Fjord 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' ...

Møre og Romsdal Møre og Romsdal (; ) is a Counties of Norway, county in the northernmost part of Western Norway, Western Norway. It borders the counties of Trøndelag, Innlandet, and Vestland. The county administration is located in the Molde (town), town of M ...

county,

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 ...

. It is located in the traditional district of

Sunnmøre Sunnmøre (, ) is the southernmost traditional district of the western Norwegian county of Møre og Romsdal. Its main city is Ålesund. The region comprises the municipalities () of Fjord, Giske, Hareid, Herøy, Sande, Haram, Stranda Mu ...

. 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

Stordal Stordal means "large valley" in Norwegian. It may refer to: Places *Stordal Municipality, a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway *Stordal (village), a village in Fjord Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway * Stordal Chu ...

. Other villages in the municipality include

Valldal Sylte or Valldal is a village in Fjord Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The village is situated at the southern end of the Valldalen valley along the shore of the Norddalsfjorden near the mouth of the Valldøla river, just west ...

Eidsdal Eidsdal is a village and valley in Fjord Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located along the south side of the Norddalsfjorden, about southwest of the village of Sylte and about west of the village of Norddal. The local ...

, Norddal,

Tafjord Tafjord is a village in Fjord Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The village is very isolated and (other than by boat) the only way into the valley is by road from the village of Sylte. The road is composed almost entirely of two ...

, Fjørå/Selboskarbygda, Sylte. The name Fjord is

a common word "A Common Word between Us and You" is an open letter, from October 13, 2007, from Muslim to Christian leaders. It calls for peace between Muslims and Christians and tries to work for common ground and understanding between both religions, in line ...

and name part in Norway and was chosen for the new municipality established in 2020 for reasons of

search engine optimization Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the quality and quantity of Web traffic, website traffic to a website or a web page from web search engine, search engines. SEO targets unpaid search traffic (usually referred to as ...

, despite not having any historical tradition in the municipality. The municipality is the 92nd largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Fjord Municipality is the 255th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 2,492. 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 8.4% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The municipality was established on 1 January 2020 after the government of Norway approved the merger of

Stordal Municipality Stordal is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1892 until its dissolution in 2020 (except for a brief time from 1965-1977). The area is now part of Fjor ...

(population: 972) and

Norddal Municipality Norddal is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, 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 ...

(population: 1,670). The borders have not changed since that time.

Name

The municipality was named ''

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 ...

'' to signify its location at the inner part of the Storfjorden. The name Fjord has no historical basis or tradition in the area; according to the municipality, the name was chosen in 2020 because of a desire to optimize search engine results and that it wanted

Google Google LLC (, ) is an American multinational corporation and technology company focusing on online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, consumer electronics, and artificial ...

results for the common word "

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 ...

" to be dominated by the municipality in order to attract

tourists Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

." The official

Language Council of Norway The Language Council of Norway (, ) is the administrative body of the Norwegian state on language issues. It regulates the two written forms of the Norwegian language: Bokmål and Nynorsk. It was established in 2005 and replaced the Norwegian Lan ...

criticized the name of the municipality and stated that "fjord is a common word that has been appropriated as the name of a municipality, which we opposed." The council also stated that it is an important principle that municipal names should be based on names with a historical tradition in the area, and that "invented names" with no tradition such as Fjord are unfortunate.

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 30 October 2019 to be used starting on 1 January 2020 upon the establishment of the new municipality. The arms have a blue

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 four parallelogram shapes on the left and right sides of the

escutcheon Escutcheon may refer to: * Escutcheon (heraldry), a shield or shield-shaped emblem, displaying a coat of arms * Escutcheon (furniture), a metal plate that surrounds a keyhole or lock cylinder on a door * (in medicine) the distribution of pubic ha ...

that extend off the shield. The charge 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 ...

argent In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to b ...

which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The design was chosen to represent the mountains on either side of the Storfjorden which flows through the municipality. The blue color in the field symbolizes the water and sky while the white shapes represent the snowy mountains surrounding the water. The arms were designed by Dag Øistein Endsjø. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

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 Fjord Municipality: Stordal in the north and Norddal in the south. The municipality is part of the Nordre Sunnmøre prosti (

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 Møre The Diocese of Møre () is a diocese in the Church of Norway which geographically consists of Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Its bishop is seated at the Molde Cathedral which is located in the county administrative center of Molde. , the Bisho ...

Geography

Fjord Municipality is located along the inner Storfjorden and around the

Norddalsfjorden Norddalsfjorden is a branch off of the main Storfjorden (Sunnmøre), Storfjorden in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The fjord is located in Fjord Municipality and a small part is also in Stranda Municipality. The fjord is long, when you include ...

and the

Tafjorden Tafjorden is an inner branch of the Norddalsfjorden/ Storfjorden in Fjord Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site West Norwegian Fjords. The fjord is located southeast of the village of Syl ...

which flow west to east. The majority of the municipality lies east and south of the fjord, while a small previously inhabited mountainous area on the west side of the fjord is also part of Fjord.

