Sogndal is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located on the northern shore of the Sognefjorden in the traditional district of Sogn. The village of Hermansverk/Leikanger is the administrative center of Sogndal Municipality. Other villages in the municipality include Balestrand, Dragsviki, Fimreite, Fjærland, Kaupanger, Kjørnes, Norane, Sæle, and Sogndalsfjøra. Sogndal Airport, Haukåsen is located southwest of Kaupanger. The most populated settlement in the municipality is Sogndalsfjøra.
The municipality is the 84th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Sogndal Municipality is the 96th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of . The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 10% over the previous 10-year period.
The Norwegian dialect spoken in Sogndal Municipality is called sognamål.
In 1917, a farmer in Sogndal (Kato Linde) plowed up the Eggja stone, a gravestone with runic inscriptions important for the history of the Old Norse language.
General information
The parish of Sogndal was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). The original municipality was identical to the Church of Norway's Sogndal prestegjeld with the parishes () of Stedje, Norane, and Kaupanger.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, the Tingstad area (population: 5) was transferred from Leikanger Municipality to Sogndal Municipality.
On 1 January 2000, the parish of Fjærland was transferred from Balestrand Municipality to Sogndal Municipality after the completion of the Frudal Tunnel was built which connected the previously isolated area of Fjærland to Sogndal rather than Balestrand.
Historically, this municipality was part of the old Sogn og Fjordane county. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became a part of the newly-formed Vestland county (after Hordaland and Sogn og Fjordane counties were merged). Also on that date, a major municipal merger took place. Sogndal Municipality (population: 8,191) was merged with Leikanger Municipality (population: 2,331) and most of Balestrand Municipality (except for the Nesse area which was merged into Høyanger Municipality) to form a much larger Sogndal Municipality. On the same date the administrative centre was moved from Sogndalsfjøra to Hermansverk.
Name The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the Sokndalen valley () since the historic Stedje Church was built there. The first element is the genitive case of the name of the river Sókn (now called Sogndalselvi). The river name is derived from the verb which means "to seek" or "to look for", thus it is "the river which seeks (finds/forces) its way". The last element is which means "valley" or "dale".
Coat of arms
The original coat of arms was granted on 14 December 1984 and was used until 31 December 2019. The official blazon is "Azure, a ship's stern issuant Or" (). This means the arms have a blue field (background) and the charge is the front of a Viking ship. The charge has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. The ship symbolized the nearby naval Battle of Fimreite between King Sverre of Norway and the local King Magnus Erlingsson in the year 1184. The latter was killed in battle together with many nobles of the time. The arms were designed by the artist Inge Rotevatn from Nordfjordeid. The municipal flag had the same design as the coat of arms.
A new coat of arms was granted in 2019 for use starting on 1 January 2020 when the municipality was enlarged. The blazon is "Azure, an S-shape argent narrowing to chief". This means the arms have a blue field (background) and the charge is an S-shaped curve that narrows towards the top of the design. The charge has a tincture of argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The arms symbolize a fjord curving between the mountains. The curving shape is also similar to an "S" which is the first letter of the name of the municipality.
Churches
The Church of Norway has six parishes () within Sogndal Municipality. It is part of the Sogn prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.
The main church of the parish is in Stedje. This is probably one of the oldest church sites in Sogn, probably erected in the first half of the 11th century. The present church was built in 1867, at the same time the old stave church was torn down. A runestone stands near the church, and traces of a Viking settlement have been found nearby.
Sogndal has historically had three parishes (under Stedje): Kaupanger, Norane, and Fjærland. All three of these are also old church sites. The first churches in Kaupanger and Norane were probably built as early as the 11th century and in Fjærland the original church was built around 1600. The present church in Fjærland was built in 1861 and in Norane in 1863. In Kaupanger, the old Stave church from the 12th century is still standing. Excavations show that this was probably the third church on this site. The church was rebuilt in 1862 and lost most of its original character. But today, as a result of a restoration project you will find the church much as it was prior to 1862.
Churches in Sogndal MunicipalityParish ()Church nameLocation of the churchYear builtBalestrandKvamsøy ChurchKvamsøy1290Sæle ChurchSæle1903Tjugum ChurchDragsviki1863FjærlandFjærland ChurchFjærland1861KaupangerKaupanger Stave ChurchKaupanger12th centuryLeikangerLeikanger ChurchLeikanger1166NorumØlmheim ChurchNorane1863StedjeStedje ChurchSogndalsfjøra1867
Government Sogndal Municipality is 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 is governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor is indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Sogn og Fjordane District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.
Municipal council The municipal council of Sogndal Municipality is made up of 31 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.
