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' ...

Agder Agder is a counties of Norway, county () and districts of Norway, traditional region in the southern part of Norway and is coextensive with the Southern Norway region. The county was established on 1 January 2020, when the old Vest-Agder and Au ...

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 Lister. 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 town of

Alleen Alleen or Lyngdal is a town which is the administrative centre of the municipality of Lyngdal in Agder county, Norway. It lies along the east side of the river Lygna, just north of the head of the Rosfjorden and northeast of the head of the Lyngd ...

. Some of the main villages in Lyngdal include Austad,

Byremo Byremo is a village in Lyngdal municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located on the north end of the lake Øvre Øydnevatn, about north of the village of Konsmo. Byremo was also the administrative centre An administrative cent ...

Fleseland Fleseland is a small village in Lyngdal municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located on the west shore of the Lenesfjorden, about southeast of the town of Lyngdal and about north of the village of Høllen in Lindesnes municipali ...

Hæåk Hæåk is a very small farming village in Lyngdal municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located about northwest of the town of Lyngdal (town), Lyngdal. Originally, the farm was not accessible by road, and only a few farmers lived t ...

, Konsmo,

Korshamn Korshamn or Korshavn is a fishing village in the southern part of Lyngdal municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located on the island of Revøy, located at the mouth of the Grønsfjorden. Korshamn lies about south of the villag ...

Kvås Kvås is a village in Lyngdal municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located in the Lyngdalen valley, along the river Lygna, about northeast of the municipal centre of Alleen and about west of the village of Konsmo. The Kvås C ...

Skomrak Skomrak is a village in Lyngdal municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located near the northern end of the Rosfjorden, about south of the town of Lyngdal. The village of Svenevik lies about straight west across the fjord. The S ...

Svenevik Svenevik is a village in Lyngdal municipality in Agder county, Norway. The village is located along the Rosfjorden, about south of the town of Lyngdal. The small village of Skomrak is located about straight east across the fjord. The village ...

, and Vivlemo. The municipal economy centers around

wood processing Wood processing is an engineering discipline in the wood industry comprising the production of forest products, such as pulp and paper, construction materials, and tall oil. Paper engineering is a subfield of wood processing. The major wo ...

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 ...

, and

commerce Commerce is the organized Complex system, system of activities, functions, procedures and institutions that directly or indirectly contribute to the smooth, unhindered large-scale exchange (distribution through Financial transaction, transactiona ...

Tourism 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 ...

is also central to the community, with the beaches along the

Lyngdalsfjorden Lyngdalsfjorden is a fjord in Agder county, Norway. The fjord begins at the village of Alleen in Lyngdal municipality and it flows southwest into Farsund municipality before emptying into the North Sea just south of the town of Farsund. The ...

and

Rosfjorden The Rosfjord or Rosfjorden is a fjord in Lyngdal municipality in Agder county, Norway. The long fjord runs from the town of Lyngdal to the North Sea in the south. The Austad peninsula lies on the east side of the fjord, with the village of Aus ...

being popular resorts during the summer. The municipality is the 177th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Lyngdal is the 107th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 10,751. 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 10.4% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The parish of ''Aa'' was established as the municipality of Lyngdal on 1 January 1838 (see

formannskapsdistrikt () was the name of a Norwegian self-governing municipality. The name was used from the establishment these municipalities in 1838 until the name fell out of use in 1863. The municipalities had their legal basis from two laws enacted on 14 Jan ...

law). On 1 January 1909, the municipality was split into three: Austad in the south (population: 1,263),

in the north (population: 736) and Lyngdal in the central area (population: 2,698). 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, the municipalities of Austad (population: 608), Kvås (population: 493), Lyngdal (population: 2,916) as well as the Gitlevåg area (population: 103) in

Spangereid Spangereid is a former municipality that was located in the old Vest-Agder Vest-Agder (; "West Agder") was one of 18 counties (''fylker'') in Norway from 1 January 1919 to 31 December 2019, after it was merged with Aust-Agder to form Agder ...

municipality, west of Lenesfjorden, were all merged to form one large municipality of Lyngdal. On 1 January 1971, the Ytre Skarstein and Indre Skarstein areas of Lyngdal (population: 21) was transferred to the neighboring municipality of

Farsund is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Lister Region, Lister. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Farsund (town ...

. On 1 January 2001, the municipality of Lyngdal declared that the municipal centre of

would be a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

called ''

Lyngdal is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Lister Region, Lister. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Alleen ...

''. On 1 January 2020, the neighboring municipality of

Audnedal Audnedal is a former municipality in the old Vest-Agder county, Norway. It was located in the traditional district of Sørlandet. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Konsmo. Other villages in Audnedal include Byrem ...

was merged into Lyngdal municipality.

Name

The municipality is named after the Lyngdalen valley () since it is the valley in which the municipality is located. The first element is the

genitive case In grammar, the genitive case ( abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive ca ...

of the river name ''

Lygna Lygna or Lyngdalselva is a river in Agder county, Norway. The river runs from the mountains in northern Hægebostad municipality, through the Lyngdalen valley to the municipality of Lyngdal to its mouth at Alleen, where it runs into Lyngdalsfjo ...

