Balsfjord ( - ; ) is a

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

Troms Troms (; ; ; ) is a Counties of Norway, county in northern Norway. It borders Finnmark county to the northeast and Nordland county in the southwest. Norrbotten Län in Sweden is located to the south and further southeast is a shorter border with ...

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. The

administrative centre An administrative centre 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 the administrative language, such as Belgi ...

of the municipality is the village of

Storsteinnes or is the administrative center of Balsfjord Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The village has a population (2023) of 1,107 and a population density of . This makes it the largest urban area in the municipality. Storsteinnes Chapel is loc ...

. Other notable villages include

Mestervik Mestervik or Meistervik is a village in Balsfjord Municipality in Troms county, Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote A ...

Mortenhals Mortenhals or Mortenshals is a village in Balsfjord Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The village is located along the Malangen fjord, across the fjord from Rossfjordstraumen. The village of Mestervik is located about to the south. Malange ...

, and

Nordkjosbotn or is a small village in Balsfjord Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The village lies about southeast of the city of Tromsø. The village has a population (2023) of 483 and a population density of . Two major highways, European route ...

. The municipality is the 58th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Balsfjord is the 173rd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 5,571. The municipality's

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...

is and its population has decreased by 0.4% over the previous 10-year period. The municipality surrounds two fjords: Malangen and

Balsfjorden or is a fjord in Troms county, Norway. The long fjord runs through Balsfjord Municipality and Tromsø Municipality. It branches off the Tromsøysundet strait just south of the city of Tromsø and it flows in a north–south direction, rangin ...

, surrounded by comparatively rich farmlands under majestic peaks including the southern end of the

Lyngen Alps The Lyngen Alps (, , ) are a mountain range in northeastern Troms county in Norway, east of the city of Tromsø. The mountain range is located on the Lyngen Peninsula and it runs through Lyngen Municipality, Balsfjord Municipality, Storfjord Mu ...

General information

Balsfjord was originally a part of the great Tromsøe landdistrikt municipality, but it was separated from this in 1860 to form its own municipality. Balsfjord had an initial population of 3,610. On 1 January 1871, the northwestern part of the municipality (population: 1,425) was separated from it to create the new

Malangen Municipality Malangen ( or ) is a former municipality in Troms county in Norway. The municipality existed from 1871 until its dissolution in 1964. The old municipality surrounded the Malangen fjord and today that area is divided between several municipalit ...

. This left Balsfjord with 2,255 inhabitants. On 1 January 1875, a part of

Lyngen Municipality Lyngen (; ) is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Troms Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Lyngseidet. Other notable villages include Furuflaten, Lattervika, Nord- ...

(population: 7) was transferred to Balsfjord. On 1 January 1905, a part of Balsfjord (population: 5) was transferred to

Målselv Municipality Målselv () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Troms Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Moen, Troms, Moen. The main commercial centre of the municipality is the ...

. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the

Schei Committee The Schei Committee () 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 (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a ...

. On 1 January 1964, most of Balsfjord Municipality was merged with most of neighboring

to form a new, larger Balsfjord Municipality (population: 6,993). Also on that day, the ''Skogli ved Heia'' area (population: 2) was transferred to the neighboring

and the uninhabited Elvebakken farm was transferred to the neighboring

Storfjord Municipality , (Northern Sami; ), or is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hatteng. Other villages in Storfjord include Elvevoll, Oteren, and Skibotn. The municipality is the 54th l ...

. On 1 January 1966, the Sørelvmo area of Balsfjord (population: 131) was transferred to Målselv Municipality. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became part of the newly formed

Troms og Finnmark Troms og Finnmark (; ; ; ) was a county in northern Norway that existed from 2020 to 2023. The county was established on 1 January 2020 as the result of a regional reform. It was the largest county by area in Norway, encompassing about , and w ...

county. Previously, it had been part of the old

county. On 1 January 2024, the

county was divided and the municipality once again became part of

county.

Name

The municipality (originally the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

) is named after the local fjord:

(). The meaning of the first element is uncertain, but is possibly associated with either the

Norse god In Germanic paganism, the indigenous religion of the ancient Germanic peoples who inhabit Germanic Europe, there were a number of different gods and goddesses. Germanic deities are attested from numerous sources, including works of literature, ...

Baldr Baldr (Old Norse also Balder, Baldur) is a god in Germanic mythology. In Norse mythology, he is a son of the god Odin and the goddess Frigg, and has numerous brothers, such as Thor and Váli. In wider Germanic mythology, the god was known in ...

or 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 ...

word which means "lump". The last element is which means "

fjord In physical geography, a fjord (also spelled fiord in New Zealand English; ) is a long, narrow sea inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Antarctica, the Arctic, and surrounding landmasses of the n ...

". Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled ''Balsfjorden''. On 6 January 1908, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to ''Balsfjord'', removing the

definite In linguistics, definiteness is a semantic feature of noun phrases that distinguishes between referents or senses that are identifiable in a given context (definite noun phrases) and those that are not (indefinite noun phrases). The prototypical ...

form ending ''-en''.

Coat of arms

The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

was granted on 21 November 1986. The official

blazon In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct an accurate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The visual d ...

is ''"

Gules In heraldry, gules () is the tincture with the colour red. It is one of the class of five dark tinctures called "colours", the others being azure (blue), sable (black), vert (green) and purpure (purple). Gules is portrayed in heraldic hatch ...

, a plough Or"'' (). This means the arms have a red

field Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a grass ...

(background) and the

charge Charge or charged may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Charge, Zero Emissions/Maximum Speed'', a 2011 documentary Music * ''Charge'' (David Ford album) * ''Charge'' (Machel Montano album) * '' Charge!!'', an album by The Aqu ...

is a

plough A plough or ( US) plow (both pronounced ) is a farm tool for loosening or turning the soil before sowing seed or planting. Ploughs were traditionally drawn by oxen and horses but modern ploughs are drawn by tractors. A plough may have a wooden ...

. The plough has a

tincture A tincture is typically an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol (ethyl alcohol). Solvent concentrations of 25–60% are common, but may run as high as 90%.Groot Handboek Geneeskrachtige Planten by Geert Verhelst In chemistr ...

of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. This symbolizes the fact that the main source of income in the municipality is

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

. The plough also symbolizes that the municipality is at the northernmost limits of where

grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached husk, hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and ...

can be grown (and ploughs used) in Norway. The arms were designed by Arvid Steen.

Churches

The

Church of Norway The Church of Norway (, , , ) is an Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. Christianity became the state religion of Norway around 1020, and was established a ...

has two parishes () within Balsfjord Municipality. It is part of the

Indre Troms prosti Indre (); is a department in central France named after the river Indre. The inhabitants of the department are known as the ''Indriens'' (masculine; ) and ''Indriennes'' (feminine; ). Indre is part of the current administrative region of Centre ...

(

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the 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 residence of ...

) in the

Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland Nord-Hålogaland () is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers the Church of Norway churches in Troms and Finnmark counties as well as in the territory of Svalbard. The diocese is seated in the city of Tromsø at the Tromsø Cathedral, t ...

History

The local inhabitants are descendants of a mixture of Norwegian, Sami and Kven people. Due to the assimilation processes carried out by the Norwegian government, today very few traces of Sami and Kven culture survive. From the 18th century until the 20th century,

trappers Animal trapping, or simply trapping or ginning, is the use of a device to remotely catch and often kill an animal. Animals may be trapped for a variety of purposes, including for meat, fur/feathers, sport hunting, pest control, and wildlife man ...

from Balsfjord were active in the

Arctic The Arctic (; . ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway ( ...

, hunting in areas from

Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...

Novaya Zemlya Novaya Zemlya (, also , ; , ; ), also spelled , is an archipelago in northern Russia. It is situated in the Arctic Ocean, in the extreme northeast of Europe, with Cape Flissingsky, on the northern island, considered the extreme points of Europe ...

Mindekirken movement

According to the book ''Tromsø City History'' () written by Nils Andreas Ytreberg (1896–1987) (published in Norwegian), during the mid-19th century, Balsfjord became the religious home of a group of ''"mindekirken"'' or "freechurch dissenters" who split from the state church parish in

Tromsø Tromsø is a List of towns and cities in Norway, city in Tromsø Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The city is the administrative centre of the municipality as well as the administrative centre of Troms county. The city is located on the is ...

. The mindekirken movement in the Troms region was led by the seminary student, Johannes Andreas Johannessen Bomstad (born at Balsfjord on 23 August 1821), who split from the state church at the age of 28, under the leadership of the first Norwegian mindekirken movement leader, Rev. Lammers from

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

. In 1856, Bomstad and his original followers established their own church which they called the ''"Free Apostolic Christian Church"'' in Balsfjord. ''"Rev. Bomstad"'' and his followers were said to have struggled and protested against the Tromsø state church minister and the Troms Bishop's religious rulings, eventually leading to a

riot A riot or mob violence is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The p ...

in the town of Tromsø, when state-church members yelled at Bomstad and his fellow dissenters to "go back to Kautokeino (A small village in the most northern districts of Norway)". In 1862, Bomstad led a group of "mindekirken colonists" to

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, traveling first to

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

, where they sailed in mid-May 1862 aboard the ''Sleipner'', arriving at the inland port of