Mayors The mayor () of Sogndal Municipality is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who have held this position:
1838–1839: Rev. Wilhelm Christian Magelsen 1840–1841: Nils Knagenhjelm 1842–1851: Fredrik Christian Juell 1852–1853: Ole Flugum 1854–1864: Carl Johan Fleischer 1865–1865: Christen Knagenhjelm 1866–1869: Ole Flugum 1870–1877: Christen Knagenhjelm 1878–1878: Jakob Liv Rosted Sverdrup (V) 1879–1879: Ingebrigt Gurvin 1880–1883: Oluf Andreas Rønneberg 1884–1885: Johannes O. Bondevik 1886–1893: Henrik Mohn Dahl 1894–1898: Ivar Gurvin 1899–1901: Skak Lystrup Ormelseng 1902–1904: Reidar Darre-Jensen 1905–1910: Ivar Gurvin 1911–1913: Gjert Falch Heiberg 1914–1916: Vilhelm Flugheim 1917–1919: Anders K. Tylden 1920–1930: Jonas Schanke Mossige 1930–1931: Tomas Nornes 1932–1937: Ivar O. Skjeldestad 1938–1940: Lars Uglum 1945–1946: Hans H. H. Heiberg (H) 1947–1947: Johan Flugheim 1948–1951: Lars Uglum 1952–1957: Audun A. Slinde (V) 1958–1961: Per L. Slinde 1962–1963: Audun A. Slinde (V) 1964–1967: Sigmund Ylvisåker 1968–1973: Nils Knagenhjelm (H) 1974–1977: Erlend Ylvisåker (V) 1978–1981: Kåre Lerum (H) 1982–1983: Ivar Falck Husum (Sp) 1984–1985: Trygve Bjørk (Ap) 1986–1987: Bjørg Rimeslåtten (V) 1988–1993: Trygve Bjørk (Ap) 1994–2003: Jarle Skartun (Sp) 2003–2007: Karen Marie Hjelmeseter (Sp) 2007–2023: Jarle Aarvoll (Ap) 2023–present: Stig Ove Ølmheim (Ap)
Education With more than 2,000 students in the municipality, Sogndal is the educational center of Vestland County. Students from all over Norway come to Sogndal and they create a high level of activity, which is hard to find in places of similar size.
Western Norway University of Applied Sciences is one of the main employers in Sogndal Municipality. The Western Norway Research Institute is located within the campus, but it is an independent institution with special expertise in information communication, technology systems, environmental research, and organizational research. In addition to the University College, Sogndal has a large upper secondary school and the oldest continuously running folk high school in the country.
History Subsistence farming Sogndal is an old dwelling place. Archaeological excavations indicate that people have been living there as far back as 700 BC. The first farms in Sogndal date back to the 1st century AD and findings indicate that these were rich farms. Since ancient time, agriculture has been the most important trade in Sogndal. Traditionally grain cultivation and animal husbandry were the most important, but forestry and fruit growing were also common. Fruit, especially apples, have been grown as far back as there are written sources. In the historical records of King Sverre (12th century) there are words and names indicating that apples have been grown in this area.
Industrial revolution
The largest settlement of Sogndal, Sogndalsfjøra, has a long and remarkable history as a seaside settlement. It probably served as the center of the parish for centuries, with general stores and bakeries testifying to its early importance as a center of commerce and trade.
This was a community characterized by vigorous activity. There were boat landings for farmers living alongside the fjord, military functions were established here, and later on, house owners would rent rooms to the first students of the newly established folk high school. Legal assemblies were held at Hofslund, the vicar lived just nearby, and the church was located within sight at Stedje.
Sogndalsfjøra was inhabited as early as the 17th century. By 1701, the number of permanent residents had reached 60–70, mainly people who did not own property but made their living as day laborers. A century later, the population had increased to 222, and by 1900, 422 residents were registered.
Towards the end of the 19th century, the industrial base had been widened and strengthened. In 1881, there were house painters, a goldsmith, saddlers, carpenters, shoemakers, watchmakers, a tinker, and a butcher. Ten years later, Sogndalsfjøra had its own insurance agent, a telephone operator, an "automobile chauffeur", a photographer, and a printer. Sogndalsfjøra was no longer a slum, it was becoming a center of trade, commerce and education.
Sogndal has never been a typical industrial community. Situated along the river upstream from the fjord, there was a matchstick factory from the mid-19th century onwards. Later, a wool mill and a bottling plant for soft drinks and fruit juices were added. In 1911, a hydroelectric power station with a 200 kilowatt generator was built here. This was one of the region's first power stations, in fact one of the first in rural Norway.
On the other side of the river is the Stedje Mill, a turbine-driven grain mill that was of great importance to Sogndal and the neighboring parishes during the early 20th century. It was established in 1893 and remained in use until the 1960s, owned and run by the same family through three generations.
Geography