Rana is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

in Nordland

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

. It is part of the Helgeland

traditional region Historical regions (or historical areas) are geographical regions which at some point in time had a cultural, ethnic, linguistic or political basis, regardless of latterday borders. They are used as delimitations for studying and analysing social ...

. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of

Mo i Rana Mo i Rana () is a city, and the administrative centre of the municipality of Rana, in Nordland county, Norway. It is located in the Helgeland region of Nordland, just south of the Arctic Circle. Some of the city's suburbs include Båsmoen and Yt ...

, which houses the

National Library of Norway The National Library of Norway ( no, Nasjonalbiblioteket) was established in 1989. Its principal task is "to preserve the past for the future". The library is located both in Oslo and in Mo i Rana. The building in Oslo was restored and reopened ...

. Other population centers in Rana include Båsmoen, Dunderland, Eiteråga,

Flostrand Flostrand is a village in the municipality of Rana in Nordland county, Norway. It is located along Norwegian County Road 17 on the northern bank of the Sjona fjord. The district surrounding the inner part of the Sjona fjord originally belonged t ...

Hauknes Hauknes is a village in the municipality of Rana in Nordland county, Norway. It is a suburb of the town of Mo i Rana, which is located just a few kilometers to the northeast. The village is located on the south side of the Ranfjorden. The lake ...

, Mæla, Myklebustad,

Nevernes Nevernes is a village in the municipality of Rana in Nordland county, Norway. The rural village is located about northeast of the town of Mo i Rana. The village is located in the Dunderland Valley along the river Ranelva, about southeast of the ...

Røssvoll Røssvoll is a village in the municipality of Rana in Nordland county, Norway. The village is about north-east of the town of Mo i Rana. The village is on the north side of the river Ranelva (the village of Skonseng lies on the south side of the ...

, Selfors,

Skonseng Skonseng is a village in the municipality of Rana in Nordland county, Norway. The village is located about northeast of the town of Mo i Rana in an agricultural area with a population of about 1000. The village is located along the south side of ...

, Storforshei, Utskarpen, and

Ytteren Ytteren is a village in the municipality of Rana in Nordland county, Norway. Ytteren and the neighboring village of Båsmoen are northern suburbs of the town of Mo i Rana. They are both located on the northern edge of the mouth of the Ranelva riv ...

. The municipality is the 4th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway (the largest municipality outside

Troms og Finnmark Troms og Finnmark (; sme, Romsa ja Finnmárku ; fkv, Tromssa ja Finmarkku; fi, Tromssa ja Finnmark, lit. Troms and Finnmark in English), is a county in northern Norway that was established on 1 January 2020 as the result of a regional reform. ...

county). Rana is the 45th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 26,092. This makes it the second largest municipality in Nordland county—and the third largest in

North Norway Northern Norway ( nb, Nord-Norge, , nn, Nord-Noreg; se, Davvi-Norga) is a geographical region of Norway, consisting of the two northernmost counties Nordland and Troms og Finnmark, in total about 35% of the Norwegian mainland. Some of the larg ...

. The municipality's

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

is and its population has increased by 1.7% over the previous 10-year period. Rana was a part of the

Terra Securities scandal The Terra Securities scandal was a scandal that became public in November 2007. It involved highly speculative investments by eight municipalities of Norway in various hedge funds in the United States bond market.Mark Landler"U.S. Credit Crisis Ad ...

in 2007 relating to some investments that were made by the municipality.

General information

Municipal history

The municipality of Rana was originally established on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). However, it was divided into '' Nord-Rana'' and '' Sør-Rana'' in 1839. In 1844, Nord-Rana was renamed '' Mo'' and Sør-Rana was renamed ''

Hemnes Hemnes is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Korgen. Other villages include Bjerka, Bleikvasslia, Hemnesberget, and Sund ...

''. The village of Mo was separated from the rural district of Mo and became a town and municipality of its own on 1 January 1923. At that time, the rural district changed its name back to Nord-Rana. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the

Schei Committee The Schei Committee ( no, Schei-komitéen) was a committee named by the Government of Norway to look into the organization of municipalities in Norway post-World War II. It convened in 1946, and its formal name was (The 1946 Committee on Municip ...

