Øvre Sirdal is a former municipality in the old Vest-Agder county, Norway. The 1,051-square-kilometre (406 sq mi) municipality existed from 1905 until its dissolution in 1960. The area is now part of Sirdal Municipality in the traditional district of Lister in Agder county. The administrative centre was the village of Lunde where Lunde Church is located.[6]
Øvre Sirdal Municipality
Øvre Sirdal herred | |
|---|---|
| Øvre Sirdalen herred (historic name) | |
.jpg) | |
 Vest-Agder within Norway | |
 Øvre Sirdal within Vest-Agder | |
| Coordinates: 58°48′30″N 06°45′51″E / 58.80833°N 6.76417°E | |
| Country | Norway |
| County | Vest-Agder |
| District | Lister |
| Established | 1 Jan 1905 |
| • Preceded by | Sirdal Municipality |
| Disestablished | 1 Jan 1960 |
| • Succeeded by | Sirdal Municipality |
| Administrative centre | Lunde |
| Area (upon dissolution) | |
• Total | 1,051 km2 (406 sq mi) |
| • Rank | #84 in Norway |
| Highest elevation | 1,433.75 m (4,703.9 ft) |
| Population (1959) | |
• Total | 548 |
| • Rank | #726 in Norway |
| • Density | 0.5/km2 (1.3/sq mi) |
| • Change (10 years) |  −7% |
| Demonym | Sirdøl[2] |
| Official language | |
| • Norwegian form | Nynorsk[4] |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| ISO 3166 code | NO-1047[5] |
Prior to its dissolution in 1960, the 1,051-square-kilometre (406 sq mi) municipality was the 84th largest by area out of the 743 municipalities in Norway. Øvre Sirdal Municipality was the 726th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 548. The municipality's population density was 0.5 inhabitants per square kilometre (1.3/sq mi) and its population had decreased by 7% over the previous 10-year period.[7][8]
General information
editThe municipality of Øvre Sirdal was established on 1 January 1905 when the old Sirdal Municipality was dissolved and divided into two new municipalities: the northern part (population: 753) became the new Øvre Sirdal Municipality and the southern part (population: 828) became the new Tonstad Municipality.[9]
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee.[10][11] On 1 January 1960, Øvre Sirdal Municipality was dissolved and the following areas were merged to form a new Sirdal Municipality:[9]
- all of Øvre Sirdal Municipality (population: 549)
- all of Tonstad Municipality (population: 651)
- the Øksendal area of Bakke Municipality (population: 226)
Name
editThe municipality (originally the parish) is named after the Sirdalen valley (Old Norse: Sírudalr) since the valley runs through the municipality. The prefix øvre means "upper" (since this was created from the upper part of the old Sirdal Municipality. The first element of the name is the genitive case of the river name Síra (now the Sira river). The river name has an unknown meaning, but it could be something like "strong stream". The last element is dalr which means "valley" or "dale".[12] Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Øvre Sirdalen. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Øvre Sirdal, removing the definite form ending -en.[13]
Churches
editThe Church of Norway had one parish (sokn) within Øvre Sirdal Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Sirdal prestegjeld and the Flekkefjord prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Agder.[8]
| Parish (sokn) | Church name | Location of the church | Year built |
|---|---|---|---|
| Øvre Sirdal | Lunde Church | Lunde | 1873 |
Geography
editThe municipality was located in the northern Sirdalen valley. The river Sira flows through the valley. The highest point in the municipality was the 1,433.75-metre (4,703.9 ft) tall mountain Urdalsknuten, on the northern border with Valle Municipality.[1] Bykle Municipality was located to the north (in Aust-Agder county), Valle Municipality was located to the northeast (also in Aust-Agder), Bygland Municipality was located to the southeast (also in Aust-Agder), Tonstad Municipality was located to the south, Heskestad Municipality was located to the southwest (in Rogaland county), Bjerkreim Municipality was located to the west (also in Rogaland), and Forsand Municipality was located to the northwest (also in Rogaland).
