Skjervøy Municipality (, ; ) 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' ...

Troms Troms (; ; ; ) is a Counties of Norway, county in northern Norway. It borders Finnmark county to the northeast and Nordland county in the southwest. Norrbotten Län in Sweden is located to the south and further southeast is a shorter border with ...

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 ...

. 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 Skjervøy on the island of

Skjervøya , , or is an island in Skjervøy Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The island lies to the east of the island of Kågen and south of the island of Laukøya. The Kvænangen fjord lies to the east of the island. The village of Skjervøy is t ...

, where most of the inhabitants live. The main industries are fishing and

shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other Watercraft, floating vessels. In modern times, it normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation th ...

. Other villages in the municipality include

Akkarvik Akkarvik is a small village along the Langfjorden in Skjervøy Municipality, in the northern part of Troms county, Norway. It is located about south of the village of Årviksand and about west of the village of Arnøyhamn on the south side of ...

and

Arnøyhamn Arnøyhamn is a village in Skjervøy Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The village is located on the southern shore of the island of Arnøya. The village is about east of the village of Akkarvik Akkarvik is a small village along the Langfj ...

. The municipality is the 211th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Skjervøy is the 240th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 2,794. 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 3% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The large municipality of ''Skjervøe'' (later spelled ''Skjervøy'') was established 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). In 1863, the southeastern (inland) part of the municipality (population: 1,677) was separated to form the new

Kvænangen Municipality Kvænangen (; ) is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Troms Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Burfjord. Other notable villages in the municipality include Alteide ...

. This left 2,785 people in Skjervøy. Then on 1 January 1886, the southern part of the municipality (population: 1,057) was separated from Skjervøy to form the new

Nordreisa Municipality , (Northern Sami language, Northern Sami, ), or is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Troms Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Storslett. Other villages include O ...

. This left 2,096 inhabitants in Skjervøy Municipality. On 1 January 1890, the Trætten and Loppevolden farms (population: 32) were transferred from Skjervøy Municipality to Nordreisa Municipality. On 1 January 1965, the Meilands area (population: 12) was transferred to Kvænangen Municipality. On 1 January 1972, the southern part of the island of

Uløya or is an island in Troms county, Norway. The island is situated on the east side of the Lyngen fjord and it is divided between Skjervøy Municipality and Nordreisa Municipality. The island has an area of , and the highest point is Blåtinden a ...

and most of Skjervøy Municipality located on the mainland (population: 1,556) were all transferred from Skjervøy Municipality to

. Also on that date, the uninhabited Mannskarvik farm was transferred from Skjervøy Municipality to

. Then on 1 January 1982, the Hamneidet area on the mainland (population: 128) was transferred from Skjervøy Municipality to Nordreisa Municipality. After this, Skjervøy Municipality only included land on islands and nothing on the mainland. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became part of the newly formed

Troms og Finnmark Troms og Finnmark (; ; ; ) was a county in northern Norway that existed from 2020 to 2023. The county was established on 1 January 2020 as the result of a regional reform. It was the largest county by area in Norway, encompassing about , and w ...

county. Previously, it had been part of the old

county. On 1 January 2024, the

county was divided and the municipality once again became part of

county.

Name

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 small

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 ...

() since the first

Skjervøy Church Skjervøy Church () is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Skjervøy Municipality in Troms county, Norway. It is located in the village of village of Skjervøy on the island of Skjervøya. It is the main church for the Skjervøy parish wh ...

was built there. The first element is which means "rocky ground". The last element is which means "

". Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled ''Skjervøe'' or ''Skjervø''. On 6 January 1908, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to ''Skjervøy''.

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 27 March 1987. 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 ''"

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 ...

, a cormorant head erased

sable The sable (''Martes zibellina'') is a species of marten, a small omnivorous mammal primarily inhabiting the forest environments of Russia, from the Ural Mountains throughout Siberia, and northern Mongolia. Its habitat also borders eastern Kaz ...

"'' (). This means the arms have a

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) with 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

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 the head of a

cormorant Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the International Ornithologists' Union (IOU) ado ...

which has a tincture of

. The arms are partly

canting ' (International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: , Van Ophuijsen Spelling System, VOS Spelling: , ) is a pen-like tool used to apply liquid hot wax () in the batik-making process in Indonesia, more precisely (). Traditional consists of copper wax-con ...

since the Norwegian word means cormorant and that word is similar to the name ''Skjervøy''. The cormorant also symbolizes the coastal municipality, which (like the bird) is dependent on

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, ...

for its living. The cormorant is also a common

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

in the area. The arms were designed by Kåre Bondesen and Jan Roald Andreassen.