. On 1 January 1964, the town of Mo (population: 9,616), the municipality of Nord-Rana (population: 11,636), the northern part of the municipality of Sør-Rana (population: 697), and the

Sjona Sjona is a fjord in Nordland county, Norway. The fjord begins in the municipality of Rana and flows to the west through Nesna and Lurøy municipalities into the sea. The islands of Handnesøya and Tomma lie at the mouth of the fjord. The deepe ...

area of the municipality of

Nesna Nesna is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Nesna. Other villages in Nesna include Handnesneset, Husby, Saura, and Vi ...

(population: 543) were all merged. The united municipality was named simply ''Rana''.

Name

The municipality is named after the river

Ranelva Ranelva is a long river in the municipality of Rana in Nordland county, Norway. It is one of the longest rivers in Nordland county. The catchment area of the river is . Before the power stations of ''Reinforsen'' (1925) and Langvatnet (1964) we ...

(

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 ...

: ''Raðund''). The name of the river is probably derived from the word ''raðr'' which means "quick", "fast", or "rapid". Another possibility is that the name comes from the old Sami god

Rana Niejta Rana Niejta and Rana Niejte are Ume Sami names on a goddess in Sami mythology. In Northern Sami she is called Rana Neida and Rana Neide (names in other Sami languages are Rana Nieda, Ruona Neida, Radien-neide and Blende). Rana Niejta is the godd ...

Coat of arms

The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

was granted on 5 March 1965. The arms symbolize the

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s (upper part/green) and the

mineral In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid chemical compound with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. (2 ...

s (lower part/gold), as there many minerals can be found in the area, especially iron ore. The arms were originally granted to the municipality of Mo on 29 April 1960.

Churches

The Church of Norway has six parishes () within the municipality of Rana. It is part of the Indre Helgeland prosti ( deanery) in the

Diocese of Sør-Hålogaland Sør-Hålogaland is a diocese in the Church of Norway. The Diocese covers the Lutheran Church of Norway churches located within Nordland county in Norway. The diocese is headquartered in the town of Bodø at Bodø Cathedral, the seat of the ...

Geography

The municipality is located just south of the Arctic circle, on the southern side of the

Saltfjellet Saltfjellet is a mountain area in Nordland county, Norway that separates the two regions of Helgeland and Salten. It is also a cultural border between the Southern and Central parts of Sápmi. Geography and environment The Saltfjell is one of the ...

mountains with the

Svartisen Svartisen is a collective term for two glaciers located in Nordland county in northern Norway. It is part of Saltfjellet-Svartisen National Park, located in the Saltfjell mountain range. The glaciers are located in the municipalities of Beiarn, ...

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...

, Norway's second largest glacier. Some of the large mountains in Rana include Bolna and

Nasa The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...

. Mo is so close to the Arctic Circle that parts of the sun is continuously over the horizon (

Midnight sun The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon that occurs in the summer months in places north of the Arctic Circle or south of the Antarctic Circle, when the Sun remains visible at the local midnight. When the midnight sun is seen in the Arctic, ...

) from early June to early July, and there is no darkness from mid-May to the beginning of August. But there is no true

polar night The polar night is a phenomenon where the nighttime lasts for more than 24 hours that occurs in the northernmost and southernmost regions of Earth. This occurs only inside the polar circles. The opposite phenomenon, the polar day, or midni ...

in December. The Saltfjellet–Svartisen National Park is partly located in Rana. There are many

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 ...

s such as the Dunderland Valley and Grønnfjelldal. The majority of the population in the municipality lives in

, where the

(river) meets the

Ranfjorden The Ranfjorden (or just ''Ranfjord'') is a fjord in the Helgeland district of Nordland county, Norway. The largest part of the fjord is in the municipality of Rana, but the fjord also passes through the municipalities of Hemnes, Vefsn, Leirfjor ...

. North of Mo i Rana, the European route E6 highway passes through the suburb of Selfors. In western Rana, the population centers around the

fjord. Rana and Saltfjellet are famous for their numerous

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

s due to the

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

rock. There are several

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

s in the municipality, such as Alterhaug with several warmer-climate plants grow including the

elm Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the flowering plant genus ''Ulmus'' in the plant family Ulmaceae. They are distributed over most of the Northern Hemisphere, inhabiting the temperate and tropical-montane regions of North ...

. Engasjyen, the

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

of the Rana river, has a rich bird life in the spring. Blakkådalen has

old growth An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...

spruce forests. Fisktjørna, has a largely undisturbed mixed old growth forest with unusually rich plant life due to the extremely

lime Lime commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Botany ...

-rich soil.

