Leikanger
| Leikanger kommune | |||
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| — Municipality — | |||
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| Coordinates: 61°13′51″N 6°47′23″E / 61.23083°N 6.78972°ECoordinates: 61°13′51″N 6°47′23″E / 61.23083°N 6.78972°E | |||
| Country | Norway | ||
| County | Sogn og Fjordane | ||
| District | Sogn | ||
| Administrative centre | Leikanger | ||
| Government | |||
| • Mayor (2003) | Olav Lunden (Ap) | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 180.04 km2 (69.5 sq mi) | ||
| • Land | 177.38 km2 (68.5 sq mi) | ||
| • Water | 2.66 km2 (1 sq mi) | ||
| Area rank | 344 in Norway | ||
| Population (2010) | |||
| • Total | 2,182 | ||
| • Rank | 328 in Norway | ||
| • Density | 12.3/km2 (31.9/sq mi) | ||
| • Change (10 years) | -0.05 % | ||
| Demonym | Systrending[1] | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| ISO 3166 code | NO-1419 | ||
| Official language form | Nynorsk | ||
| Website | www.leikanger.kommune.no | ||
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Leikanger (help·info) is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sogn. The administrative center is the village of Leikanger, which is also the administrative center of Sogn og Fjordane county.
The urban area of Leikanger and Hermansverk has 1,965 inhabitants (2007).[2] This urban area is often called Systrond, which is why a person from Leikanger is often called Systrending.
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[edit] General information
Leikanger was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The original municipality was identical to the Leikanger parish (prestegjeld) with the six sub-parishes (sokn) of Leikanger, Fresvik, Rinde (later named Feios), Vangsnes, Tjugum, and Mundal (Mundal was later re-named Fjærland). In 1849, the sub-parishes of Vangsnes, Tjugum, and Mundal were transferred into the newly created Balestrand parish (prestegjeld). The new parish was separated from Leikanger in 1850 and made into a municipality of its own named Balestrand. This split left Leikanger with 2,368 residents.[3]
On 1 January 1964, the Hella-Eitorn area (population: 31) was transferred from Balestrand back to Leikanger. Also, the Tingstad area (population: 5) was transferred to neighboring Sogndal municipality. These changes left Leikanger with 2,680 residents. On 1 January 1992 the sub-parishes of Leikanger lying south of the Sognefjord, including Feios and Fresvik (total population: 572) were transferred to the municipality of Vik. This move left Leikanger with only one sub-parish: Leikanger.[3][4]
[edit] Name
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old farm Leikanger (Old Norse: Leikvangir), since the first church was built there. The first element is leikr which means "sports" or "athletics" and the last element is the plural form of vangr which means "meadow". Prior to 1889, the name was written Lekanger.[5]
[edit] Coat-of-arms
The coat-of-arms is from modern times. The arms were granted on 5 September 1963. The arms show a twig of an apple tree. The apple tree branch is a symbol for the many orchards in the municipality and thus for the local economy. The three leaves also symbolise the three parishes in the municipality.[6]
[edit] Churches
The Church of Norway has one church within the municipality of Leikanger. It is part of the Diocese of Bjørgvin and the Rural Deanery (Prosti) of Indre Sogn.[4]
| Parish (Prestegjeld) |
Sub-Parish (Sogn) |
Church Name | Year Built | Location of the Church |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leikanger Parish | Leikanger | Leikanger kyrkje | 1166 | Leikanger |
[edit] Government
All municipalities in Norway, including Leikanger, 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 elect a mayor.
[edit] Municipal council
The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Leikanger is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to every four years. For 2007–2011, the party breakdown is as follows:[7]
| Party Name | Name in Norwegian | Number of representatives |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party | Det Norske Arbeiderpartiet | 7 |
| Conservative Party | Høyre | 2 |
| Centre Party | Senterpartiet | 3 |
| Socialist Left Party | Sosialistisk Venstreparti | 2 |
| Liberal Party | Venstre | 3 |
| Total: | 17 |
[edit] Mayor
The mayor (ordførar) of a municipality in Norway is a representative of the municipal council who is elected either by the majority of the council or via direct elections. Olav Lunden of the Labour Party (Det Norske Arbeiderpartiet) was re-elected mayor for the 2007-2011 term. He was first elected in 2003.[8]
[edit] Geography
Leikanger is located on the north side of the Sognefjord and to the east of the Fjærlandsfjord. It is bordered on the north and east by the municipality of Sogndal, on the west by Balestrand, and on the south by Vik.
[edit] Buildings and structures
East of Leikanger, there are the Sognefjord Spans, three powerline spans with length over 4 kilometres (2.5 mi), which are currently the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th longest spans in the world. In 1955, the first Sognefjord Span was built near Leikanger. It was the longest span in the world from 1955 until 1997.
[edit] Sister cities/Twin towns
Leikanger has sister city agreements with the following places:
[edit] References
- ^ "Personnemningar til stadnamn i Noreg" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet. http://www.sprakrad.no/nb-no/Sprakhjelp/Rettskrivning_Ordboeker/Innbyggjarnamn/.
- ^ "Urban settlements. Population and area, by municipality.". Statistics Norway. 1 January 2007. http://www.ssb.no/english/subjects/02/01/10/beftett_en/arkiv/tab-2007-06-07-01-en.html. Retrieved 3 August 2008.
- ^ a b Jukvam, Dag (1999). "Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen" (in Norwegian) (PDF). Statistics Norway. http://www.ssb.no/emner/00/90/rapp_9913/rapp_9913.pdf.
- ^ a b Natvik, Oddvar (9 February 2005). "Some historical data on the 26 Kommunes". http://www.emigration.no/sff/emigration3.nsf/0/326D0346278A5909C1256F570048962C?OpenDocument. Retrieved 23 June 2008.
- ^ Rygh, Oluf (1919) (in Norwegian). Norske gaardnavne: Nordre Bergenhus amt (12 ed.). Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. pp. 124. http://www.dokpro.uio.no/perl/navnegransking/rygh_ng/rygh_bla.prl?enhid=189318&avid=42274.
- ^ Norske Kommunevåpen (1990). "Nye kommunevåbener i Norden". http://www.ngw.nl/int/nor/l/leikanger.htm. Retrieved 23 June 2008.
- ^ "Members of the local councils". Statistics Norway. 2007. http://www.ssb.no/english/subjects/00/01/20/kommvalgform_en/tab-2008-01-29-15-en.html. Retrieved 23 June 2008.
- ^ "Olav Lunden" (in Norwegian). Leikanger Kommune. 1 October 2006. http://www.leikanger.kommune.no/web/leikanger.nsf/0/47CEA4F3327C82E1C12570ED003B002A?OpenDocument. Retrieved 23 June 2008.[dead link]
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[edit] External links
- Official Leikanger municipality website (Norwegian)
- NRK: Leikanger (Norwegian)
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