Numedal () is a

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 ...

and a traditional district in Eastern Norway located within the county of

Buskerud Buskerud () is a Counties of Norway, county and a current electoral district in Norway, bordering Akershus, Oslo, Innlandet, Vestland, Telemark and Vestfold. The region extends from the Oslofjord and Drammensfjorden in the southeast to Hardanger ...

. It traditionally includes the municipalities Flesberg, Nore og Uvdal and

Rollag Rollag is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Buskerud Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Districts of Norway, traditional region of Numedal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rollag, al ...

. Administratively, it now also includes Kongsberg.

Geography

Numedal is the southernmost valley of the major valleys in Eastern Norway. Numedal is largely a U-shaped valley. Most of the area is mountainous, especially west of the main valley, with steep valley sides. Running north–south, it extends between Flesberg in the south to Rødberg in the north, passing through the municipalities of Flesberg,

and Nore og Uvdal. The Numedalslågen, the third-longest river in Norway, flows through the valley before discharging into Oslofjord at Larvik.

Transportation

National Road 40 runs from Larvik. National Road 7 crosses Hardangervidda to Geilo. Numedal Line Railway (''Numedalsbanen'') was opened in 1927 and stopped operations in 1988. The former railroad track from Veggli to Rødberg is now used principally for cycling.

Economy

Agriculture and forestry are important industries in the valley along with hydropower generation, as well as growing tourist traffic.

Etymology

The name comes from ', the

Old Norse Old Norse, also referred to as Old Nordic or Old Scandinavian, was 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 ...

name for the Numedalslågen, and ' meaning "

". The origin and meaning of the name are the same as that of Namdalen.

Attractions

The area along the Numedalslågen from Flesberg up to the Hardangervidda through the valley has a large number of examples of Medieval Scandinavian architecture. There are still over 40 historic timber buildings and four stave churches: Flesberg Stave Church, Rollag Stave Church, Nore Stave Church and Uvdal Stave Church. Numedal was also the location of one of the "Nordmann's trails" (''Nordmannsslepene''), which were the old main roads between east and west over Hardangervidda. On the marked paths, remains of

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistory, prehistoric period during which Rock (geology), stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended b ...

dwelling places, bog iron works and grave mounds can be seen. Numedal also has several museums including Nore og Uvdal Open Air Museum (''Nore og Uvdal Bygdetun'') in Uvdal, Rollag Open Air Museum (''Rollag Bygdetun'') in

, and Dåset Open Air Museum (''Dåset bygdetun'') at Flesberg. These are collections of historic buildings, mostly built in the traditional style common for the valley.

Gallery

File:Godfarfossen.jpg, Godfarfossen on Numedalslågen File:Numedalsbanen Roedberg.jpg, Rødberg Station on the partially closed Numedal Rail Line File:Rollag kirke 02.jpg, Rollag Stave Church File:Alfstadloftet.jpg, Alfstadloftet File:Bakkerud stasjon Numedalsbanen.jpg, Bakkerud Station File:Flesberg vrengja outlet in Laagen IMG 1279.jpg, Vrengja at Lågen

Climate

Numedal has a

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...

( Dfc) with short, mild, and wet summers with cool nights and long, cold, and snowy winters.

References

Notes

Citations

Literature

External links

Tour suggestions from Numedal

Nordmannsslepene

Nore og Uvdal Bygdetun

Rollag bygdetun

Middelalderuka i Numedal
{{Authority control Districts of Buskerud Valleys of Buskerud Flesberg Rollag Nore og Uvdal