Leka 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' ...

Trøndelag Trøndelag (; or is a county and coextensive with the Trøndelag region (also known as ''Midt-Norge'' or ''Midt-Noreg,'' "Mid-Norway") in the central part of Norway. It was created in 1687, then named Trondhjem County (); in 1804 the county was ...

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 ...

. It is part of the

Namdalen Namdalen () is a Districts of Norway, traditional district in the central part of Norway, consisting of the municipalities of Namsos Municipality, Namsos, Grong Municipality, Grong, Overhalla Municipality, Overhalla, Røyrvik Municipality, Røyr ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

. 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

Leknes Leknes () is a town in Vestvågøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The town is also the administrative centre of Vestvågøy Municipality (with 11,619 inhabitants, it is the most populous municipality in Lofoten and Vesterålen). Lek ...

on the island of Leka. Other villages in Leka include Sør-Gutvika and Madsøygrenda. Steinstid sommer

The municipality is the 326th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Leka is the 349th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 604. 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 increased by 8.6% over the previous 10-year period. The island municipality includes all of the island of Leka and part of the island of

Austra Austra may refer to: *Austra, Norway, an island between Trøndelag and Nordland counties *Austra (band) Austra is a Canadian electronic music band from Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalit ...

as well as hundreds of smaller surrounding islands and skerries. Primarily a

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

and farming community, Leka is the northernmost municipality in

county. The island of Leka has been inhabited for at least 10,000 years, as evidenced by cave drawings in the

Solsem cave The Solsem cave is a cave lying to the southwest of the Leka (island), island of Leka in Leka Municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. The cave is well known for its cave paintings, which were discovered in 1912. For a long time, they were the on ...

at the southwest tip of the Leka island.

General information

The municipality of Leka was established on 1 October 1860 when it was separated from the large

Kolvereid Municipality Kolvereid is a former municipality in the old Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The municipality encompassed the central part of what is now Nærøysund Municipality in Trøndelag ...

. Initially, the population of Leka Municipality was 1,702. On 1 January 1909, the southern mainland district of Leka (population: 881) was separated to form the new

Gravvik Municipality Gravvik is a former municipality in the old Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1909 until its dissolution in 1964. The municipality covered the northern coastal areas of the present-day Nærøysund Municipality in Tr� ...

. This left Leka Municipality with 1,209 residents. The borders of Leka have not changed since then. On 1 January 2018, the municipality switched from the old

Nord-Trøndelag Nord-Trøndelag (; "North Trøndelag") was a counties of Norway, county constituting the northern part of the present-day Trøndelag county in Norway. It bordered the old Sør-Trøndelag ("South Trøndelag") county as well as the county of Nordl ...

county to the new

county. On 8 June 2017, the Norwegian Parliament, the

Storting The Storting ( ; ) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The Unicameralism, unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years based on party-list propo ...

, voted to merge Leka Municipality with

Vikna Municipality Vikna is a former municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. The island municipality existed from 1869 until its dissolution in 2020. It is now part of Nærøysund Municipality in the Namdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipalit ...

Nærøy Municipality Nærøy () is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality of Trøndelag Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 2020. It is now part of Nærøysund Municipality in the Nam ...

, and

Bindal Municipality Bindal is a municipality in the Helgeland region in the extreme southwest part of Nordland county, Norway. The administrative centre is the village of Terråk. Other villages include Bindalseidet, Holm, Vassås, Horsfjord and Åbygda. The ...

to form one, large municipality effective 1 January 2020. Both Leka and Bindal municipalities rejected the merger, but Vikna and Nærøy merged on that date to form the new

Nærøysund Municipality Nærøysund is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Namdalen. The municipality was established on 1 January 2020 after the mer ...

Toponymy

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 island of Leka () since the island makes up a large portion of the parish and municipality. The meaning of the name is unknown, but it may come from the word which can mean "gravelly ground".

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 April 1989. 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 winged claw 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

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces both Lift (force), lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform (aeronautics), planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-d ...

and

claw A claw is a curved, pointed appendage found at the end of a toe or finger in most amniotes (mammals, reptiles, birds). Some invertebrates such as beetles and spiders have somewhat similar fine, hooked structures at the end of the leg or Arthro ...

of an

eagle Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

. The wing and claw design 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 is a reference to an incident which supposedly occurred in 1932, in which a three-year-old girl disappeared on the

island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

, and was subsequently discovered beneath the nest of a

White-tailed eagle The white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), sometimes known as the 'sea eagle', is a large bird of prey, widely distributed across temperate Eurasia. Like all eagles, it is a member of the family Accipitridae (or accipitrids) which also ...

, high up on a cliff where no three-year-old could possibly have climbed. The arms were designed by Einar H. Skjervold.

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 one parish () within Leka Municipality. It is part of the

Namdal prosti This list of churches in Nidaros is a list of the Church of Norway churches in the Diocese of Nidaros in Norway. It includes all of the parishes in Trøndelag county. The diocese is based at the Nidaros Cathedral in the city of Trondheim (city), T ...

(

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 Nidaros Nidaros is a diocese in the Lutheran Church of Norway. It covers Trøndelag county in Central Norway and its cathedral city is Trondheim, which houses the well-known Nidaros Cathedral. Since 10 September 2017, the Bishop of Nidaros is Herborg ...

