Åkra is a former municipality in the traditional district of

Haugaland Haugaland or Haugalandet is a traditional district situated on the western coast of Norway. Haugaland is one of the 15 traditional districts located within the Vestlandet region. Geographically, Haugaland is a peninsula between Bømlafjorden in ...

Rogaland Rogaland () is a county in Western Norway, bordering the North Sea to the west and the counties of Vestland to the north, Vestfold og Telemark to the east and Agder to the east and southeast. In 2020, it had a population of 479,892. The admin ...

county,

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 t ...

. The municipality existed from 1892 until 1965 and it encompassed the central part of the western coast of the island of Karmøy. 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, L ...

was the village of

Åkrehamn or Åkrahamn (commonly known as simply ''Åkra'') is a small town in Karmøy municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The town is located on the west side of the island of Karmøy in the traditional district of Haugaland. The town sits about ...

History

The municipality of ''Aakra'' was established on 1 January 1892 when it was split off from the municipality of

Skudenes Skudenes is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It was part of the traditional district of Haugaland. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1965. The administrative centre was the town of Skudeneshavn (which ...

. Initially, the new municipality had a population of 1,962. On 1 January 1965, the municipality of Åkra was dissolved due to recommendations by 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 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWI ...

. Åkra was merged with the neighboring municipalities of

Avaldsnes Avaldsnes is a village in Karmøy municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The village is located on the northeastern part of the island of Karmøy, along the Karmsundet strait, just south of the town of Haugesund. The village was an ancient c ...

Stangaland Stangaland is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It was part of the traditional district of Haugaland. The municipality of Stangaland existed from 1909 until 1965 when it was merged into the newly created Karmøy Municipality. The ...

, and

Torvastad Torvastad is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until 1965. The administrative centre was the village of Haugesund (from 1838 until 1855), and after that it was the village of Torvastad on the i ...

and with the towns of

Kopervik Kopervik is the largest town on the island of Karmøy in Rogaland county, Norway. It is also the administrative centre of the municipality of Karmøy. It is part of the traditional district of Haugaland. The town was also an independent municipa ...

and

Skudeneshavn (also known as Skudeneshamn or simply Skudenes) is a town in Karmøy municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located on the southernmost tip of the island of Karmøy at the entrance to the Boknafjorden and Karmsundet strait. The town ...

to form the new, larger municipality of

Karmøy Karmøy is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is southwest of the town of Haugesund in the traditional district of Haugaland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kopervik. Most of the municipality lies on ...

. Before the merger Åkra had a population of 6,008.

Name

The municipality (originally the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

) is named after the old ''Aakre'' farm ( non, Akrar) since the first

Åkra Church Åkra Church ( no, Åkra kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Karmøy Municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located in the town of Åkrehamn on the western coast of the island of Karmøy. It is the main church for the Å ...

was built there. The name comes from the plural form of which means "field" or "

acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial and US customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one chain by one furlong (66 by 660 feet), which is exactly equal to 10 square chains, of a square mile, 4,840 square ...

". Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled ''Aakre''. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to ''Aakra''. On 21 December 1917, a royal resolution enacted the 1917 Norwegian language reforms. Prior to this change, the name was spelled ''Aakra'' with the digraph " Aa", and after this reform, the name was spelled ''Åkra'', using the letter Å instead.

Government

While it existed, this municipality was responsible for primary education (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 profes ...

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 usag ...

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 refer ...

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 s ...

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 a ...

, 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. During its existence, this municipality was 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 coun ...

directly elected Direct election is a system of choosing political officeholders in which the voters directly cast ballots for the persons or political party that they desire to see elected. The method by which the winner or winners of a direct election are cho ...

representatives. The

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 as ...

was

indirectly elected An indirect election or ''hierarchical voting'' is an election in which voters do not choose directly among candidates or parties for an office (direct voting system), but elect people who in turn choose candidates or parties. It is one of the old ...

by a vote of the municipal council.

Municipal council

The

of Åkra was made up of representatives that were 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 feature ...

breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows:

Attractions

The

Old Åkra Church Old Åkra Church ( no, Åkra gamle kirke) is a historic parish church of the Church of Norway in Karmøy Municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located in the town of Åkrehamn located on the western coast of the island of Karmøy. It for ...

() dates back to 1821. It was built of wood and has 320 seats. The church was restored in 1852 and 1899. Rogaland Fishery Museum () is situated on the harbor in Åkrahamn. It contains a restored

herring Herring are forage fish, mostly belonging to the family of Clupeidae. Herring often move in large schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and North Atlantic Ocea ...

works with a collection of artifacts and equipment associated with the local fishing and shipping industries.

Jostein Grindhaug Jostein Grindhaug (born 20 February 1973) is a Norwegian football coach and former player. Hailing from Åkrehamn, he spent most of his active career with FK Haugesund. Playing career He started his career in Åkra IL, and was signed by then- ...

is a famous man from Åkra. He is know for his impressive 3rd place with

FK Haugesund Fotballklubben Haugesund (English: ''Football Club Haugesund''), usually referred to as FK Haugesund or FKH, is a professional Norwegian football club from the city of Haugesund, Rogaland, Norway. The club currently plays in the Norwegian Elite ...

in 2013 when he was the manager that lead them to Europe for the first time. If you walk in the streets of Åkra you mind find him lurking around, and drinking

beer Beer is one of the oldest and the most widely consumed type of alcoholic drink in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from cer ...

at the pub

Gutenberg Johannes Gensfleisch zur Laden zum Gutenberg (; – 3 February 1468) was a German inventor and craftsman who introduced letterpress printing to Europe with his movable-type printing press. Though not the first of its kind, earlier designs w ...

References

External links

Åkrehamn Veksts website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aakra Karmøy Former municipalities of Norway 1892 establishments in Norway 1964 disestablishments in Norway Populated places established in 1892