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 ...

in Innlandet county,

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 ...

. It is located in the traditional district of Hedemarken. 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 Stangebyen. Other villages include Bekkelaget, Espa, Bottenfjellet, Ilseng, Ottestad,

Sandvika Sandvika () is the administrative centre of the municipality of Bærum in Norway. It was declared a city by the municipal council in Bærum on 4 June 2003. Sandvika is situated approximately west of Oslo. It is the main transportation hub for ...

, Sinnerud, Starhellinga, Tangen, and Romedal. The municipality is the 157th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Stange is the 59th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 21,156. 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 increased by 10.2% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The parish of Stange was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see

formannskapsdistrikt () is the name for Norwegian local self-government districts that were legally enacted on 1 January 1838. This system of municipalities was created in a bill approved by the Parliament of Norway and signed into law by King Carl Johan on 14 Janua ...

law). 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 neighboring municipalities of Romedal (population: 6,441) and Stange (population: 9,734) were merged to form a new, larger municipality of Stange with a population of 16,175 residents. On 13 July 1956, a small part of the municipality of Vang (population: 24) was transferred to Stange municipality.

Name

The municipality (originally the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

) is named after the old ''Stange'' farm ( non, Stangir), since the first Stange Church was built there. The name is the

plural The plural (sometimes list of glossing abbreviations, abbreviated pl., pl, or ), in many languages, is one of the values of the grammatical number, grammatical category of number. The plural of a noun typically denotes a quantity greater than the ...

form of which means "bar", "pole", or "rod". (The farm is lying on a long hill, and this is probably the background for the name.)

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 20 June 1986. The arms show a white or silver-colored medieval plough called an '' ard'' on a green background. It symbolizes this historic importance of

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peop ...

in the area; originally the growing of grains and then later growing

potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Un ...

es. The arms were designed by Arne Løvstad.

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 five parishes () within the municipality of Stange. It is part of the Hamar domprosti (arch-

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 Hamar.

Media

The newspaper '' Stangeavisa'' has been published in Stange since 2004.

History

Archeological finds indicate agricultural settlements in the area well before the

Viking Age The Viking Age () was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonizing, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. It followed the Migration Period The ...

. Since the shortest route from the south to

Hamar Hamar is a town in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. Hamar is the administrative centre of Hamar Municipality. It is located in the traditional region of Hedmarken. The town is located on the shores of Mjøsa, Norway's largest lake ...

went through the area, there have also been trade and hospitality there since time immemorial. Stange has its own historical association that publishes articles, short research topics, as well as authoritative works on the area's history. Stange Church is located in Stangebyen. The church is mentioned in 1225 in Håkon Håkonsen's saga and the current church building was constructed around the year 1250. The Atlungstad Distillery was established in Stange in 1855.

Geography

The municipality is situated on the east side of the lake

Mjøsa Mjøsa is Norway's largest lake, as well as one of the deepest lakes in Norway and in Europe. It is the fourth-deepest lake in Norway. It is located in the southern part of Norway, about north of the city of Oslo. Its main tributary is the riv ...

. It borders the municipalities of

on the north; Løten, Våler, and Åsnes to the east; Nord-Odal to the south; and Eidsvoll to the west. The municipality can be roughly divided into two areas: the northern area, with rich and fertile agricultural land; and a southern area with craggy,

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

ed area (the Stange Commons). As a result, the northern section is dominated by large, prosperous farms; the southern part by small, marginal farms. The rivers Lageråa and Svartelva both run through the municipality.

Government

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

health services Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the preventive healthcare, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, treatment, wiktionary:amelioration, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other disability, physical and menta ...

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 elects 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

Østre Innlandet District Court Østre Innlandet District Court ( no, Østre Innlandet tingrett) is a district court located in Innlandet county, Norway. This court is based at three different courthouses which are located in Elverum, Hamar, and Tynset. The court serves the eas ...

and the Eidsivating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The

of Stange is made up of 35 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the council is as follows:

Mayors

The mayors of Stange (incomplete list): *1923-1926: Martin Hestnæs ( Ap) *1926–1945:

Kristian Fjeld Kristian Fjeld (16 February 1887 – 23 December 1976) was a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. He was Minister of Agriculture from 1945 to 1951. Fjeld comes from Vestre Toten, Oppland, but it was as a local politician for Stange and as ...

( Ap) *1946–1951: Christian Stensbak ( Ap) *1952–1975: Arnljot Johnstad ( Ap) *1976–1983: Jens K. Nybruket ( Ap) *1984–2007: Jan Tyriberget ( Ap) *2007–2022: Nils A. Røhne ( Ap) *2022–present: Bjarne H. Christiansen ( Ap)

Twin towns – sister cities

Stange has

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...

agreements with the following places: * Botkyrka, Sweden * Brøndby, Denmark

Notable people

* Bolette Gjør (1835–1909) a Norwegian writer and inner missionary, brought up in Romedal * Otto Blehr (1847 in Stange – 1927) attorney and Prime Minister of Norway 1902 to 1903 * Holm Hansen Munthe (1848 in Stange – 1898) a Norwegian architect of the Dragon Style * Kristoffer Olsen Oustad (1857 in Romedal – 1943) Norwegian-American engineer, built bridges * Hulda Garborg (1862 at Såstad farm – 1934) novelist, playwright, poet, folk dancer and theatre instructor; kindled interest in the bunad tradition *

Eiliv Austlid Eiliv Austlid (6 May 189915 April 1940) was a Norway, Norwegian farmer and army officer who played a pivotal role in assuring the escape of the Norwegian government during the Wehrmacht, German invasion in 1940. Killed in action, he was discredite ...

(1899–1940) a farmer and army officer, lived at Såstad Søndre farm from 1924 * Ingrid Semmingsen (1910–1995) first female professor of history in Norway, grew up in Stange * Odvar Nordli (1927 in Tangen – 2018) a politician and Prime Minister of Norway 1976 to 1981 * Nils A. Røhne (born 1949 in Stange) a Norwegian politician, Mayor of Stange from 2007 * Linda Bakke (born 1973) a Norwegian artist, lives in Stange * Trygve Slagsvold Vedum (born 1978) leader of the Centre Party, grew up in Romedal * Bård Lahn (born 1983 in Stange) a Norwegian environmentalist with '' Natur og Ungdom''

Sport

* Trygve Brudevold (born 1920 in Stange – 2021) a bobsledder, competed at the 1956 Winter Olympics * Ole Holm (1870 in Stange – 1956) rifle shooter, team silver medallist,

1906 Summer Olympics The 1906 Intercalated Games or 1906 Olympic Games was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated in Athens, Greece. They were at the time considered to be Olympic Games and were referred to as the "Second International Olympic Games ...

Eskil Rønningsbakken Eskil Rønningsbakken (born 24 June 1979) is an extreme artist from Vallset in Stange, Norway.Berglund, Nina "Performer drops Letterman after US bombing." ''Aftenposten'', January 17, 2006. Accessed on August 9, 2010. Rønningsbakken travels the wo ...

(born 1979 in Vallset) does dangerous balancing acts and tightrope walking

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 ...

Municipal website
{{use dmy dates, date=March 2022 Municipalities of Innlandet 1838 establishments in Norway