Government
editWhile it existed, Øvre Sirdal Municipality was responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.[14] The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Flekkefjord District Court and the Agder Court of Appeal.
Municipal council
editThe municipal council (Herredsstyre) of Øvre Sirdal Municipality was made up of 13 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 13 | |
| Total number of members: | 13 | |
| Note: On 1 January 1960, Øvre Sirdal Municipality became part of Sirdal Municipality. | ||
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 12 | |
| Total number of members: | 12 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 12 | |
| Total number of members: | 12 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 12 | |
| Total number of members: | 12 | |
| Party name (in Nynorsk) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 12 | |
| Total number of members: | 12 | |
| Note: Due to the German occupation of Norway during World War II, no elections were held for new municipal councils until after the war ended in 1945. | ||
Mayors
editThe mayor (Nynorsk: ordførar) of Øvre Sirdal Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:[20]
- 1905–1914: Per Iversen Ousdal
- 1914–1918: K. Myklebust
- 1918–1919: Mr. Valevatn
- 1920–1927: Per O. Ousdal
- 1928–1938: Torkell Neset
See also
editReferences
edit- 1 2 "Høgaste fjelltopp i kvar kommune" (in Norwegian). Kartverket. 16 January 2024.
- ↑ "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet.
- ↑ "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no.
- ↑ "Norsk Lovtidende. 2den Afdeling. 1932. Samling af Love, Resolutioner m.m". Norsk Lovtidend (in Norwegian). Oslo, Norway: Grøndahl og Søns Boktrykkeri: 453–471. 1932.
- ↑ Bolstad, Erik; Thorsnæs, Geir, eds. (9 January 2024). "Kommunenummer". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Foreningen Store norske leksikon.
- ↑ Helland, Amund (1903). "Siredalen herred". X Lister og Mandals amt. Anden del. Norges land og folk (in Norwegian). Kristiania, Norway: H. Aschehoug & Company. p. 629. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
- ↑ Statistisk sentralbyrå. "Table: 06913: Population 1 January and population changes during the calendar year (M)" (in Norwegian).
- 1 2 Statistisk sentralbyrå (1 January 1951). Norges Sivile, Geistlige, Rettslige og Militære Inndeling 1. Januar 1951 (PDF). Norges Offisielle Statistikk (in Norwegian). Oslo, Norge: H. Aschehoug & Co.
- 1 2 Jukvam, Dag (1999). "Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Statistisk sentralbyrå. ISBN 9788253746845.
- ↑ Grepstad, Jon, ed. (25 March 2025). "Nikolai Schei". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Foreningen Store norske leksikon. Retrieved 19 March 2026.
- ↑ Hansen, Tore; Thorsnæs, Geir, eds. (27 May 2024). "kommuneinndelingen i Norge". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Foreningen Store norske leksikon. Retrieved 19 March 2026.
- ↑ Rygh, Oluf (1912). Norske gaardnavne: Lister og Mandals amt (in Norwegian) (9 ed.). Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. pp. 328-329 and 340.
- ↑ "Norsk Lovtidende. 2den Afdeling. 1917. Samling af Love, Resolutioner m.m". Norsk Lovtidend (in Norwegian). Kristiania, Norge: Grøndahl og Søns Boktrykkeri: 1057–1065. 1917.
- ↑ Hansen, Tore; Vabo, Signy Irene, eds. (25 November 2024). "kommunestyre". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Foreningen Store norske leksikon. Retrieved 31 December 2024.
- ↑ "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1955" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1957. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
- ↑ "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1951" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1952. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
- ↑ "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1947" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1948. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
- ↑ "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1945" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1947. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
- ↑ "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1937" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1938. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
- ↑ Nuland, Lars F. (1938). Litt heradsoga 1837-1937 (in Norwegian). Kristiansand: Fædrelandsvennens prenteverk.
External links
edit- Sirdolen.no (in Norwegian)
- Weather information for Øvre Sirdal (in Norwegian)