Climate

Rana is situated near the innermost part of the long Ranafjord, and the winters can be cold, especially away from the fjord. There is often a lot of snow in winter. Summer days in Rana are among the warmest in North Norway.

Lakes and rivers

There are many lakes and rivers in the municipality, both in the lowlands and in the mountains.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Rana, are responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services,

senior citizen Old age refers to ages nearing or surpassing the life expectancy of human beings, and is thus the end of the human life cycle. Terms and euphemisms for people at this age include old people, the elderly (worldwide usage), OAPs (British usage ...

services,

unemployment Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the refere ...

and other social services,

zoning Zoning is a method of urban planning in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into areas called zones, each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for a si ...

economic development In the economics study of the public sector, economic and social development is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and ...

, and municipal

road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

s. The municipality is governed by a

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

of elected representatives, which in turn elect a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

. The municipality falls under the Rana District Court and the

Hålogaland Court of Appeal The Hålogaland Court of Appeal ( no, Hålogaland lagmannsrett) is one of six courts of appeal in the Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Tromsø. The court has jurisdiction over the counties of Nordland, Troms, and Finnmark as ...

Municipal council

The

() of Rana is made up of 37 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often featur ...

breakdown of the council is as follows:

Notable people

Bjørn Alterhaug Oslo Jazzfestival 2017 (221517)

* Ole Tobias Olsen (1830 in the Dunderland Valley – 1924) a Norwegian teacher and minister and ''father'' of the

Nordland Line The Nordland Line ( no, Nordlandsbanen, ) is a railway line between Trondheim and Bodø, Norway. It is the longest in Norway and lacks electrification. The route runs through the counties of Trøndelag (formerly Sør-Trøndelag and Nord-Trøndel ...

between

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

and Bodø * Nils Hansteen (1855 in Mo i Rana – 1912) a painter of landscapes and marine art *

Per Karstensen Per Magnus Karstensen (22 October 1915 – 24 December 2010) was a Norwegian educator and politician for the Labour Party. Career He was born in Mosjøen. He attended primary school in Ytteren, then a folk high school from 1931 to 1932. He studie ...

(1915–2010) went to school in Ytteren, an educator and politician, Mayor of Nord-Rana & Rana 1963-1965 * Sverre Bratland (1917 in Utskarpen – 2002) a Norwegian military leader * Egil Øyjord (born 1928 in Mo i Rana) an academic and founder of the International Association on Mechanization of Field Experiments (IAMFE) * Bjørn Alterhaug (born 1945 in Mo i Rana) a jazz bassist, composer and professor of music * Inge Myrvoll (born 1948 in Rana) a politician, Mayor of Rana & deputy since 2003 * Laila Stien (born 1946) a novelist, poet and author of children's literature, grew up in Rana * Guttorm Guttormsen (born 1950 in Mo i Rana) a jazz musician, arranger and composer * Anne Grete Hollup (born 1957 in Mo i Rana) a novelist, playwright and children's writer * Geir Bjørklund (born 1969 in Mo i Rana) researcher and medical science writer and editor *

Hans Olav Lahlum Hans Olav Lahlum (born 12 September 1973) is a Norwegian historian, crime author, chess player and organizer, and politician. He has written biographies on Oscar Torp and Haakon Lie, and a history book about all the Presidents of the United States ...

(born 1973 in Mo i Rana) historian, crime author, chess player and politician

Sport

Tom Sandberg Tom Sandberg (born 6 August 1955) is a former nordic combined skier from Mo i Rana, Norway who competed from the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s. During the 1982 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, he won the 15 km individual event by 0.2 seconds ...

(born 1955 in Mo i Rana) a former Nordic combined skier, gold medallist at the

1984 Winter Olympics The 1984 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIV Olympic Winter Games (Serbo-Croatian and Slovene: ''XIV. Zimske olimpijske igre''; Cyrillic: XIV Зимске олимпијске игре; mk, XIV Зимски олимписки игр ...

Trond Sollied Trond Johan Sollied (born 29 April 1959) is a Norwegian football manager and former player. He last managed Lokeren. During his playing career, Sollied was a defender who won the Norwegian top flight five times. He also played for Norway's nat ...

(born 1959 in Mo i Rana) a football manager and former player with 262 club caps and 15 for

* Elin Nilsen (born 1968 in Mo i Rana) a Norwegian former cross-country skier, three time team silver medallist at the 1992,

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nelson ...

and

1998 Winter Olympics The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially known as the and commonly known as Nagano 1998 ( ja, 長野1998), was a winter multi-sport event held from 7 to 22 February 1998, mainly in Nagano, Japan, with some events taking place in the ...

