune.no | ||
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Ås is a municipality in Akershus county, Norway. It is part of the Follo traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Ås. The parish of Aas was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt).
Ås is one of the fastest growing municipalities in Akershus, with a population of 16.386 in 2009, and a growth of 539 in 2008.[1] Ås is the largest agricultural municipality of Akershus, and home to the Norwegian University of Life Sciences and the amusement park Tusenfryd.
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[edit] General information
[edit] Name
The parish was named after the old Ås farm (Old Norse: Áss), since the first church was built there. The name is identical with the word áss meaning "mountain ridge". Prior to 1921, the name was spelled Aas.
[edit] Coat-of-arms
The coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 23 July 1982. The three silver diamonds are a symbol for the many archaeological findings in the area. The diamond (rhombus) shape was taken as it resembled many of the axes found in the area (Nøstvet ax). The silver colour resembles the flint, of which the tools were made of. The number of three diamonds was chosen to represent the three parishes in the municipality: Ås, Kroer and Nordby.[2][3]
[edit] Economy
The most important source of income is agriculture. Ås is the largest agricultural municipality of Akershus: providing the region with grain, vegetables, and dairy products. Of the 101 square kilometres (39.0 sq mi) of land in the municipality, about 39 square kilometres (15.1 sq mi) are farmed and about 46 square kilometres (17.8 sq mi) are forested.[2]
[edit] Transportation
Two of Norway's largest highways, European route E6 and European route E18, run through the municipality, and many of the inhabitants commute to Oslo.
A 240 metres (787.4 ft) long bridge, which is a smaller scale recreation of a bridge that Leonardo da Vinci proposed in 1502 for the crossing of the Golden Horn is located in the municipality. It was created by Norwegian painter and artist Vebjørn Sand as part of his Da Vinci project. The bridge serves as a pedestrian crossing over European route E18. This bridge is famous among Japanese tourists, as they are often seen walking across.
[edit] Population
As of 1 January 2009, Ås municipality covers 101.3 square kilometres (39 sq mi) and has 15,863 inhabitants.[1] In 2007, the Ås urban area had a population of 8,095.[4] The municipality also contains one additional urban area, Togrenda, with a population of 2,783. Also, 1,566 inhabitants live in the Ski urban area.
[edit] Notable residents
- Simen Agdestein (born 1967) - chess grandmaster and former football star
- Christian Magnus Falsen (1782–1830) - Norwegian constitutional father
- Knut Hjeltnes (born 1952) - track and field athlete
- Solveig Kringlebotn (born 1963) - soprano opera singer
[edit] Sister cities
The following cities are twinned with Ås:[5]
- Ljungby Municipality, Kronoberg County, Sweden
- Paimio, Länsi-Suomi, Finland
- Holbæk Municipality, Region Sjælland, Denmark
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Statistics Norway: Figures on Ås Municipality". http://www.ssb.no/english/municipalities/0214. Retrieved 12 May 2009.
- ^ a b "Fakta om Ås kommune". Ås kommune. http://www.as.kommune.no/fakta-om-As-kommune.189891-27651.html. Retrieved 17 December 2008. (Norwegian)
- ^ Norske Kommunevåpen (1990). "Nye kommunevåbener i Norden". http://www.ngw.nl/int/nor/a/as.htm. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
- ^ "Urban settlements. Population and area, by municipality". Statistics Norway. 1 January 2007. http://www.ssb.no/english/subjects/02/01/10/beftett_en/tab-2007-06-07-01-en.html. Retrieved 6 March 2008.
- ^ "Nyttige lenker i Ås". Ås kommune. http://www.as.kommune.no/lenker.27639.no.html. Retrieved 17 December 2008. (Norwegian)
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ås |
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Look up Ås in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
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