Numedal () is a

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams ove ...

and a traditional district in

Eastern Norway Eastern Norway ( nb, Østlandet, nn, Austlandet) is the geographical region of the south-eastern part of Norway. It consists of the counties Vestfold og Telemark, Viken, Oslo and Innlandet. Eastern Norway is by far the most populous region ...

located within the county of

Buskerud Buskerud () is a former county and a current electoral district in Norway, bordering Akershus, Oslo, Oppland, Sogn og Fjordane, Hordaland, Telemark and Vestfold. The region extends from the Oslofjord and Drammensfjorden in the southeast to Ha ...

. It traditionally includes the municipalities Flesberg,

Nore og Uvdal Nore og Uvdal is a municipality in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Numedal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rødberg. The area of ''Nore'' was separated from the municipality of R ...

and

Rollag Rollag is a municipality in the traditional and electoral district Buskerud in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Numedal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rollag, although the most pop ...

. Administratively, it now also includes

Kongsberg Kongsberg () is a historical mining town and municipality in Buskerud, Viken county, Norway. The city is located on the river Numedalslågen at the entrance to the valley of Numedal. Kongsberg has been a centre of silver mining, arms production ...

Geography

Numedal is the southernmost valley of the major valleys in

. Numedal is largely a U-shaped valley. Most of the area is mountainous, especially west of the main valley, with steep valley sides. Running north–south, it extends between Flesberg in the south to

Rødberg Rødberg is the administrative centre of Nore og Uvdal municipality in Buskerud, Norway. Rødberg is located in the Norwegian traditional district and valley of Numedal. Its population (2005) is 498, and it is located on the Rødberg dam ( no, ...

in the north, passing through the municipalities of Flesberg,

and

. The

Numedalslågen Numedalslågen is a river located in the counties of Vestfold and Telemark and Viken in southeastern Norway. It is one of the longest rivers in Norway. Location Numedalslågen stretches for over through the counties of Vestfold and Telemark and ...

, the third-longest river in Norway, flows through the valley before discharging into

Oslofjord The Oslofjord (, ; en, Oslo Fjord) is an inlet in the south-east of Norway, stretching from an imaginary line between the and lighthouses and down to in the south to Oslo in the north. It is part of the Skagerrak strait, connecting the Nor ...

at Larvik.

Transportation

National Road 40 runs from Larvik. National Road 7 crosses

Hardangervidda Hardangervidda ( en, Hardanger Plateau) is a mountain plateau (Norwegian: ''vidde'') in central southern Norway, covering parts of Vestland, Vestfold og Telemark, and Viken counties. It is the largest plateau of its kind in Europe, with a cold ye ...

Geilo is a centre in the municipality of Hol in Viken county, Norway. Geilo is primarily a ski resort town, with around 2,500 inhabitants. It is situated in the valley of Hallingdal, 250 km from Oslo and 260 km from Bergen. The Bergen Line ...

Numedal Line The Numedal Line () is a long railway line that runs up the Numedal valley between Kongsberg and Rødberg in Viken county, Norway. Built and operated by the Norwegian State Railways, the non-electrified, standard gauge line passes through t ...

Railway (''Numedalsbanen'') was opened in 1927 and stopped operations in 1988. The former railroad track from

Veggli Veggli is a village in the municipality of Rollag, in the county of Buskerud, Norway. Veggli is located about 66 kilometers north of Kongsberg. It is located in the traditional district and valley of Numedal. It is situated on the Numedalsl ...

is now used principally for

cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from t ...

Economy

Agriculture and forestry are important industries in the valley along with

hydropower Hydropower (from el, ὕδωρ, "water"), also known as water power, is the use of falling or fast-running water to produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by converting the gravitational potential or kinetic energy of a w ...

generation, as well as growing tourist traffic.

Etymology

The name comes from ', the

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlemen ...

name for the

, and ' meaning "

". The origin and meaning of the name are the same as that of

Namdalen Namdalen ( sma, Nååmesjevuemie) is a traditional district in the central part of Norway, consisting of the municipalities Namsos, Grong, Overhalla, Røyrvik, Nærøysund, Høylandet, Flatanger, Lierne, Leka, and Namsskogan, all in Tr ...

Attractions

The area along the Numedalslågen from Flesberg up to the

through the valley has a large number of examples of

Medieval Scandinavian architecture The major aspects of Medieval Scandinavian architecture are boathouses, religious buildings (before and after Christians arrived in the area), and general buildings (both in cities and outside of them). Boating houses Boathouses are the buildings ...

. There are still over 40 historic timber buildings and four stave churches:

Flesberg Stave Church Flesberg Stave Church ( nn, Flesberg stavkyrkje) is a stave church located at Flesberg in Viken county, Norway. History Written sources mention the church the first time in 1359, but it was probably built in the latter half of the 1100s o ...

, Rollag Stave Church,

Nore Stave Church Nore Stave Church ( no, Nore stavkyrkje) is a stave church located at Nore in Nore og Uvdal kommune in Viken county, Norway. Description Dendrochronological dating of wood samples indicate that Nore stave church was built after 1167. The churc ...

and

Uvdal Stave Church Uvdal Stave Church (''Uvdal stavkirke'') is situated at Uvdal in the valley Numedal in Nore og Uvdal in Buskerud, Norway. The stave church was originally constructed just after the year 1168, which is known through dendrochronological dating of th ...

. Numedal was also the location of one of the "Nordmann's trails" (''Nordmannsslepene''), which were the old main roads between east and west over

. On the marked paths, remains of Stone Age dwelling places,

bog iron Bog iron is a form of impure iron deposit that develops in bogs or swamps by the chemical or biochemical oxidation Redox (reduction–oxidation, , ) is a type of chemical reaction in which the oxidation states of substrate change. O ...

works and grave mounds can be seen. Numedal also has several museums including Nore og Uvdal Open Air Museum (''Nore og Uvdal Bygdetun'') in

Uvdal Uvdal is a village and former municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. It is situated in the traditional region of Numedal and is the location of the Uvdal Stave Church. The municipality was created by a split from Nore on 1 January 1901. The n ...

, Rollag Open Air Museum (''Rollag Bygdetun'') in

, and Dåset Open Air Museum (''Dåset bygdetun'') at Flesberg. These are collections of historic buildings, mostly built in the traditional style common for the valley.

Gallery

File:Godfarfossen.jpg, Godfarfossen on Numedalslågen File:Numedalsbanen Roedberg.jpg, Rødberg Station on the partially closed Numedal Rail Line File:Rollag kirke 02.jpg, Rollag Stave Church File:Alfstadloftet.jpg, Alfstadloftet File:Bakkerud stasjon Numedalsbanen.jpg, Bakkerud Station File:Flesberg vrengja outlet in Laagen IMG 1279.jpg, Vrengja at Lågen

Climate

Numedal has a subarctic climate ( Dfc) with short, mild, and wet summers with cool nights and long, cold, and snowy winters.

References

Notes

Citations

Literature

External links

Tour suggestions from Numedal

Nordmannsslepene

Nore og Uvdal Bygdetun

Rollag bygdetun

Middelalderuka i Numedal
{{Authority control Districts of Viken Valleys of Viken Flesberg Rollag Nore og Uvdal