Geography

Leka is an island municipality encompassing the main island of Leka, the western part of the island of

(with the biggest locality being Gutvik), and many other small islands in the surrounding area. The tiny island groups of Sklinna and Horta lie to the west of the main islands.

Sklinna Lighthouse Sklinna Lighthouse () is a lighthouse in Leka Municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. Sklinna Lighthouse is located on the island of Heimøya in the Sklinna island group about northwest of the island of Leka and about north of the island of ...

is located in the westernmost part of the municipality. Leka borders

to the south and

(in

Nordland Nordland (; , , , ) is one of the three northernmost Counties of Norway, counties in Norway in the Northern Norway region, bordering Troms in the north, Trøndelag in the south, Norrbotten County in Sweden to the east, Västerbotten County to t ...

county) to the north. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Romsskåla.

History

Dated to the

Viking Age The Viking Age (about ) was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonising, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. The Viking Age applies not only to their ...

, the

burial mound Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

Herlaugshaugen is one of the largest (in Norway) from that era.

Government

Leka 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

Trøndelag District Court Trøndelag District Court () is a district court located in Trøndelag county, Norway. This court is based at four different courthouses which are located in Brekstad, Namsos, Steinkjer, and Trondheim. The court is subordinate to the Frostating C ...

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 Leka is made up of 13 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 Leka 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: *1860–1865: N. Henriksen *1866–1871: C. Samuelsen *1872–1877: Otto Bach *1878–1881: Karl August Jensen *1882–1885: Johannes Furre ( H) *1886–1887: Otto Bach ( H) *1888–1891: Karl August Jensen ( H) *1892–1895: Svend Rasmussen ( H) *1896–1898: Karl August Jensen ( H) *1899–1901: Johannes Furre ( H) *1902–1904: Karl August Jensen ( H) *1905–1909: Ludvig Bach *1910–1919: Peder Aleksander Furre *1920–1925: Ingvard Hiller ( V) *1926–1928: Peder Aleksander Furre ( Bp) *1929–1931: Edvard Haug ( Bp) *1932–1937: Ingvard Hiller ( V) *1938–1942: Edvard Haug ( Bp) *1943–1945: Ole Nøstdal ( NS) *1945-1945: Edvard Haug ( Bp) *1946–1947: Hans Mikal Solsem ( Ap) *1948–1951: Anders Leknes ( Bp) *1952–1957: Hans Mikal Solsem ( Ap) *1957-1958: Egil Hanssen ( Ap) *1958-1959: Hans Mikal Solsem ( Ap) *1960–1967: Jonas Lund ( Ap) *1968–1969: Andreas Hansen ( Sp) *1970–1971: Leif Rohnes ( V) *1972–1975: Jonas Lund ( Ap) *1976–1978: Arne Skillingstad ( Sp) *1978–1979: Leif Rohnes ( V) *1979-1979: Anders Kolstad ( Sp) *1980–1983: Trond Pettersen ( Sp) *1984–1987: Inge Aune ( Ap) *1988–1995: Arve Haug ( Sp) *1995–1999: Margrethe Holmboe Askeland ( Sp) *1999–2002: Elisabeth Helmersen ( Ap) *2002–2003: Mari-Anne Hoff ( SV) *2003–2011: Arve Haug ( Sp) *2011–2019: Per Helge Johansen ( Sp) *2019–2023: Elisabeth Helmersen ( Ap) *2023-present: Svein Pettersen ( Sp)

Politics

In the 2007 municipal elections, Leka had the highest vote for the Centre Party in Norway, at 69.3 per cent.

Transportation

The island of Leka (at the village of Skei) is connected to the village of Gutvik (on the island of Austra) by a ferry line operated by

Lekaferja Lekaferja AS is a ferry company that operates the Skei–Gutvik Ferry with the car ferry MF ''Leka'' connecting Leka Municipality to mainland Norway. The company was created to operate the ferry service when it was created in 1964, and has operate ...

. The island of Austra is connected to the mainland by a bridge at the village of Bogen.

Notable people

Christopher Brinchmann Christopher Brinchmann (1 April 1864 – 26 February 1940) was a Norwegian archivist, literary historian and critic. He was born at Leka Municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. He worked in the National Archival Services of Norway Th ...

(1864 in Leka – 1940), an archivist, literary historian, and critic *

Annfinn Lund Annfinn Lund (5 April 1926 – 2001) was a Norwegian civil servant and politician for the Labour Party. He was born in Leka Municipality, and is a cand.jur. by education. He was employed at the Development Fund for Northern Norway, the predecess ...

(1926 in Leka – 2001), a Norwegian civil servant and politician who was the County Governor of Hedmark in 1980–1981 *

Thomas Hjalmar Westgård Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the Ap ...

(born 1995 in Leka), an Irish cross-country skier who competed in the

2018 Winter Olympics The 2018 Winter Olympics (), officially the XXIII Olympic Winter Games (; ) and also known as PyeongChang 2018 (), were an international winter multi-sport event held between 9 and 25 February 2018 in Pyeongchang County, South Ko ...

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 Trøndelag 1860 establishments in Norway Populated places established in 1860