* Kenneth Braaten (born 1974) a Nordic combined skier, team gold medallist at the

* Jan Egil Andresen (born 1978 in Mo i Rana) a cross-country skier, competed at the

2006 Winter Olympics The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially the XX Olympic Winter Games ( it, XX Giochi olimpici invernali) and also known as Torino 2006, were a winter multi-sport event held from 10 to 26 February 2006 in Turin, Italy. This marked the second ...

* Marius Erlandsen (born 1979 in Mo i Rana) a Norwegian auto racing driver * Kristin Størmer Steira (born 1981 in Mo i Rana) a retired Norwegian cross-country skier * Karianne Bjellånes (born 1986 in Mo i Rana) a Norwegian cross-country skier * Joar Leifseth Ulsom (born 1987 in Mo i Rana) a Norwegian dog musher * Martin Bjørnbak (born 1992 in Mo i Rana) a footballer with over 250 club caps * Lisa-Marie Karlseng Utland (born 1992 in Mo i Rana) a footballer with over 200 club caps and 51 for

* Emilie Kalkenberg (born 1997 in Mo i Rana) Norwegian biathlete

Transportation

Rana has an airport,

Mo i Rana Airport, Røssvoll Mo i Rana Airport ( no, Mo i Rana lufthavn; ) is a regional airport serving the town of Mo i Rana in the municipality of Rana in Nordland county, Norway. The airport is located about outside the town in the village of Røssvoll. In 2014 Mo i R ...

in the village of

, not far from the town of

. There are several large highways in Rana: European route E6,

Norwegian County Road 17 County Road 17 ( no, Fylkesvei 17), also known as the Coastal Highway ( no, Kystriksveien), is a Norwegian highway that runs from the town of Bodø in Nordland county (in the north) to the town of Steinkjer in Trøndelag county (in the south). I ...

, and Norwegian County Road 12. The Illhollia Tunnel is part of the E6 highway. The

passes through Rana, with several stations including Mo i Rana Station, Dunderland Station, and Bolna Station.

Media gallery

File:Ranamuseum02.JPG, Rana museum, department for cultural history File:Moholmen 20070406 08.jpg, Moholmen in

, 16 April 2007 File:Grønligr inng.jpg, Entrance of the Grønligrotta cave

Culture

* Havmannen,

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable ...

made by Antony Gormley (1995), part of Artscape Nordland. * ''Havmanndagene'', annual multi-cultural festival, first weekend of May. * ''Nordland Teater'', regional drama theatre for Nordland County. * Vikafestivalen, annual pop and rock music festival. * Nordland County library. *

International relations

Twin towns—Sister cities

The

sister cities A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...

of Rana are: *

Løgstør Løgstør is a town in Denmark with a population of 3,967 (1 January 2022) It is located 47 km west of Aalborg and 64 km north of Viborg. Løgstør's city centre consists of old streets with small houses built in the 1800s for fishermen and sailo ...

, Nordjylland,

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

Petrozavodsk Petrozavodsk (russian: Петрозаводск, p=pʲɪtrəzɐˈvotsk; Karelian, Vepsian and fi, Petroskoi) is the capital city of the Republic of Karelia, Russia, which stretches along the western shore of Lake Onega for some . The population ...

, Karelia,

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

Raahe Raahe (; sv, Brahestad; ) is a town and municipality of Finland. Founded by Swedish statesman and Governor General of Finland Count Per Brahe the Younger in 1649, it is one of 10 historic wooden towns (or town centers) remaining in Finland. Exam ...

, Northern Ostrobothnia,

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

Skellefteå Skellefteå (, locally ) is a city in Västerbotten County, Sweden. It is the seat of Skellefteå Municipality, which had 73,246 inhabitants in 2021. The city is historically industrial, with mining being a large part of that industry, especial ...

, Västerbotten, Sweden

References

External links

Municipal fact sheet
from Statistics Norway *
Official tourist information about the Arctic Circle areaDNT Rana

Rana municipality

moirana.com - Local portal for Mo i Rana
{{use dmy dates, date=October 2022 Municipalities of Nordland 1838 establishments in Norway 1839 disestablishments in Norway 1964 establishments in Norway