Stor-Elvdal 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' ...

Innlandet Innlandet is a Counties of Norway, county in Norway. It was created on 1 January 2020 with the merger of the old counties of Oppland and Hedmark (Jevnaker Municipality and Lunner Municipality were transferred to the neighboring county of Viken ( ...

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 Østerdalen. 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 village of Koppang. Other villages in the municipality include Atna, Evenstad, and Sollia. The municipality is the 29th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Stor-Elvdal Municipality is the 267th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 2,250. 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 15.7% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

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 ...

of ''Store Elvedalen'' was established as a municipality 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). 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 1965, the neighboring Sollia Municipality (population: 356) was merged with Stor-Elvdal Municipality (population: 3,808) to form a new, larger Stor-Elvdal Municipality. Historically, the municipality was part of

Hedmark Hedmark () was a Counties of Norway, county in Norway from 1 January 1919 to 31 December 2019, bordering Trøndelag to the north, Oppland to the west, Akershus to the south, and Sweden to the east. The county administration is in Hamar. Hedmar ...

county. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became a part of the newly-formed

county (after

and Oppland counties were merged).

Name

The municipality (originally the

) is named ''Stor-Elvdal'' after the large ''Elvdalen'' valley () which was the historical name for the whole area. 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 word which means "

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

", referring to the river Glomma which flows through the valley. 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". Thus this word means "river valley". The name also includes the prefix which means "big". This prefix was added to the old name "Elvdalen" to distinguish it from the nearby Lille-Elvdalen Municipality ("little Elvdalen", later the name was shortened to Alvdal Municipality). In the late

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

the two areas were distinguished using the words ''Ytre Elvdalen'' (meaning "outer" Elvdalen) and ''Øvre Elvdalen'' (meaning "upper" Elvdalen). Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled ''Store Elvdalen'' or ''Stor-Elvedalen''. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to ''Stor-Elvdal'', removing the definite form ending ''-en''.

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 12 February 1988. 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 ''" Vert, two wood saws argent bendwise"'' (). This means the arms have a green field (background) and the charge is two diagonal two-man saws. The charge has 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 ...

of argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The design and color were chosen to symbolize the importance of

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

in the municipality. The arms were designed by Even Jarl Skoglund. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Churches

The Church of Norway has four parishes () within Stor-Elvdal Municipality. It is part of the Sør-Østerdal 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 Hamar.

Government

Stor-Elvdal 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 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 ...

is indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Østre Innlandet District Court and the Eidsivating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The

of Stor-Elvdal Municipality is made up of 17 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

() of Stor-Elvdal Municipality is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who have held this position: *1838–1840: Halvor Trønnes *1841–1841: Simen Øvergaard *1847–1850: J. Diseth *1860–1861: B. Trønnes *1867–1867: H. Atneosen *1871–1875: T. Trønnes *1876–1879: H. Atneosen *1880–1881: T. Trønnes *1882–1889: H.B. Trønnæs *1889–1891: Ole Olsen Evenstad *1892–1895: O. Øyen *1896–1900: Th. M. Ruud *1901–1904: Thore Myrvang ( V) *1905–1912: Carl Johan Ecktell ( LL) *1913–1916: Thore Myrvang ( ArbDem) *1917–1919: Th. M. Ruud *1920–1922: Karl Bondesen *1922–1925: Thore Myrvang ( ArbDem) *1925–1941: Knut Kristiansen ( NKP) *1941–1941: Carl T. Lohrbauer ( NS) *1941–1945: Ingvald Landet ( NS) *1945–1945: Magne Myrvang ( Ap) *1945–1951: Einar Heggelund *1952–1959: Magne Myrvang ( Ap) *1959–1967: Bjarne Holen ( Ap) *1967–1971: Lars Modahl ( Ap) *1971–1979: Ivar Pedersen ( Ap) *1979–1995: Ola Kristiansen ( Ap) *1995–1999: Sigmund Vestad ( LL) *1999–2003: Øyvind Strand ( Ap) *2003–2011: Sigmund Vestad ( LL) *2011–2015: Even Moen ( Sp) *2015–2019: Terje Hoffstad ( Ap) *2019–2023: Even Moen ( Sp) *2023–present: Linda Otnes Henriksen ( Ap)

Geography

Stor-Elvdal is bordered on the north by Folldal Municipality and Alvdal Municipality, on the east by Rendalen Municipality, in the south by Åmot Municipality and Ringsaker Municipality, in the west by Øyer Municipality and Ringebu Municipality, and in the northwest by

Sør-Fron Municipality Sør-Fron is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hundorp. Other villages in the municipality include Gålå, H ...

. The lake

Atnsjøen Atnsjøen is a lake in Innlandet county, Norway. The lake lies along the border of Sør-Fron Municipality and Stor-Elvdal Municipality, just east of Rondane National Park. The Norwegian County Road 27 runs along the eastern shoreline of the enti ...

is located in the northwestern part of the municipality, just outside

Rondane National Park Rondane National Park () is the oldest national park in Norway, established on 21 December 1962. The park is located in Innlandet county, in the municipalities of Dovre Municipality, Dovre, Folldal Municipality, Folldal, Sel Municipality, Sel, No ...

. The river Glomma runs through the municipality. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Gravskardhøgda in the far northern edge of the municipality.

Tourism

Stor-Elvdal Municipality boasts the second tallest moose statue in the world. The Big Elk is a steel giant moose at the side of the Norwegian National Road 3.

Notable people

* Thore Embretsen Myrvang (1858–1939), an educator, politician, and three-time mayor of Stor-Elvdal * Halldis Neegaard Østbye (1896 in Stor-Elvdal – 1983), a person known as ''"Norway's most fanatical Naziwoman"'' during WWII * Torkel Andreas Trønnes (1925-2011), an automobile advocate who lived in Koppang

Sister cities

Stor-Elvdal Municipality 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 inte ...

agreements with the following places: * Sõmeru Parish,

Lääne-Viru County Lääne-Viru County ( or ''Lääne-Virumaa'') is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is in northern Estonia, on the south coast of the Gulf of Finland. In Estonian, ''lääne'' means western and ''ida'' means east or eastern. Lääne-Viru borders Id ...

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

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 ...

{{Authority control Municipalities of Innlandet 1838 establishments in Norway Populated places established in 1838