''. This name comes from the word which means "quietness" or "calm". The last element is which means "

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains and typically containing 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 ...

" or "dale". Prior to 1908, 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 ...

(but not the municipality) of Lyngdal was called ''Aa'', named after the vicarage. The name of the vicarage was first mentioned in 1312 as "a Am", the dative plural of ''á'' which means "(small) river". The farm lies between two rivers.

Coat of arms

The original

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 27 March 1987 and in use until 1 January 2020 when the municipality was enlarged. 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 ...

was "

Vert Vert or Verts may refer to: * Vert (heraldry), the colour green in heraldry * Vert (music producer) (born 1972), pseudonym of Adam Butler, an English music producer * Vert (river), in southern France * Vert (sport), a competition in extreme versio ...

a cow statant

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 ...

" (). This means the arms had a green

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 ...

was a

cow Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, bovid ungulates widely kept as livestock. They are prominent modern members of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Mature female cattle are called co ...

that was facing to the left. The cow had 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 ...

which meant it was commonly colored white, but if it was made out of metal, then silver was used. The cow was chosen since the local breed of cows () has been very well known across Norway since the 19th century. The yearly cattle fair traders from all over

Southern Norway Southern Norway (; lit. "The Southland") is the geographical List of regions of Norway, region (''landsdel'') along the Skagerrak coast of southern Norway. The region is an informal description since it does not have any governmental function ...

and

Western Norway Western Norway (; ) is the Regions of Norway, region along the Atlantic coast of southern Norway. It consists of the Counties of Norway, counties Rogaland, Vestland, and Møre og Romsdal. The region has no official or political-administrative fu ...

visit the municipality to get cows. The arms were designed by Torgeir Schjølberg. The current

was approved for use starting on 1 January 2020. The arms have a green

(background) and the

is a tree on top of three wavy lines. The tree and wavy lines have a

which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The tree symbolizes growth. It has nine leaves symbolizing the nine main population centres within Lyngdal. The wavy lines represent waves and meadows. There are three white lines to represent the three large rivers in the municipality:

Audna Audna or Audnedalselva is a river in Agder county, Norway. The long river runs from the lake Grindheimsvatnet, just north of the village of Byremo in Lyngdal municipality, south through the Audnedalen valley to its mouth at the Snigsfjorden i ...

, and

Mandalselva Mandalselva, Mandalsåni, or Marna ( English: Mandal River, ) is a river in Agder county in Norway. The river has its origins in the mountains between Ose in Setesdal and the Upper Sirdal valley. The river flows south to its mouth at the North ...

. The two green wavy lines (between the white wavy lines represent the two valleys in the municipality:

Lyngdalen Lyngdalen is a valley in Agder county, Norway. The long valley runs north–south through the municipalities of Hægebostad and Lyngdal. The valley follows the river Lygna from the mountain plateaus in northern Hægebostad to the Lyngdalsfjorde ...

and

Audnedalen Audnedalen is the shortest of the six main north-south valleys in Agder county, Norway. The long river valley runs through the municipalities of Lyngdal and Lindesnes. The river Audna runs through the valley, ending in Snigsfjorden in the sout ...

. The arms were designed by Richard Haugland.

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 five parishes () within the municipality of Lyngdal. It is part of the Lister og Mandal 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 Agder og Telemark The Diocese of Agder og Telemark () is a diocese of the Church of Norway, covering all of Agder county and Telemark county in Norway. The cathedral city is Kristiansand, Norway's fifth largest city. Kristiansand Cathedral serves as the seat of t ...

History

The island of Sælør on the southern coast of the municipality is mentioned in Snorre, as the king

Saint Olav Saint Olaf ( – 29 July 1030), also called Olaf the Holy, Olaf II, Olaf Haraldsson, and Olaf the Stout or "Large", was King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. Son of Harald Grenske, a petty king in Vestfold, Norway, he was posthumously given the ...

spent a winter here in 1028. Based around the port of Agnefest, Lyngdal prospered on maritime trade, and in 1771 an application was made for status as a small coastal town. Its coastal location also facilitated emigration; in the 17th and 18th century largely to the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...

, and in the 19th century to the

United States 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 ...

. Even before the merger of the municipalities in 1964, the

es of Austad and Kvås, together with Å (or ''Aa'' - Lyngdal proper), made up the greater Lyngdal parish. A census from 1801 showed 3529 inhabitants in the area that today makes up Lyngdal: 1850 in Å, 929 in Austad, 585 in Kvås and 165 in the eastern part of Spangereid. The number today is approximately 8000 inhabitants. Religious life and missionary work have always had a strong position in Lyngdal, and worthy of special note is the minister Gabriel Kielland (1796–1854), who served in the parish from 1837 to 1854, and his wife Gustava (1800–1889). Known today as a missionary pioneer and a popular songwriter, Gustava also wrote one of the first autobiographies by a woman in Norway: her "''Reminiscence from my Life''" from 1880.