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 Skjervøy Municipality. It is part of the Nord-Troms 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 Nord-Hålogaland Nord-Hålogaland () is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers the Church of Norway churches in Troms and Finnmark counties as well as in the territory of Svalbard. The diocese is seated in the city of Tromsø at the Tromsø Cathedral, t ...

History

dates back to 1728 and it is the oldest wooden church in Troms county. The village of Maursund is an old trading post with well-preserved 19th-century houses.

Government

Skjervøy 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

Nord-Troms og Senja District Court Nord-Troms og Senja District Court () is a district court located in Troms county, Norway. This court is based at two different courthouses which are located in Tromsø and Finnsnes. The court is subordinate to the Hålogaland Court of Appeal. Th ...

and the

Hålogaland Court of Appeal The Hålogaland Court of Appeal () is one of six courts of appeal in the Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Tromsø. The court has jurisdiction over the counties of Nordland, Troms, and Finnmark as well as the island territor ...

Municipal council

The

of Skjervøy 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

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 Skjervøy: *1837–1838: Jens Schmidt *1839–1840: Peder Borch Lund *1841–1853: Samuel Bugge Giæver *1854–1858: Andreas Qvale *1859–1860: Peder Borch Lund *1861–1866: Andreas Qvale *1867–1868: Simon Kildal Giæver *1869–1872: Christian Magelssen *1873–1874: Bendiks Bæverdahl *1875–1878: Christian Magelssen *1879–1880: Johannes Holmboe Giæver *1881–1892: John Hagen ( V) *1893–1894: Ivar Lund *1895–1896: Peder Martin Blyth Daae *1897–1901: Johan Georgsen *1902–1913: Marcelius Hansen ( V) *1914–1922: Thorvald Hoseth Giæver *1923–1925: Marcelius Hansen ( V) *1926–1941: Rønning Østgaard ( Bp) *1945-1945: Nils Jacobsen *1945-1945: Peder Rasmus Dyrkoren *1945-1945: Thorvald Hoseth Giæver *1946–1963: Lars Hallen ( Ap) *1964–1971: John Steffensen ( Ap) *1972–1982: Aksel Jørgensen ( V) *1983–1995: Kurt Leif Strøm ( H) *1995–2011:

Roy Waage Roy Waage (born 17 November 1963) is a Norwegian politician for the Coastal Party, He was mayor of Skjervøy Municipality from 1995 until 2011. He was originally a member of the Christian Democrats, serving as a deputy representative to the N ...

( KrF/ K) *2011–2015: Torgeir Johnsen ( K/ Sp) *2015–present: Ørjan Albrigtsen ( KrF)

Geography

The island municipality is surrounded by the

Norwegian Sea The Norwegian Sea (; ; ) is a marginal sea, grouped with either the Atlantic Ocean or the Arctic Ocean, northwest of Norway between the North Sea and the Greenland Sea, adjoining the Barents Sea to the northeast. In the southwest, it is separate ...

to the north,

Ullsfjorden or is a fjord in Troms county, Norway. The fjord runs through the municipalities of Tromsø, Karlsøy, and Lyngen. The fjord flows from the village of Sjøvassbotn northwards along the west side of the Lyngen Peninsula (where the famous L ...

to the west,

Lyngenfjorden , , or is a fjord in Troms county, Norway. The long fjord is the longest fjord in Troms county and it is often used as the dividing line between "northern Troms" and "southern Troms". The fjord is located within the municipalities of Skjervøy, ...

to the southwest, Reisafjorden to the southeast, and

Kvænangen Kvænangen (or historically ''Quenangen'') may refer to: Places * Kvænangen Municipality, a municipality in Troms county, Norway * Kvænangen (fjord), a fjord in Troms county, Norway * Kvænangen concentration camp, a World War II era concentratio ...

fjord to the east. The municipality consists of several islands, the major one being

Arnøya or is the List of islands of Norway by area, 15th largest island in Norway. The island is located in Skjervøy Municipality in Troms county. The highest peak is the tall mountain Arnøyhøgda. There are regular ferry connections to the island ...

, with the villages of Årviksand,

, and

. Most people, however, live on the relatively small island of

, where more than 2,316 people live in the central village of

Skjervøy Skjervøy or Skjervøya may refer to the following: Places *Skjervøy Municipality Skjervøy Municipality (, ; ) is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Troms Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the mu ...

with its sheltered harbour. The other islands include Haukøya,

Kågen or is an island in Skjervøy Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The island lies between the Kvænangen fjord (to the east) and the Lyngen fjord to the west. The island is home to 27 inhabitants (2001). The island is mountainous with several ...

Laukøya or is an island in Skjervøy Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The island of Arnøya is immediately to the west of Laukøya, the Kvænangen fjord lies to the east, and the islands of Kågen and Skjervøya lie to the south. There is a regu ...

