Bardu ( sme, Bearddu suohkan, fkv, Perttulan komuuni) 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 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 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

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 ...

of the municipality is the village of

Setermoen Setermoen is the administrative centre of Bardu Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The village is located along the Barduelva river, about east of the village of Sjøvegan and about south of Bardufoss. The local council procl ...

, the largest urban area in the municipality. The municipality is the 18th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Bardu is the 202nd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 3,993. 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 3% over the previous 10-year period. Norway's largest

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distin ...

garrison is located at Setermoen. The military is the municipality's largest employer and more than 1,000 young soldiers perform their duty service here each year. The world's most northern zoo, Polar Park, is located in the southern part of the municipality.

General information

The municipality of ''Bardodalen'' was established in 1854 when the eastern part of the old

Ibestad Municipality 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 la ...

was separated to form the new municipality. The initial population of the new municipality was 757. The municipal borders have not changed since then, although the name was later changed to ''Bardu''. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became part of the newly formed

county. Previously, it had been part of 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 ...

county.

Name

''Bardu'' is a Norwegianized form of the

Sámi The Sámi ( ; also spelled Sami or Saami) are a Finno-Ugric-speaking people inhabiting the region of Sápmi (formerly known as Lapland), which today encompasses large northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland, and of the Murmansk Oblast, R ...

name ''Beardu''. The meaning of the Sámi name is probably "long and steep mountain side". Prior to 1889, the municipality was called ''"Bardodalen"'' which meant "the

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 over ...

/dale of Bardo". From 1889 until 1908, the name was written ''"Bardo"''. Since 1909, it has been spelled ''"Bardu"''.

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 it ...

was granted on 6 June 1980. The arms show a black

wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a musc ...

on a gold background. It was chosen as a symbol for the large

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 and the rich

wildlife Wildlife refers to undomesticated animal species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wild in an area without being introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous to game: those birds and mammals that were hunted f ...

in the municipality. The rock speedwell ('' Veronica fruticans'') is the municipal flower.

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 Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. ...

has one parish () within the municipality of Bardu. It is part of the

Indre Troms prosti Indre (; oc, Endre) is a landlocked 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 administ ...

(

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.

Government

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

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

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 ...

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 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. 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 coun ...

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 as ...

. The municipality falls under the

Senja District Court Senja District Court ( no, Senja tingrett) was a district court (Norway), district court located in the town of Finnsnes in Troms county, Norway. The court served the central and southeastern part of the county which included the municipalities of ...

and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The

of Bardu is made up of 19 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 feature ...

breakdown of the council is as follows:

Geography

Bardu borders the municipalities of Lavangen and Salangen to the west,

Målselv Målselv ( sme, Málatvuomi suohkan) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Moen. The main commercial centre of the municipality is the Bardufoss area (including And ...

to the north,

Narvik ( se, Áhkanjárga) is the third-largest municipality in Nordland county, Norway, by population. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Narvik. Some of the notable villages in the municipality include Ankenesstranda, Ba ...

(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) to the south, and Sweden to the east. The

Barduelva or ( en, Bardu River) is a river in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The long river is located in the municipalities of Bardu and Målselv. The river flows from the lake Altevatnet northwest to the town of Setermoen, then north to the munici ...

river runs through the municipality from south to north along the Bardudalen valley. The Salangsdalen valley is located along the western part of the municipality. The largest lake in the county,

Altevatnet or is Norway’s 11th largest lake. The lake lies in the Bardu Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The lake is the largest lake in the county. It is approximately long and about wide. The lake is regulated by a dam on the no ...

, is located in the eastern part of the municipality, near the smaller lakes

Geavdnjajávri Geavdnjajávri is a lake in Bardu Municipality in Troms county, Norway. It's located inside Rohkunborri National Park, just from the border with Sweden. The lake has an area of and is above sea level. The lake empties in the river Gulmmaeeat ...

and

Leinavatn or is a lake on the border between Norway and Sweden. It is almost entirely located in Bardu Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county in Norway, but a very small area crosses over into Kiruna Municipality in Norrbotten County Norrbotten C ...

. These lakes lie in and near Rohkunborri National Park.

Climate

Bardu, although not far from the coast, is known for its cold winters compared to the coastal areas. This is caused by mountains usually blocking the milder, coastal air from reaching the Bardu valley. In summer, however, it is usually warmer than the coastal areas.

Notable residents

Alfred Henningsen Alfred Meyer Henningsen (26 April 1918 – 12 September 2012) was a Norwegian military officer and politician for the Labour Party. He was introduced to spying and military service in World War II, and made this his career path after the war as w ...

(1918–2012) a military officer, spy and politician; Mayor of Bardu for over nine years, lived in Setermoen * Sissel Solbjørg Bjugn (1947 in Bardu – 2011) a Norwegian poet and children's writer *

Regina Alexandrova Regina Alexandrova (born 20 June 1967) is a Norwegian politician for the Conservative Party. Biography Alexandrova was born in Bulgaria on 20 June 1967. A major in the Armed Forces, she located to Troms and served as a member of the municipal c ...

(born 1967) a Norwegian politician, Bardu municipal councillor from 2007 to 2015

Sport

* Ole Hegge (1898 in Bardu – 1994) a cross-country skier and ski jumper, silver medallist at the

1928 Winter Olympics The 1928 Winter Olympics, officially known as the II Olympic Winter Games (french: IIes Jeux olympiques d'hiver; german: II. Olympische Winterspiele; it, II Giochi olimpici invernali; rm, II Gieus olimpics d'enviern) and commonly known as St. M ...

* Fred Børre Lundberg (born 1969) a Nordic combined performer, won two team silver medals and one team gold medal at the

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment building in Amsterdam after two of its engines ...

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 Ma ...

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 th ...

and an individual gold at the 1994 Winter Olympics, raised in Bardufoss *

Kristian Hammer Kristian Hammer (born 20 March 1976 in Narvik, but grew up in Setermoen in Bardu) is a Norwegian nordic combined skier who has been competing since 1995 while representing Eidsvoll IL. He grew up on Setermoen in Bardu. Hammer has three m ...

(born 1976) a Norwegian Nordic combined skier, grew up in Setermoen

Gallery

Bardu kirke (2).jpg, Bardu Church Bardu.jpg, The Bardu valley and river seen from Istind in the direction of

Lynx lynx-Male+female-Polar Park Norway.jpg,

Lynx A lynx is a type of wild cat. Lynx may also refer to: Astronomy * Lynx (constellation) * Lynx (Chinese astronomy) * Lynx X-ray Observatory, a NASA-funded mission concept for a next-generation X-ray space observatory Places Canada * Lynx, Ontar ...

at the Polar Park in Bardu.

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 ...

* *http://www.polarzoo.no {{Use dmy dates, date=March 2017 Municipalities of Troms og Finnmark Populated places of Arctic Norway 1854 establishments in Norway