Vest-Telemark () is a traditional district in Norway. The area comprises the western areas of the larger region known as

Upper Telemark Upper Telemark () is a traditional district in Telemark county in Norway. The area includes the inland areas of Telemark. More than two-thirds of the total area of Telemark—more than —belong to the traditional region of Upper Telemar ...

() in

Vestfold og Telemark Vestfold og Telemark (; ) was a county in Norway, which existed from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2023. The county was the southernmost one of Eastern Norway and consisted of two distinct and separate traditional regions: the former counties of ...

county. The region consists of six municipalities:

Fyresdal Fyresdal is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Vest-Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Moland. Other villages in Fyresdal include Kilegrend, Øvre Bir ...

Tokke Tokke is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Vest-Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Dal ...

Vinje Vinje is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Vest-Telemark which is part of Øvre Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Åmot. Other villages in the muni ...

Nissedal Nissedal is a rural Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Telemark region of Telemark Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Districts of Norway, traditional regions of Upper Telemark and Vest-Telemark. The administrative centr ...

Kviteseid Kviteseid is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the traditional districts of Vest-Telemark and Upper Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Kviteseidbyen. Other villages in Kviteseid ...

, and

Seljord Seljord is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the traditional districts of Upper Telemark and Vest-Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Seljord. Other villages in the municipalit ...

. In 2020, there were 13,903 residents in the region. The area of Vest-Telemark was historically called . The region is known for its folk traditions within music, clothing, handcrafts, food, and architecture. The region is also distinctly marked by its dialects of Norwegian. This form of Norwegian is among those containing the most traces of the

Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants ...

language and grammar. This area uses the

Nynorsk Nynorsk (; ) is one of the two official written standards of the Norwegian language, the other being Bokmål. From 12 May 1885, it became the state-sanctioned version of Ivar Aasen's standard Norwegian language (''Landsmål''), parallel to the Da ...

written form of Norwegian. Vest-Telemark is also the home of slalom (slalåm) skiing,

Telemark skiing Telemark skiing is a skiing technique that combines elements of Alpine skiing, Alpine and Nordic skiing, Nordic skiing, using the rear foot to keep balance while pushing on the front foot to create a carving turn on downhill skis with toe-only ...

, and

ski jumping Ski jumping is a winter sport in which competitors aim to achieve the farthest jump after sliding down on their skis from a specially designed curved ramp. Along with jump length, competitor's aerial style and other factors also affect the final ...

(with its characteristic Telemark landing). "The Cradle of Modern Skiing" is found in

Morgedal Morgedal is a village in Kviteseid Municipality in Telemark county, Norway. The village is located in the mountains along the European route E134 highway, about to the northwest of the village of Brunkeberg (Telemark), Brunkeberg and about to t ...

Municipalities

Notable people from Vest-Telemark

Aslaug Vaa Aslaug Vaa (25 August 1889 – 28 November 1965) was a Norwegian poet and playwright. Her works contain elements from local tradition and landscape mixed with international influence. Personal life Aslaug Vaa was born on Nystog in Rauland, ...

, author from

Rauland Rauland is a former municipality in Telemark county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1860 until its dissolution in 1964. The area is now part of Vinje Municipality. The administrative centre was the village of Raulandsgrend (also known ...

Vidkun Quisling Vidkun Abraham Lauritz Jonssøn Quisling (; ; 18 July 1887 – 24 October 1945) was a Norwegian military officer, politician and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, Nazi collaborator who Quisling regime, headed the government of N ...

, politician from

Aasmund Olavsson Vinje Aasmund Olavsson Vinje (6 April 1818 – 30 July 1870) was a Norwegian poet and journalist who is remembered for poetry, travel writing, and his pioneering use of Landsmål (now known as Nynorsk). Background Vinje was born into a poor but w ...

, author from Vinje *

Tarjei Vesaas Tarjei Vesaas (20 August 1897 – 15 March 1970) was a Norwegian poet and novelist. Vesaas is widely considered to be one of Norway's greatest writers of the twentieth century and perhaps its most important since World War II. Vesaas' work is c ...

, author from Vinje *

Odd Nordstoga Odd Nordstoga (born 10 December 1972) is a folk singer, musician, actor and editor from Vinje Municipality in Telemark, Norway. In 2004, he went from relative obscurity to becoming the country's biggest selling recording artist, with the phenome ...

, musician from Vinje *

Sondre Norheim Sondre Norheim, born Sondre Auverson, (10 June 1825 – 9 March 1897) was a Norwegian skier and pioneer of modern skiing. Sondre Norheim is known as the father of Telemark skiing. Background Sondre Auverson was born at Øverbø, a little ...

, skier from Morgedal *

Ivar Peterson Tveiten Ivar Petterson Tveiten (18 December 1850 – 17 April 1934) was a Norwegian teacher and elected official of the Liberal Party who served as President of the Norwegian Parliament from 1916 to 1921. He also served as Minister of Education and Ch ...

, politician from

Anne Grimdalen Anne Grimdalen (1 November 1899 – 3 October 1961) was a Norwegian sculptor. She was born on the mountain farm Grimdalen in Skafså, Telemark, and later also lived and worked in the so-called ''Kunstnerdalen'' in Asker. She worked mainly ...

, sculptor from

Skafså Skafså is a parish in southern part of the municipality Tokke in Telemark, Norway. The Skafså Church was consecrated in 1839. The mountain farm Grimdalen, today a museum (Grimdalstunet), has farm buildings from the time of barter economy in the ...

Eivind Groven Eivind Groven (8 October 1901 – 8 February 1977) was a Norwegian composer and music-theorist. He was from the traditional region of Vest-Telemark and had a background in the folk music of the area. Biography Groven was born in the village ...

, composer from

Lårdal Lårdal is a village in Tokke Municipality in Telemark county, Norway. The village is located on the north shore of the lake Bandak and about south of the village of Høydalsmo and the European route E134 highway. The village is the site of ...

Dyre Vaa Dyre Vaa (19 January 1903 – 11 May 1980) was a Norwegian sculptor and painter. Background He was born in Kviteseid, Telemark, and later lived and worked in Rauland. He was the son of Tor Aanundsson Vaa (1864–1928) and Anne Marie Roholt (18 ...

, sculptor from

Halldis Moren Vesaas Halldis Moren Vesaas (18 November 1907 – 8 September 1995) was a Norwegian poet, translator and writer of children's books. She established herself as one of the leading Norwegian writers of her generation. Biography She was born on a fam ...

, author from

Terje Haakonsen Terje may refer to: *Terje (name), a form of the Scandinavian name Torgeir *Tria (), a village in the commune of Derna, Bihor, Romania {{Dab ...

, snowboarder from

Sven Erik Kristiansen Sven Erik Kristiansen (born 4 February 1969) is a Norwegian musician, best known as the former vocalist in the black metal band Mayhem under the stage name Maniac. ''Loudwire'' called Kristiansen "an incarnation of authenticity." Career K ...

, musician from

References

{{use dmy dates, date=January 2023 Districts of Telemark