Masfjorden is a municipality in the central part of

Vestland Vestland is a county in Norway established on 1 January 2020. The county is located in Western Norway and it is centred around the city of Bergen, Norway's second largest city. The administrative centre of the county is the city of Bergen, whe ...

county in

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 municipality is located in the

Nordhordland Nordhordland is a traditional district in the western part of Norway. The district consists of the northern portion of the old Hordaland county (now in Vestland county), north of the city of Bergen. It includes the municipalities Alver, Aust ...

district of the county. 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

Masfjordnes Masfjordnes is the administrative centre of Masfjorden municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The village lies along the southern shore of the Masfjorden, along Norwegian County Road 570. The village is very narrow, occupying the wide strip ...

. Other villages in the municipality include Frøyset, Hosteland, Matre, and Solheim. The municipality is centered on the Masfjorden which almost divides the municipality completely into a north side and a south side. A

cable ferry A cable ferry (including the terms chain ferry, swing ferry, floating bridge, or punt) is a ferry that is guided (and in many cases propelled) across a river or large body of water by cables connected to both shores. Early cable ferries often ...

crosses the fjord from Masfjordnes to Duesund in the western part of the municipality. The Matre Hydroelectric Power Station is located in the eastern part of the municipality. The municipality is the 195th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Masfjorden is the 297th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 1,629. 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 decreased by 3.2% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The parish of Masfjorden was established as a municipality on 1 March 1879 when it was separated from the large municipality of

Lindås Lindås is a former municipality in the Nordhordland district in the old Hordaland county, Norway. It existed from 1838 until its dissolution on 1 January 2020 when it was merged into the new Alver Municipality. The administrative centre of th ...

. Masfjorden was the northern part of Lindås, and its initial population was 2,336. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the

Schei Committee The Schei Committee ( no, Schei-komitéen) 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, often abbreviated as WWI ...

. On 1 January 1964, the Einestrand, Eikebotn, and Kikallen area along the Austfjorden (population: 25) was transferred from Lindås to Masfjorden.

Name

The municipality is named after the Masfjorden, the fjord which runs through it. The

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is 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 of Scandinavia and t ...

form of the name was ''Matrsfjǫrðr''. The first element is the genitive case of the old (uncompounded) name of the fjord: ''Matr''. This name is derived from ''matr'' which means "food" - and the meaning of the fjord name is "the one full of food (fish)". The village of Matre lies at the inner end of the fjord, and that name has a similar origin.

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 28 September 1990. The arms feature three gold ''heldrer'', a traditional tool made of wood for fastening a

rope A rope is a group of yarns, plies, fibres, or strands that are twisted or braided together into a larger and stronger form. Ropes have tensile strength and so can be used for dragging and lifting. Rope is thicker and stronger than similarly ...

around a load. They are meant to symbolize unity as well as the importance of

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. ...

. Three of these objects appear in yellow and they are centered on a field of red.

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 Masfjorden. It is part of the Nordhordland prosti (

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 Bjørgvin The Diocese of Bjørgvin ( no, Bjørgvin bispedømme) is one of the 11 dioceses that make up the Church of Norway. It includes all of the churches located in the county of Vestland in Western Norway. The cathedral city is Bergen, Norway's second ...

. Prior to 2020, the municipality had three parishes (Frøyset, Sandnes, and Solheim).

Government

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

health services Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health profes ...

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 Hordaland District Court and the

Gulating Court of Appeal The Gulating Court of Appeal ( no, Gulating lagmannsrett) is one of six courts of appeal in the Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Bergen. The court has jurisdiction over the counties of Vestland and Rogaland plus Sirdal Munic ...

Municipal council

The

() of Masfjorden is made up of 17 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:

Mayor

The mayors of Masfjorden (incomplete list): *2011–present: Karstein Totland ( Sp) *2003-2011: Håkon Matre ( H)

Geography

Masfjorden municipality lies to the east of the

Fensfjorden Fensfjorden is a fjord in Vestland, Norway. The long fjord begins in the North Sea at Holmengrå Lighthouse and flows to the southeast through the municipalities of Austrheim, Gulen, Lindås, and Masfjorden. The fjord ends on the Masfjorden- ...

and Austfjorden. The Masfjorden runs east to west bisecting the municipality. The eastern part has mountains and as one heads westward, the land levels out before reaching the fjord in the east. The municipality lies along the west coast in the central part of the county. The municipalities of

Gulen is a municipality in the southwestern part of Vestland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Sogn. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Eivindvik. Other villages in Gulen include Brekke, Byrkne ...

and Høyanger lie to the north, the municipality of Modalen to the east, and the municipality of Alver lies to the south and west. The

European route E39 European route E39 is the designation of a north–south road in Norway and Denmark from Klett, just south of Trondheim, to Aalborg via Bergen, Stavanger and Kristiansand. In total, there are nine ferries, more than any other single road in ...

highway runs through eastern Masfjorden heading north and south. The long Masfjord Tunnel and the long Jernfjell Tunnel (and a few other tunnels) are part of the E39 highway which winds its way through some valleys in the mountainous eastern region of Masfjorden.

Notable people

Hans Bergersen Wergeland Hans Bergersen Wergeland (23 July 1861 – 8 July 1931) was a Norwegian politician. He was born in Masfjorden, and worked as a farmer from 1885. He was mayor of his municipality for some time, and also chaired the boards of the local savings ban ...

(1861–1931) a Norwegian politician, local Mayor and farmer *

Ludvig Hope Ludvig Hope (17 January 1871, Masfjorden Masfjorden is a municipality in the central part of Vestland county in Norway. The municipality is located in the Nordhordland district of the county. The administrative centre of the municipality is the ...

(1871–1954) a Norwegian lay preacher, writer and teacher *

Einar Hope Einar Hope (born 13 July 1937) is a Norwegian economist. He was born in Masfjorden. Having graduated as siviløkonom, he was employed at the Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration from 1978 to 1990, before being CEO of the Foun ...

(born 1937) a Norwegian economist *

Bjarne Johannes Hope Bjarne Johannes Hope (30 March 1944 - 30 June 2006) was a Norwegian civil servant. He was born in Masfjorden. Having graduated from the Norwegian Institute of Technology in 1968 as siv.ing., he worked as a consultant from 1972. From 1995 to his de ...

(1944-2006) a Norwegian civil servant.

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 ...

{{use dmy dates, date=October 2022 Municipalities of Vestland 1879 establishments in Norway