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

on 2 August 1862. Their voyage was also noteworthy as the first

transatlantic Transatlantic, Trans-Atlantic or TransAtlantic may refer to: Film * Transatlantic Pictures, a film production company from 1948 to 1950 * Transatlantic Enterprises, an American production company in the late 1970s * ''Transatlantic'' (1931 film) ...

voyage sailing directly from

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

to the port of Chicago (other previous transoceanic ships disembarked first at

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

.) After arriving in Chicago, the mindekirken colonists traveled overland to the area of St. Peter, Minnesota, where they remained during the "

Dakota War of 1862 The Dakota War of 1862, also known as the Sioux Uprising, the Dakota Uprising, the Sioux Outbreak of 1862, the Dakota Conflict, or Little Crow's War, was an armed conflict between the United States and several eastern bands of Dakota people, Da ...

". Rev. Bomstad left St. Peter traveling by

mule The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey, and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two ...

Kandiyohi County, Minnesota Kandiyohi County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, its population is 43,732. As of November 20, 1871, its county seat is Willmar. Kandiyohi County comprises the US Census Bureau's "Willmar, MN Micropolit ...

, where near the east bank of a lake (previously called ''"Lake Lillian"''), he became the founding father of

Lake Lillian, Minnesota Lake Lillian is a city in Kandiyohi County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 246 at the 2020 census. History The town of Lake Lillian formed in February 1923 when railroad tracks were laid for the Luce Line Railroad. The name L ...

in May 1864 (one hour ahead of the town's next settler, Mr. O.E. Hart, previously of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

). After staking his original claim, a month later on 3 June 1864, Rev. Bomstad led the rest of the colonists from St. Peter to their new settlement at Lake Lillian, where they built dugout shelters to live in that first year (on the site later occupied by the First M.E. Methodist Church of Lake Lillian.) A few months later he and his family finished building and moved into their log cabin home. Nordkjosen Balsfjord 14

Government

Balsfjord Municipality is responsible for

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

(through 10th grade), outpatient

health services Health care, or healthcare, is the improvement or maintenance of health via the preventive healthcare, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, treatment, wikt:amelioration, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other disability, physic ...

senior citizen Old age is the range of ages for people nearing and surpassing life expectancy. People who are of old age are also referred to as: old people, elderly, elders, senior citizens, seniors or older adults. Old age is not a definite biological sta ...

services,

welfare Welfare may refer to: Philosophy *Well-being (happiness, prosperity, or flourishing) of a person or group * Utility in utilitarianism * Value in value theory Economics * Utility, a general term for individual well-being in economics and decision ...

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. Also available amachine-converted HTML They may be provided by individuals, private and i ...

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

economic development In economics, economic development (or 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 object ...

, and municipal

road A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. Th ...

s and utilities. 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, borough cou ...

of directly elected representatives. The

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, 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 responsibilitie ...

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 o ...

by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the

Nord-Troms og Senja District Court Nord-Troms og Senja District Court () is a district court located in Troms county, Norway. This court is based at two different courthouses which are located in Tromsø and Finnsnes. The court is subordinate to the Hålogaland Court of Appeal. Th ...

and the

Hålogaland Court of Appeal The Hålogaland Court of Appeal () 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 well as the island territor ...

Municipal council

The

of Balsfjord is made up of 19 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a Hospitality, 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 oft ...

Mayors

The

() of Balsfjord is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who have held this position: *1860-1862: H.A. Moursund *1863-1870: D. Bruun *1871-1874: J.R. Nilsen *1875-1878: A.O. Daae *1879-1882: J.R. Nilsen *1883-1892: Ole O. Hansvold *1893-1894: J.R. Nilsen *1895-1901: Peter A. Larsen *1902-1903: G.O. Kløvstad *1903-1910: Andreas Iversen *1910-1913: Mads Kvien ( V) *1914-1917: Johannes Eide *1917-1919: Alf B. Bastiansen *1919-1919: Hans Abrahamsen *1920-1926: C.J. Corneliussen *1926-1928: Peter A. Larsen *1929-1934: Nik. Heim ( Ap) *1934-1940: Lars Fause ( Ap) *1941-19: John Gerhard Rønne ( NS) *1945-1946: Lars Fause ( Ap) *1946-1951: Emil Nymoen ( Ap) *1952-1961: Magne Sagelv ( Ap) *1962-1969: Asbjørn Sjøthun ( Ap) *1970-1975: Alfred Sagelvmo ( Ap) *1975-1979: Rolf Sand ( Sp) *1979-1983: Sverre Ola Aarøen ( H) *1983-1991: Olav Åsheim ( Ap) *1991-1995:

Kåre Kristiansen Kåre Gulbrand Kristiansen (11 March 1920 – 3 December 2005) was a Norwegian politician who was the leader of the Christian Democratic Party from 1975 to 1977, and again from 1979 to 1983, and Minister of Petroleum and Energy from 1983 to 1986. ...

