Harstad

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Harstad kommune
—  Municipality  —
Coat of arms Troms within Norway
Harstad within Troms
Coordinates (city): 68°46′42″N 16°29′44″E / 68.77833°N 16.49556°E / 68.77833; 16.49556Coordinates: 68°46′42″N 16°29′44″E / 68.77833°N 16.49556°E / 68.77833; 16.49556
Country	Norway
County	Troms
District	Hålogaland
Municipality ID	NO-1901
Administrative centre	Harstad
Government
- Mayor (2007)	Helge Eriksen (H)
Area (Nr. 249 in Norway)
- Total	372 km2 (143.6 sq mi)
- Land	355 km2 (137.1 sq mi)
Population (2007)
- Total	23,242
- Density	65/km2 (168.3/sq mi)
- Change (10 years)	1.8 %
- Rank in Norway	38
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
- Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Official language form	Neutral
Norwegian demonym	Harstadværing[1]
Website	www.harstad.kommune.no
Data from Statistics Norway

Harstad (help·info) is the second largest city and municipality by population, in Troms county, Norway – the city is also the third largest in North Norway.^[2][3] Thus Harstad is the natural centre for its district. Situated approximately 250 kilometres (155 mi) north of the Arctic Circle, the city celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2004.

Contents 1 Geography 1.1 Climate and light 2 History 2.1 Origin of the name 2.2 Coat-of-arms 3 Institutions and culture 4 Military connections 5 Transportation 6 Local areas 7 Notable residents 8 International relations 8.1 Twin towns — Sister cities 9 See also 10 References 11 External links

[edit] Geography

The municipality is located on two islands in south Troms. Most of the municipality is located on Hinnøya, which is Norway's largest island (except Svalbard). The northern part of the municipality is located on the southern half, 53 square kilometres (20 sq mi), of Grytøya. Harstad is bordered by the municipality of Bjarkøy to the north, Kvæfjord to the west, and Tjeldsund (in the county of Nordland) to the south. To the southeast the Tjeldsund Bridge connects Hinnøya with Skånland and the mainland across Tjeldsundet, and to the northeast is the Vågsfjorden, where Harstad shares a water border with Ibestad. The city itself is located northeast on Hinnøya; it is the only city on the island, and is popularly known as Vågsfjordens perle (The pearl of Vågsfjorden).

The municipality contains several small islands, including Arnøya, Gressholman, Kjeøya, Kjøtta, Kjøttakalven, Måga, Rogla, Lille Rogla and Åkerøya.

The highest mountain is Sætertinden (1095 metres above sea level^[4]), located near Sandtorg, Hinnøya. The oil industry of North Norway is centered in Harstad, but the city also has shipyards and other industries that are important for the economy.

Harstad and the surrounding area have traditionally been among the most productive agricultural regions in North Norway, with the old seabed creating fertile soil that is well-suited for farming^{[citation needed]}.

[edit] Climate and light

Despite being located north of the Arctic Circle, Harstad incredibly features a subpolar oceanic climate with relatively mild winters and cool summers. This is primarily due to the relatively warm Gulf Stream. Harstad does not have the brutal winters that most locations north of the Arctic Circle experiences. The city actually experiences warmer winters than major cities located 25 to 30 degrees farther south in latitude in the northern hemisphere such as Beijing, Chicago and Toronto. Summers in Harstad are cool, with average high temperatures seldom breaking the 22 °C (72 °F) mark. Mean annual temperature is 3.9 °C (39.0 °F) (1961 - 90) and annual average precipitation is 850 millimetres (33.5 in).^[5] With high pressure weather, winter temperatures can get down to about −15 °C (5 °F), and in summer reach 27 °C (81 °F). ^[6]

The city enjoys the midnight sun during the summer months, from 22 May to 18 July. There is also a period with twilight a few hours each night as the sun just dips below the horizon, so there is no darkness from early May to early August. The polar night, when the sun is always below the horizon, lasts from 30 November to 12 January. At this time, there is a few hours with dusk/dawn around noon, sometimes with colorful skies towards the south. From late January, daylength rapidly increases, reaching 12 hours by March and 18 hours in April. Harstad is located in the midst of the aurora borealis (a.k.a. the northern lights) zone, and the aurora can often be seen on clear nights, but not in summer due to the continous daylight.

