Tjeldsund ( sme, Dielddanuorri) 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 ...

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 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 countries, 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 ...

. The southwestern part of the municipality is part of the traditional district of

Ofoten Ofoten is a traditional district in Nordland county in Northern Norway. It consists of the municipalities of Tysfjord, Ballangen, Evenes, Tjeldsund, Narvik, and Lødingen. It is named after the main fjord, Ofotfjorden, which is at the c ...

and the rest of the municipality is part of Central Hålogaland. The

administrative centre An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune is located. In countries with French as administrative language (such as Belgium, Lu ...

of the municipality is the village of

Evenskjer Evenskjer is the administrative centre of Tjeldsund Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The village is located along the Tjeldsundet strait about south of the town of Harstad. European route E10 passes just to the north of the v ...

. Other important villages include

Fjelldal Fjelldal is a village in Tjeldsund Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The village is located on the eastern bank of the Tjeldsundet strait in the northeastern part of the municipality. The village is located about halfway between t ...

, Myklebostad, Grovfjord,

Renså Renså is a small village in Tjeldsund Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is located just east of the slightly larger village of Tovik, and about east of the village of Sandstrand. The population (2001) of Renså is 69. Th ...

, Sandstrand,

Tovik Tovik is a village in Tjeldsund Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The village is located on the mainland at the entrance of the two fjords; Astafjorden and Vågsfjorden, and at a distance of about from Harstad/Narvik Airport, ...

, and Ramsund. Norges Brannskole (Norway's education and training center for firemen) is situated in

. Marinejegerkommandoen is based south of Ramsund. The municipality is the 139th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Tjeldsund is the 197th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 4,201. The municipality's

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

is and its population has decreased by 1.3% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The municipality of Tjeldsund was established on 1 January 1909 when it was separated from the large Lødingen Municipality. Tjeldsund encompassed the eastern part of Lødingen prior to the division. Initially, Tjeldsund had a population of 1,404. 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 Munici ...

. On 1 January 1964, the western part of the island of

Tjeldøya or is an island in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The island is located entirely in Tjeldsund Municipality. North and west of the island lies the Tjeldsundet strait which separates it from the large island of Hinnøya; south of the island ...

(population: 297) was transferred to Tjeldsund Municipality from Lødingen Municipality, uniting the whole island within the same municipality. On the same date, the unpopulated ''Ramnes'' area of

Evenes Municipality Evenes ( sme, Evenášši) is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Ofoten. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Bogen. Other villages in Evenes include Liland, Tårs ...

was also transferred to Tjeldsund Municipality. On 1 January 2020, the municipality merged with the neighboring

Skånland Municipality Skånland ( sme, Skánit) is a former municipality that was located in the old Troms county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1926 until its dissolution in 2020 when it was merged into Tjeldsund Municipality. It was part of the Central Hå ...

and at the same time the new municipality became a part of the newly formed

county (prior to the merger, Skånland was located in the old

Troms Troms (; se, Romsa; fkv, Tromssa; fi, Tromssa) is a former county in northern Norway. On 1 January 2020 it was merged with the neighboring Finnmark county to create the new Troms og Finnmark county. This merger is expected to be reversed by t ...

county and Tjeldsund was in

Nordland Nordland (; smj, Nordlánnda, sma, Nordlaante, sme, Nordlánda, en, Northland) is a county in Norway in the Northern Norway region, the least populous of all 11 counties, bordering Troms og Finnmark in the north, Trøndelag in the south, ...

county).

Name

The municipality is named after the Tjeldsundet

strait A strait is an oceanic landform connecting two seas or two other large areas of water. The surface water generally flows at the same elevation on both sides and through the strait in either direction. Most commonly, it is a narrow ocean chan ...

between the islands of

and Hinnøya. The first element is the (uncompounded)

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 settlement ...

name of Tjeldøya (''Tjöld'' or ''Tjalda'') and the last element is ''sund'' which means "strait" or "sound". The name of the island is probably derived from the word ''tjald'' which means "tent" or the similar word ''tjaldr'' which means " oystercatcher ( Haematopus ostralegus)".