Geography

Lyngdal natural harbour Agnefest harbour official registered since 1771 - Norway Foto Wolfgang Pehlemann IMG 9432

Lyngdal is a coastal municipality that and borders

Lindesnes Lindesnes () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Sørlandet. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Manda ...

municipality to the east,

Evje og Hornnes Evje og Hornnes is a municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Setesdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Evje. Other villages in the municipality include Åneland, Dåsn ...

and

Åseral Åseral is a municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is in the traditional district of Sørlandet. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Kyrkjebygda. Other villages in Åseral include Eikerapen, Kylland, Ljosland, ...

to the north,

Hægebostad Hægebostad is a municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Lister. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Tingvatn. Other villages in Hægebostad include Eiken, Haddeland, an ...

and

Kvinesdal Kvinesdal is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Agder county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Lister Region, Lister. The administrative centre of the municipality is the villa ...

and

to the west. Lyngdal municipality includes the southern portion of the

valley which follows the river

to the

in the west. The Lenesfjorden, Grønsfjorden, and

also are located in the southern part of Lyngdal. As part of Lyngdal village there is Agnefest on site in the south with a natural harbour at Rosfjorden; the harbour is registered since 1771.

Climate

Government

Lyngdal 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 Agder District Court and the Agder Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The

() of Lyngdal is made up of 29 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

mayors 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 ...

() of Lyngdal (incomplete list): *1838-1838: Abraham Severin Holbye *1842-1843: Abraham Kvelland *1844-1847: Aanen Bergsager *1849-1857: Aanen Bergsager *1858-1859: Lars Tallaksen Foss *1860-1861: Jørgen Thorsen *1862-1874: Aanen Bergsager *1878-1881: Eilert Paulsen Tjersland *1882-1893: Erik Jaabæk *1894-1901: Nils Tobias Larsen Foss *1902-1904: Erik Jaabæk *1905-1907: Nils Tobias Larsen Foss *1909-1912: Gabriel A. Svenevig *1913-1916: Karl B. Lehne *1917-1919: Jørgen Aarnæs *1920-1931: Olaus Kvaavik *1932-1934: Abel Fidjeland *1935-1937: Olaus Kvaavik *1938-1941: Abel Fidjeland *1942-1943: Olav Harveland ( NS) *1943-1945: Torleiv Seland ( NS) *1945-1947: Abel Fidjeland *1948-1955: Mikal Grøvan *1956-1959: Olav Drangeid *1960-1963: Thorvald Hagen *1964-1967: Olav Benestvedt *1968-1975: Thorvald Hagen *1976-1979: Carl Johan Lehne ( H) *1980-1983: Oluf Opsahl *1984-1995: Anders Nøkland *1995-2007: Hans Fredrik Grøvan ( KrF) *2007-2013:

Ingunn Foss Ingunn Foss (born 7 February 1960) is a Norwegian politician for the Conservative Party of Norway, Conservative Party. She is Member of Parliament#Norway, Member of Parliament (Stortinget) for Vest-Agder (Storting constituency), Vest-Agder County ...

( H) *2013-2023: Jan Kristensen ( H) *2023-present: Unni Nilsen Husøy ( FrP)

Transportation

Bus lines from/through Lyngdal Bus Terminal:

Notable people

* Teis Lundegaard (1774 in Austad – 1856), a Norwegian farmer, shipowner, and politician * Abraham Berge (1851 in Lyngdal – 1936), a politician who was

Prime Minister of Norway The prime minister of Norway (, which directly translates to "minister of state") is the head of government and chief executive of Norway. The prime minister and Cabinet of Norway, Cabinet (consisting of all the most senior government departme ...

from 1923 to 1924 * Kristian Andvord (1855 in Lyngdal – 1934), a physician and medical researcher into

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

* Theodore Abrahamson (1900 in Lyngdal - 1978), a dairy farmer and politician; Mayor of Tigerton, Wisconsin *

Kjell Elvis Kjell Henning Bjørnestad (born 12 March 1968), known as Kjell Elvis (or K. Elvis), is a Norwegian professional Elvis impersonator – a who had plastic surgery to look more like American rock 'n' roll musician Elvis Presley. He is also a sound ...

(born 1968), a Norwegian professional

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

impersonator, lives in Lyngdal

Sport

Ingvild Stensland Ingvild Stensland (born 3 August 1981) is a former Norway, Norwegian Association football, footballer who, from August 2022, is one of the assistance coaches on Norway women's national football team, Norway women's national team. As a player she ...

(born 1981), a footballer, 144 caps for Norway women, grew up in Lyngdal * Stefan Strandberg (born 1990 in Lyngdal), a footballer with 230 club caps and 12 for

* Zlatko Tripić (born 1992), a Norwegian-Bosnian footballer with over 200 club caps, grew up in Lyngdal * Julian Ryerson (born 1997), a Norwegian-American footballer playing for

Borussia Dortmund Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, often known simply as Borussia Dortmund () or by its initialism BVB (), or just Dortmund by International fans, is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is ...

in Germany, born in Lyngdal.

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 ...

Municipal website
{{use dmy dates, date=December 2020 Municipalities of Agder 1838 establishments in Norway