Ytste Skotet Ytste Skotet is a complete, preserved, historical farm located in Fjord Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The historic farmyard and museum, which is part of the Sunnmøre Museum Foundation, is located on the steep shores of the St ...

is a preserved historic farm/museum that is located on the steep mountainsides on the west side of the fjord. Most of the municipality surrounds the ''Stordalen'' valley and the

Valldalen Valldalen (or sometimes just ''Valldal'') is a valley in Fjord Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located north of Norddalsfjorden. The village of Sylte, Norddal, Sylte (which is also called Valldal) is located at the end of ...

valley, both on the east side of the fjord. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain

Puttegga Puttegga is the highest mountain in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It lies on the border of Fjord Municipality and Rauma Municipality. It is located just northwest of the mountain Karitinden, inside Reinheimen National Park. The nearest villag ...

, on the border with

Rauma Municipality Rauma is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Møre og Romsdal Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Romsdal. The administrative centre is the town of Åndalsnes. Other s ...

. The large

valley runs to the northeast from the Norddalsfjorden. The valleys are surrounded by the

Tafjordfjella Tafjordfjella or Tafjordfjellene () is a mountain range in Møre og Romsdal and Innlandet counties, Norway. It is located in the municipalities of Fjord, Stranda, Rauma, and Skjåk. The area takes its name from the village of Tafjord and the ...

mountain range. The mountains

Karitinden Karitinden is a mountain in the Tafjordfjella mountain range inside Reinheimen National Park on the border of Innlandet and Møre og Romsdal counties in Norway. The top of the mountain is a tripoint border junction for Skjåk Municipality (in Inn ...

, and

Tordsnose Tordsnose is a mountain in Norway. The tall mountain lies on the border of Fjord Municipality (in Møre og Romsdal county) and Skjåk Municipality (in Innlandet county). It sits in the Tafjordfjella mountain range and within Reinheimen Nationa ...

sit on the eastern border of the municipality. The mountain

Høgstolen Høgstolen is a mountain in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The tall mountain lies on the border of Rauma Municipality and Fjord Municipality in the Tafjordfjella mountain range, about west of the border with Innlandet county. Høgstolen lies ...

lies in the northern part of the municipality.

Reinheimen National Park Reinheimen National Park () is a national park in Norway that was established in 2006. The park consists of a continuous protected mountain area. It is located in Møre og Romsdal and Innlandet counties in Norway. The park includes parts of the ...

is located partially in the municipality.

is part of the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

West Norwegian Fjords The West Norwegian Fjords is the common name of two fjords in Norway listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO: the Geirangerfjord and the Nærøyfjord. Geography Location The World Heritage Site consists of two areas apart, located in sout ...

Climate

The Norwegian Meteorological Institute has kept records of the temperature in Tafjord since 1925, documenting a temperate

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

(marine west coast climate;

Köppen climate Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author a ...

zone: Cfb). The all-time high was recorded July 1945, and the all-time low in January 1942. Tafjord, in a narrow fjord area surrounded by high mountains, often experiences

foehn A Foehn, or Föhn (, , , ), is a type of dry, relatively warm downslope wind in the lee of a mountain range. It is a rain shadow wind that results from the subsequent adiabatic warming of air that has dropped most of its moisture on windw ...

in winter when strong Atlantic lows pushes mild air towards the coast. Tafjord has the national high for November with and the national high for December. The average date for the last overnight freeze (low below ) in spring is 17 April and the average date for the first freeze in autumn is 24 October giving a frost-free season of 189 days (1981-2010 average).

Government

Fjord 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

Møre og Romsdal District Court Møre og Romsdal District Court () was a district court located in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. This court was based at four different courthouses which were located in Volda, Ålesund, Molde, and Kristiansund. The court was subordinate to t ...

and the

Frostating Court of Appeal The Frostating Court of Appeal () is one of six courts of appeal in the Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Trondheim. The court has jurisdiction over the counties of Trøndelag and Møre og Romsdal. These areas constitute the ...

Municipal council

The

of Fjord Municipality 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 Fjord Municipality 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: *2020–2023: Eva Hove ( Ap) *2023–present: Terese Jemtegård Moen ( Sp)

Notable people

Martin Linge Martin Jensen Linge, (11 December 1894 – 27 December 1941) was a Norwegian actor who, in World War II, became the commander of the Norwegian Independent Company 1 (NOR.I.C.1) (pronounced as ''Norisen'' by the Norwegians), formed in March 19 ...

, (1894 in Norddal – 1941), an actor who worked for SOE in WWII *

Marta Schumann Marta Schumann (4 February 1919 – 24 April 1994) was a Norwegian novelist, poet and short story writer. She made her literary début in 1969 with the historical novel ''Korset under Skuggefjellet'', the first part of a trilogy set in the 18th c ...

(1919 in Valldal – 1994), a novelist, poet, and short story writer *

Almar Heggen Almar Heggen (25 May 1933 – 22 October 2014) was a Norwegian opera singer. He was born in Norddal Municipality. He made his debut at ''Det Norske Operaselskap'' in 1957. From 1960 to 1969 he was assigned at German stages, including Deutsch ...

(1933 in Norddal – 2014), an opera singer * Stian Omenås (born 1980 in Valldal), a jazz musician (trumpet), music conductor, and composer

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 Stordal Norddal Municipalities of Møre og Romsdal 2020 establishments in Norway Populated places established in 2020