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 29 June 1990. The arms show a blue-colored Anthony's cross on a silver or white background. The Anthony's cross is a

canting ' (IPA: , VOS Spelling: ''tjanting'', jv, ꦕꦤ꧀ꦛꦶꦁ, Tjanting) is a pen-like tool used to apply liquid hot wax ( jv, ) in the batik-making process in Indonesia, more precisely ''batik tulis'' (lit. "written batik"). Traditional '' ...

of the letter T, the first letter of the name Tjeldsund.

Churches

The

Church of Norway The Church of Norway ( nb, Den norske kirke, nn, Den norske kyrkja, se, Norgga girku, sma, Nöörjen gærhkoe) is an evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. The church ...

has four parishes () within the municipality of Tjeldsund. It is part of the

Trondenes prosti Trondenes is an old parish and former municipality in Troms county in Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. It was located along the western shore of the Vågsfjorden in what is now Harstad Municipality. ...

(

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or reside ...

) in the

Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland Nord-Hålogaland ( no, Nord-Hålogaland bispedømme) is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers the Church of Norway churches in Troms og Finnmark county as well as in the territory of Svalbard. The diocese is seated in the city of Trom ...

Geography

Since 1 January 2020, Tjeldsund is located in

county on the border with

county to the south and west. Tjeldsund is partially located on the island of

which is surrounded by the Ofotfjorden on the south, the Tjeldsundet strait to the west and north, and the Ramsundet strait to the east. The island is connected to the mainland by the Ramsund Bridge. The rest of the municipality is on the mainland to the east of Tjeldøya plus a small area on the island of Hinnøya to the north of Tjeldøya. The municipalities of Evenes (in Nordland) and

Gratangen Gratangen ( sme, Rivttága suohkan) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Central Hålogaland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Årstein. The municipalit ...

(in Troms og Finnmark) lie to the east of Tjeldsund,

Harstad ( se, Hárstták) is the second-most populated municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is mostly located on the large island of Hinnøya. The municipal center is the town of Harstad, the most populous town in Central Hålogalan ...

Kvæfjord Kvæfjord ( sme, Giehtavuotna) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Central Hålogaland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Borkenes. Other villages include ...

, and

Ibestad Ibestad ( sme, Ivvárstádik) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Central Hålogaland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hamnvik. Some of the other larger ...

(in Troms og Finnmark) lie to the north, Lødingen to the west, and

Narvik ( se, Áhkanjárga) is the third-largest List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway, by population. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Narvik (town), town of Narvik. Some of t ...

to the south. The largest lake in the municipality is Skoddebergvatnet on the mainland. Tjeldsundet, 2009 09

Climate

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Tjeldsund, are responsible for

primary education Primary education or elementary education is typically the first stage of formal education, coming after preschool/ kindergarten and before secondary school. Primary education takes place in '' primary schools'', ''elementary schools'', or ...

(through 10th grade), outpatient

health services Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health profe ...

, senior citizen 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 refe ...

and other

social services Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or adminis ...

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 o ...

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

Ofoten District Court Ofoten District Court ( no, Ofoten tingrett) was a district court in Nordland county (and a small part of Troms) in Norway. The court was based in the town of Narvik. The court existed until 2021. The court served the northeastern part of the No ...

and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The

() of Tjeldsund is made up of 21 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 featu ...

breakdown of the council is as follows:

Mayors

The mayors of Tjeldsund (incomplete list): *2019–present: Helene Berg Nilsen ( Ap) *2015-2019: Liv Kristin Johnsen ( H)

Notable people

Bjarne Berg-Sæther Bjarne Berg-Sæther (14 April 1919 – 5 August 2009) was a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. Early life He was born in Tjeldsund as the son of coastal pilot Berg Sæther (1876–1948) and wife Magna Toresen (1881–1952). He was edu ...

(1919 in Tjeldsund – 2009) a Norwegian politician, Mayor of Sandtorg 1947–1963, and Mayor of Harstad 1963-1967

References

External links

*
Municipal fact sheet
from

Statistics Norway Statistics Norway ( no, Statistisk sentralbyrå, abbreviated to ''SSB'') is the Norwegian statistics bureau. It was established in 1876. Relying on a staff of about 1,000, Statistics Norway publish about 1,000 new statistical releases every ye ...

{{use dmy dates, date=October 2022 Municipalities of Troms og Finnmark Populated places of Arctic Norway 1909 establishments in Norway