Weather data for Harstad (10 last years)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	0 (32)	0 (32)	1 (34)	5 (41)	9 (48)	12 (54)	16 (61)	15 (59)	10 (50)	6 (43)	3 (37)	1 (34)
Average low °C (°F)	-4 (25)	-4 (25)	-2 (28)	1 (34)	5 (41)	8 (46)	12 (54)	11 (52)	7 (45)	3 (37)	0 (32)	-2 (28)
Precipitation mm (inches)	85 (3.35)	80 (3.15)	65 (2.56)	50 (1.97)	35 (1.38)	37 (1.46)	53 (2.09)	58 (2.28)	80 (3.15)	110 (4.33)	97 (3.82)	100 (3.94)	850 (33.46)
Source: [7] 2009-11-26

[edit] History

The town of Harstad was separated from Trondenes on 1 January 1904. The municipalities of Sandtorg and Trondenes were merged with Harstad on 1 January 1964.

In recent years, a 3000-year-old bronze axe^[8] and a 2600-year-old bronze collar^[9] have been found at the Trondenes peninsula, just north of the city center. These, together with the burial cairns built close to the sea, are indications of a well developed Bronze Age culture in the Harstad area.

There is also substantial archeological evidence of a well developed Iron Age culture in the area, around 200 AD.

Trondenes is mentioned in the Heimskringla as a power centre in the Viking Age and a place to meet and discuss important issues (Trondarting).

Trondenes Church, the world's northernmost medieval church, which dates back to the 13th–15th century, is situated just outside the town.

Adjacent to the church is the Trondenes Historical Center and nearby is the Adolf Gun, an enormous land-based cannon from World War II, and the last of four cannons originally constructed by the Nazis. Harstad is one of the few towns in this part of Norway which were left largely undamaged by World War II.

[edit] Origin of the name

The city is most likely named after the old Harstad farm (Old Norse: Harðarstaðir), since it is built on its ground^{[citation needed]}. The first element is (probably) the genitive case of the male name Hörðr, and the last element is staðir which means "homestead" or "farm".^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 24 April 1953. The blue symbolizes the sea with silvery/white waves.^[10]

[edit] Institutions and culture

The city hosts the annual week long Festival of Northern Norway.^[11]

Harstad University College, with approximately 1,100 students,^[12] has a thriving foreign exchange program with students from all over the world. The hospital in Harstad is part of the University Hospital of North Norway.

The most successful local football team is Harstad Idrettslag (a.k.a. HIL),^[13] and the most successful basketball team is the Harstad Vikings.^[14]

Harstad is home port for the Anna Rogde, the world's oldest sailing schooner, also known as the sailing queen of Norway.^[15]

[edit] Military connections

Harstad traditionally has strong ties with the Norwegian Armed Forces. Kystjegerkommandoen (Coastal Ranger Command) has its home base at Trondenes, Harstad. Marinejegerkommandoen is based in Ramsund in Tjeldsund on the mainland south of Harstad. General Carl Gustav Fleischer led the field operations of the Norwegian Armed Forces in WW2, among them the 7,500 soldiers which from the north pushed the Nazi Germans back to Narvik and participated in retaking Narvik on 28 May 1940. A street in Harstad is named Gen. Fleischers Gate in his honour.

[edit] Transportation

The closest airport is Harstad/Narvik Airport, Evenes, 45 kilometres (28 mi) by road, located on the mainland.

Every morning a northbound and a southbound Coastal Express ship visit Harstad.^[16]

Express boats regularly go between Harstad and Tromsø, Finnsnes, Senja, and other places.^[17]

In the district there are several ferries^[18] and buses,^[19] and in the town of Harstad there are also local buses.^[20]

The leading helicopter company in Northern Norway, Heli-Team, is located in Harstad.^[21]