, Vorterøya, and the northern half of

. Kågen and Skjervøya are connected by the

Skjervøy Bridge The Skjervøy Bridge or Skattørsundet Bridge () is a beam bridge in Skjervøy Municipality that crosses the Skattørsundet strait between the islands of Kågen and Skjervøya in Troms county, Norway. The bridge has 40 spans, the longest of whic ...

. Kågen is connected to the mainland by the

Maursund Tunnel The Maursund Tunnel () is an undersea tunnel in Troms county, Norway. The tunnel goes under the Maursundet strait connecting the mainland part of Nordreisa Municipality with the island of Kågen in Skjervøy Municipality Skjervøy Municipality ...

. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Store Kågtinden on the island of

Climate

Skjervøy has

continental 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 ...

. The

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

subtype for this climate is " Dfc". The

Norwegian Meteorological Institute The Norwegian Meteorological Institute (), also known internationally as MET Norway, is Norway's national meteorological institute. It provides weather forecasts for civilian and military uses and conducts research in meteorology, oceanography an ...

has been operating a weather station in Skjervøy since 1936.

Transportation

The

Hurtigruten ''Hurtigruten'' (), formally Kystruten Bergen-Kirkenes ("coastal route Bergen-Kirkenes"), is a Norwegian public coastal route transporting passengers that travel locally, regionally, and between the ports of call, and also cargo between ports ...

(coastal cruise and cargo ship service) stops at the village of Skjervøy. There is also a schedule
express ferry
operated b

with intermediate stops between the village of Skjervøy and the city of Tromsø. The

undersea An underwater environment is a environment of, and immersed in, liquid water in a natural or artificial feature (called a body of water), such as an ocean, sea, lake, pond, reservoir, river, canal, or aquifer. Some characteristics of the underw ...

connects this island with the mainland to the south. There are also ferry connections between the islands of

and

offered by bot
Boreal Transport Nord AS
an
Torghatten Nord AS

Sørkjosen Airport Sørkjosen Airport (; ) is a regional airport located at the village of Sørkjosen in Nordreisa Municipality in Troms county, Norway, about from the municipal center of Storslett. Owned and operated by the state-owned Avinor, it handled 15,198 ...

offers flights to

Tromsø Tromsø is a List of towns and cities in Norway, city in Tromsø Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The city is the administrative centre of the municipality as well as the administrative centre of Troms county. The city is located on the is ...

and several destinations in

Finnmark Finnmark (; ; ; ; ) is a counties of Norway, county in northern Norway. By land, it borders Troms county to the west, Finland's Lapland (Finland), Lapland region to the south, and Russia's Murmansk Oblast to the east, and by water, the Norweg ...

Notable people

Leonhard Seppala Leonhard "Sepp" Seppala (; September 14, 1877 – January 28, 1967) was a Norwegian-Kven-American sled dog breeder, trainer and musher who with his dogs played a pivotal role in the 1925 serum run to Nome, and participated in the 1932 Winter O ...

(1877-1967), a Norwegian-Kven dog musher who was brought up in Skjervøy *

Knut Werner Hansen Knut Werner Hansen (born 22 November 1951) is a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. He served as a deputy representative to the Storting from Troms between 1997 and 2009. In total he met during 1 year and 46 days of parliamentary session. ...

(born 1951 in Skjervøy), a Norwegian politician and county mayor of Troms *

Hanne Grete Einarsen Hanne Grete Einarsen (born 1966) is a Norwegian-Sami artist. Biography Hanne Grete Einarsen was born in 1966. She was raised on Skjervøya in northern Troms county, Norway. She studied at the Western Academy of Fine Arts (1991–95) and the Univ ...

(born 1966), a Norwegian-Sami artist who was brought up in Skjervøy *

Odd-Karl Stangnes Odd-Karl Stangnes (born 28 October 1968) is a Norwegian football coach and former player, who was most recently the manager for Stjørdals-Blink. He has previously managed Swedish sides IFK Luleå and Kiruna FF. A defender during his active c ...

(born 1968 in Skjervøy), a football coach and former player * Kristina Torbergsen (born 1987 in Skjervøy), a Norwegian politician

Media gallery

Skervoytown2.jpeg, Part of Skjervøy village Skervoytown.jpeg, Part of Skjervøy village Skjervøy kyrkje.jpeg, Old photo of

Skjervoey Norwegen Kirche.jpg,

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 ...

41 kg cod caught on fishing rod
April 2010 (with pictures)
Visit Tromso
January 2018 list of Express Boats and Ferry service for Tromso.

January 2018 list for ferry routes by ferry operator for Troms county {{DEFAULTSORT:Skjervoy Municipalities of Troms 1838 establishments in Norway Populated places established in 1838