( Sp) *1995-1999: Eva Johnsen ( Ap) *1999-2003: Oddvar Kåre Skogli ( Ap) *2003-2011: Gunda Johansen ( Ap) *2011-2015: Ole-Johan Rødvei ( H) *2015-2023: Gunda Johansen ( Ap) *2023-present: Laila Monica Johannessen ( Sp)

Geography

The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Vassdalsfjellet.

Climate

Economy

Farming is the single most important industry, although there is also some

manufacturing Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of the secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer ...

. The Tine

dairy A dairy is a place where milk is stored and where butter, cheese, and other dairy products are made, or a place where those products are sold. It may be a room, a building, or a larger establishment. In the United States, the word may also des ...

factory at Storsteinnes is one of the largest producers of the Norwegian brown cheese (''

brunost ' () is a common Norwegian name for (; ; ; ; ''/''), a family of soft cheese-related foods made with whey, milk, and/or cream. The characteristic brown color and sweet taste result from milk sugars being caramelized after boiling. The term i ...

''). They also make their own brand of cheese, called Balsfjord, from

goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a species of Caprinae, goat-antelope that is mostly kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the ...

milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of lactating mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfeeding, breastfed human infants) before they are able to digestion, digest solid food. ...

Transportation

European route E6 European route E6 (, , or simply E6) is the main north–south thoroughfare through Norway as well as the west coast of Sweden. It is long and runs from the southern tip of Sweden at Trelleborg, into Norway and through almost all of the countr ...

and

European route E8 The European route E8 is a European route that runs between Tromsø, Norway and Turku, Finland. The length of the route is . * E8: Tromsø – Nordkjosbotn – Skibotn – Kilpisjärvi – Kaaresuvanto – Muonio – Tornio – Keminmaa ...

meet at the village of

, making it a major crossroad.

Attractions

Apart from the impressive scenery, attractions include the 6000-year-old

rock carvings at Tennes Rock carvings at Tennes (''Helleristning i Tennes'') in Balsfjord Municipality in Troms county, Norway comprise figures of prehistoric rock art (''bergkunst''). The oldest figures have been dated to 4600 BC and the most recent to about 2600 BC . Th ...

(close to the

Balsfjord Church Balsfjord or Balsfjorden may refer to: Places *Balsfjord Municipality, a municipality in Troms county, Norway *Balsfjorden or is a fjord in Troms county, Norway. The long fjord runs through Balsfjord Municipality and Tromsø Municipality. It ...

), the old trading centre of Nordby, a Sami camp at Heia open over the summer months and the 18th century

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

at Aursfjord. There is also a smaller field of

rock carvings at Åsli The rock carvings at Åsli are located near the Malangen fjord in Balsfjord Municipality in Troms county, Norway . The carvings show at least 15 figures in poor condition. The figures are from a hunting culture. The rock carvings There are at lea ...

. The Malangen Brygger resort on the water's edge has opened on the Malangen Peninsula and will expand further in May 2010 when a hotel and conference centre open. Lillemor-vonHanno

Notable people

Notable people that were born or lived in Balsfjord include: * Andreas Beck (1864 in Balsfjord – 1914), a seal-hunter, polar captain, ice captain, shipowner, and explorer *

Lillemor von Hanno Lillemor von Hanno (née Bergljot Selmer; 30 December 1900 – 5 April 1984) was a Norwegian actress, novelist, and playwright. Personal life Von Hanno was born in Balsfjord Municipality, the daughter of the actress Ågot Gjems Selmer (1858� ...

(1900 in Balsfjord – 1984), an actress, novelist, and playwright. Retrieved 13 September 2020. *

Sverre Heim Sverre Heim (born 4 October 1951) is a Norwegian physician and cancer researcher. He is leader of the Cytogenetic Cancer Section at the Norwegian Radium Hospital. His research has focused on chromosome abnormality and cancer. In 2011 he received ...

(born 1951 in Balsfjord), a physician, cancer researcher, and chess player * Gunda Johansen (born 1952), a politician who was mayor of Balsfjord municipality starting in 2003 *

Kent-Are Antonsen Kent-Are Antonsen (born 12 February 1995) is a Norwegian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Eliteserien club Tromsø. Club career Antonsen was born in Storsteinnes. He began his career with Storsteinnes IL, the club from his h ...

(born 1995 in Storsteinnes), a footballer who played 180 games for

References

External links

Municipal fact sheet
from

Statistics Norway Statistics Norway (, 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 year on its web site. All rele ...

{{authority control Municipalities of Troms Populated places of Arctic Norway 1860 establishments in Norway Populated places established in 1860