[edit] Local areas

City neighbourhoods and villages

Villages north/west of the city
Grøtavær	Lundenes	Alvestad
Kjøtta	Kasfjord	Aune
Stornes	Årnes	Røkenes
Undlandet	Ervik	Vika
Mustaparta	Hagan	Kilhus
Tennvassåsen	Tømmeråsen	Steinnes
Storvassbotn	Sørlia
City neighbourhoods
Bergseng	Trondenes	Sama
Blåbærhaugen	Harstadåsen	Eineberget
Skaret	City Center	Heggen
Seljestad	Harstadbotn	Grønnebakkan
Gangsås	Stangnes	Åsby
Kanebogen	Medkila	Holtet
Breivik	Ruggevik	Kilbotn
Villages south of the city
Nordvik	Melvik	Sørvik
Halsebø	Brokvik	Fauskevåg
Gausvik	Haukebø	Sandtorg

[edit] Notable residents

• Knut Andersen (1931–), director
• Bjarne Berg-Sæther (1919–), mayor, county mayor, parliament politician
• Trygve Bornø (1942–), former national football player
• Kristin Clemet (1957–), politician, former minister of education
• Hans Egede (1686–1758), priest
• Karl Erik Harr (1940–), painter, anthropologist
• Kine Hellebust (1954–), singer
• Leif Arne Heløe (1932–), minister of social affairs

• Jon Lech Johansen (1983–), hacker
• Hanna Kvanmo (1926–2005), politician
• Runar Normann (1978–), football player
• Iren Reppen (1965–), actress, playwright
• Iselin Steiro (1985–), supermodel
• Ketil Stokkan (1956–), singer
• Even Kenneth Weines (1980–), country singer
• Unni Wikan (1944–), professor of social

[edit] International relations

[edit] Twin towns — Sister cities

The twin towns of Harstad are:^[22]

• Elsinore in Denmark
• Kirovsk, Murmansk Oblast in Russia
• Umeå in Sweden
• Vaasa in Finland

[edit] See also

• List of schools in Harstad

[edit] References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Harstad

[edit] External links

• Visit Harstad
• iHarstad.no information portal (Norwegian)
• Tourist information (Norwegian)
• Culture
• Old history of Harstad
• Harstad pictures
• About Hinnøy (Norwegian)
• Magnars garden at 69 degrees north (Norwegian)
• Green and black aurora over Harstad NASA astronomy picture of the day
• Particularly rare purple auroral corona over Harstad NASA astronomy picture of the day
• Web-cam Showing various parts of the town
• Live weather station located in Harstad (Norwegian)
• Harstad Tidende (Harstad Times) Newspaper for the district (Norwegian)
• The Adolf Cannon
• Photo presentation on YouTube
• Art of the States: Frozen Horizon musical work inspired by the Harstad landscape

v • d • e Municipalities of Troms Balsfjord · Bardu · Berg · Bjarkøy · Dyrøy · Gratangen · Harstad · Ibestad · Gáivuotna - Kåfjord · Karlsøy · Kvæfjord · Kvænangen · Lavangen · Lenvik · Lyngen · Målselv · Nordreisa · Salangen · Skjervøy · Skånland · Sørreisa · Storfjord · Torsken · Tranøy · Tromsø

v • d • e 40 most populous urban settlements (cities) of Norway as of 2009, according to Statistics Norway [1] 1. Oslo 876,400 2. Bergen 227,800 3. Stavanger / Sandnes 189,800 4. Trondheim 157,100 5. Fredrikstad / S'borg1 101,700 6. Drammen 96,600 7. Skien / Porsgrunn 86,900 8. Kristiansand 67,500 9. Tromsø 55,100 10. Tønsberg 47,500 11. Ålesund 46,500 12. Haugesund 42,900 13. Moss 41,700 14. Sandefjord 40,800 15. Bodø 36,500 16. Arendal 32,400 17. Hamar 30,000 18. Larvik 23,900 19. Halden 23,000 20. Lillehammer 20,100 21. Harstad 19,500 22. Molde 19,400 23. Kongsberg 18,800 24. Gjøvik 18,700 25. Askøy 18,300 26. Horten 18,200 27. Mo i Rana 17,900 28. Kristiansund 17,000 29. Jessheim 15,300 30. Hønefoss 14,300 31. Narvik 13,900 32. Alta 13,600 33. Elverum 13,500 34. Askim 13,100 35. Ski 12,900 36. Drøbak 12,400 37. Nesoddtangen 11,600 38. Steinkjer 11,500 39. Leirvik 11,400 40. Vennesla 11,400 41. Kongsvinger 11,400 42. Stjørdalshalsen 10,800 1 Sarpsborg.