Bjelland is a former municipality in the old Vest-Agder county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1902 until its dissolution in 1964. The area is now part of Lindesnes Municipality in Agder county. The administrative centre was the village of Bjelland where Bjelland Church is located.
Prior to its dissolution in 1964, the municipality was the 419th largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Bjelland Municipality was the 664th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about . The municipality's population density was and its population had decreased by 12.1% over the previous 10-year period.
General information The municipality of Bjelland was established on 1 January 1902 when the old Bjelland og Grindum Municipality was divided into two: the eastern district (population: 907) became the new Bjelland Municipality and the western district (population: 909) became the new Grindheim Municipality.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, Bjelland Municipality was dissolved and its lands were split up between the newly-created Marnardal Municipality and Audnedal Municipality.
The following areas were merged to form the new Marnardal Municipality: most of Bjelland Municipality (population: ) all of Laudal Municipality (population: ) most of Øyslebø Municipality (population: ), except for the Brunvatne area which became part of Søgne Municipality the small Kleveland Bru area of Finsland Municipality (population: ), with the rest of Finsland becoming part of the new Songdalen Municipality
The following areas were merged to form the new Audnedal Municipality: the Ågedal and Midtbø area of Bjelland Municipality (population: ) all of Grindheim Municipality (population: ) all of Konsmo Municipality (population: )
Name The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Bjelland farm () since the first Bjelland Church was built there. The first element is the genitive case of the word which means "farm" or "farmstead". The last element is which means "land" or "district".
Churches The Church of Norway had one parish () within Bjelland Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Bjelland prestegjeld and the Mandal prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Agder.
Churches in Bjelland MunicipalityParish ()Church nameLocation of the churchYear builtBjellandBjelland ChurchBjelland1793
Geography The municipality was located in the upper Mandalen valley, along the border with Aust-Agder county. The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Ørteknappknuten. Hornnes Municipality (in Aust-Agder county) was located to the north, Hægeland Municipality was located to the east, Finsland Municipality was located to the southeast, Laudal Municipality was located to the south, Konsmo Municipality was located to the southwest, and Grindheim Municipality was located to the west.
Government While it existed, Bjelland 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. The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Mandal District Court and the Agder Court of Appeal.
Municipal council The municipal council of Bjelland Municipality was made up of representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.
Mayors The mayor () of Bjelland Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:
1902–1929: O.K. Foss 1929–1931: Knut Homme 1932–1937: Andreas Haugland 1938–1942: Lars Tjelland 1942–1945: Sigurd Foss (NS) 1945–1945: Lars Tjelland 1946–1947: Kjetil Foss 1948–1951: Lars Skjeggestad 1952–1959: Torgeir Hjelmestad 1960–1963: Ånund Haugland
See also List of former municipalities of Norway
References
External links 1960 census and map of the municipality