Ådal is a valley in the municipality of Ringerike and was a former municipality in

Buskerud Buskerud () is a Counties of Norway, county and a current electoral district in Norway, bordering Akershus, Oslo, Innlandet, Vestland, Telemark and Vestfold. The region extends from the Oslofjord and Drammensfjorden in the southeast to Hardanger ...

County, Norway. The municipality was created in 1857 by a split from

Norderhov Norderhov is a former municipality located within Ringerike (municipality), Ringerike in Buskerud county, Norway. Municipality Norderhov municipality was established on January 1, 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). According to the 1835 census the ...

. At that time Ådal had a population of 2,382. On 1 January 1964 Ådal was merged with

Hønefoss __NOTOC__ Hønefoss is a town and the administrative center of the municipality of Ringerike in Buskerud county, Norway. Hønefoss is an industrial center of inner Østlandet, containing several factories and other industry. As of 1 January 2022 ...

, Tyristrand,

Hole A hole is an opening in or through a particular medium, usually a solid Body (physics), body. Holes occur through natural and artificial processes, and may be useful for various purposes, or may represent a problem needing to be addressed in m ...

and Norderhov to form the new municipality Ringerike. Prior to the merger Ådal had a population of 3,442. Traditionally the Ådal parish has been divided three ways. Ytre Ådal includes the village of Hallingby and is the site of Hallingby school and Hval Church (''Hval kirke''). Øvre Ådal includes the village of

Nes, Ådal Nes i Ådal is a small village in the valley of Ådal in the municipality Ringerike (municipality), Ringerike in Buskerud, Norway. The village lies on both sides of the river Begna (river), Begna, just north of the river's outlet in Lake Sperill ...

and is the site of Nes school, Ringmoen school and Nes Church (''Nes kirke''). Vestre Ådal is the site of Viker Church and the Ådal Mountains (''Ådalsfjellene''), a small mountain range which stretches from Ådal to Vassfarfoten on the border with Vassfaret and Sør-Aurdal in

Oppland Oppland is a former county in Norway which existed from 1781 until its dissolution on 1 January 2020. The old Oppland county bordered the counties of Trøndelag, Møre og Romsdal, Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Akershus, Oslo and Hedmark. The ...

Sperillen

Sperillen, the 33rd largest lake in Norway, is located in Ådal. The rivers Begna (from Begnadalen) and Urula (from Hedalen) flow into the lake from the north. At the south end of the lake, there is a dam located near Ringmoen. The lake is well known for its fisheries and is one of the few within Norway with a commercial fishery.

Viker Church

The first church located at Ådal was a Stave church built during the 15th century. It is mentioned in '' Diplomatarium Norvegicum'' in 1462. Before the 17th century it was related to

and then connected after the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

parish. By 1700 Ådal needed a new church to serve the growing needs of its parish. Viker Church (Norwegian: ''Viker Kirke)'' is located on the west shore of Sperillen Lake. The church dates to 1702. The pulpit, altar and crucifers from the old Stave church were saved and placed in the new church. The church has an open interior ceilings and wood walls that are oiled. The wooden exterior is dark brown. The altarpiece is from 1720s. The baptismal font is from 1728 and has an octagon top and bottom. The church tower has two bells, dating to 1721 and 1842. Because it is situated in the middle of a forested area, it is difficult to see Viker Church from a distance.''Here is Viker Kirke'' (by Ardis Danger and Else Sevig, translator. Ringerike-Drammen Districts Lag. Vol.22, No.4 November 2008)

The name

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 ...

name of the district was ''Árdalr''. The first element is the genitive case of ''á'' for 'river', the last element is ''dalr'' meaning 'dale or valley'.

References

External links

Sightseeing Ådal Map 1907

Ådal in America

Emigration from ÅdalFarms in Ådal
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aadal Former municipalities of Norway Valleys of Buskerud