Surnadal () 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 ...

Møre og Romsdal Møre og Romsdal (; en, Møre and Romsdal) is a county in the northernmost part of Western Norway. It borders the counties of Trøndelag, Innlandet, and Vestland. The county administration is located in the town of Molde, while Ålesund is t ...

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

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 part of the

Nordmøre Nordmøre (English: North- Møre) is a traditional district in the Norwegian county of Møre og Romsdal. The area comprises the northern third of the county including the municipalities of Kristiansund, Averøy, Tingvoll, Surnadal, Aure, Hal ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

. 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 ...

is the village of Skei. Other villages in Surnadal include Glærem, Mo, Stangvik, Surnadalsøra, Sylte, Todalsøra, and Åsskard. A mild climate and rich soil make Surnadal well suited for

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 ...

. The local economy is based on agriculture,

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. ...

, and industrial production, in addition to services. The municipality is the 68th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Surnadal is the 163rd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 5,849. 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 1.7% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

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 ...

of Surnadal 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). In 1858, the eastern district (population: 2,684) was separated from Surnadal to form the new

Rindal Municipality Rindal is a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Orkdalen region. The administrative centre is the village of Rindal. Other villages in the municipality include Tiset and Romundstad. The municipality centres on agricult ...

. This left Surnadal with 3,105 residents. On 1 January 1877, part of Stangvik Municipality (population: 50) was transferred to Surnadal. In 1879, part of Surnadal (population: 83) was transferred to the neighboring Stangvik Municipality. On 1 January 1886, the Møklegjerdet farm (population: 29), just west of the village of Glærem, was transferred from Stangvik to Surnadal. On 1 January 1897, the Sjøflot farm (population: 27) was also transferred from Stangvik to Surnadal. 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 1965, all of Åsskard Municipality (population: 1,014) and most of Stangvik Municipality (population: 1,386) were merged with Surnadal Municipality (population: 3,534) to create a new, larger municipality of Surnadal with a total population of 5,934.

Name

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 ''Súrnardalr''. 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 can ...

of the river name Surna and the last element is ''dalr'' which means "

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains, which will typically contain 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". The meaning of the river name is unknown. Before 1918, the name was written ''Surendalen''.

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 in 1989. It shows two silver or white wavy lines on a green background. The wavy lines represent the many rivers in the municipality, the most notable one being the Surna.

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 Surnadal. It is part of the

Indre Nordmøre prosti Indre (; oc, Endre) is a landlocked department in central France named after the river Indre. The inhabitants of the department are known as the ''Indriens'' (masculine; ) and ''Indriennes'' (feminine; ). Indre is part of the current administr ...

(

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 Møre The Diocese of Møre ( no, Møre bispedømme) is a diocese in the Church of Norway which geographically consists of Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Its bishop is seated at the Molde Cathedral which is located in the county administrative cent ...

Geography

The municipality is made up by the main valley, Surnadalen through which the river Surna runs. There are also many smaller side valleys including Stor-Bæverdalen, Settemsdalen, Øvstbødalen, Todalen, and Vinddøldalen. The municipality is bordered by the

Trollheimen Trollheimen is a mountain range in Møre og Romsdal and Trøndelag counties in central Norway. The mountain range is part of the Scandinavian Mountains. Etymology The name ('the home of the trolls') was proposed by Håkon Løken and used by T ...

mountain range and

Sunndal Municipality is a municipality in the Nordmøre region located in the northeast part of Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Sunndalsøra. Other villages include Gjøra, Grøa, Hoelsand, Jordalsgr ...

to the south, the neighboring

to the east, Halsa Municipality to the north, and several fjords to the west:

Trongfjorden Trongfjorden is a fjord between Surnadal Municipality and Tingvoll Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The fjord is approximately long and is a continuation of the Halsafjorden on the north end near the village of Torjulvågen in Ti ...

, Stangvikfjorden, and Todalsfjorden. There are three main fjords that cut into the municipality: Åsskardfjorden,

Hamnesfjorden Hamnesfjord or Hamnesfjorden is a fjord in Surnadal Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The long fjord begins at the mouth of the Bøvra River at the village of Bøverfjorden, just east of the village of Åsskard, about northwe ...

, and Surnadalsfjorden. The landscape is a combination of

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' ...

fjord In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Icela ...

s, and

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

s. The highest mountain peak is Snota at above sea level. Other mountains include Vassnebba,

Indre Sula Indre Sula is a mountain in the municipality of Surnadal in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the Trollheimen mountain range, and it lies just north of the village of Todalsøra and the Todalsfjorden. Indre Sula, meaning "Inner Su ...

and

Ytre Sula Ytre Sula (also called Nordviksula) is a mountain in the municipality of Surnadal in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Location The peak lies just north of the village of Todalsøra and the Todalsfjorden. Ytre Sula, meaning "Outer Sula", li ...

, Neådalssnota, and Trollhetta. The river Surna runs through the valley from the east to the west, and forms a large

delta Delta commonly refers to: * Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), a letter of the Greek alphabet * River delta, at a river mouth * D (NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta") * Delta Air Lines, US * Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 that causes COVID-19 Delta may also r ...

where it enters the fjord near Surnadalsøra and Skei. This river is rich in

salmon Salmon () is the common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of ...

, which attract tourists from the rest of the country and abroad. The lakes

Foldsjøen Foldsjøen is a reservoir located on the border of Møre og Romsdal and Trøndelag counties in Norway. It is located in the municipalities of Surnadal and Rindal. The lake is dammed from the Folda River and the water is used in the Trollheim po ...

and Gråsjøen lie along the border with the municipality of

Rindal Rindal is a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Orkdalen region. The administrative centre is the village of Rindal. Other villages in the municipality include Tiset and Romundstad. The municipality centres on agricul ...

in the east. The

Grønkjølen Nature Reserve The Grønkjølen Nature Reserve ( no, Grønkjølen naturreservat) is located in Møre og Romsdal and Trøndelag counties in Norway. The reserve is located in the municipalities of Surnadal (in Møre og Romsdal) and Rindal Rindal is a municip ...

lies in the extreme northeast of the municipality.

Climate

Surnadal is situated at the head of a long fjord some distance from the coast and has an oceanic climate or

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freez ...

, depending on winter threshold used () gives oceanic, gives humid continental). The wettest season is August–December, while Feb - May is the driest. The record high recorded 27 July 2018. The warmest night was 29 July 2018 with low . On 14 October 2018 a high of was recorded in Surnadal, the second warmest October temperature in Norway. Winter temperatures can get below , although that is rare. February 2010 a low of was recorded.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Surnadal, 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

Møre og Romsdal District Court Møre og Romsdal District Court ( no, Møre og Romsdal tingrett) is a district court located in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. This court is based at four different courthouses which are located in Volda, Ålesund, Molde, and Kristiansund. T ...

and the

Frostating Court of Appeal The Frostating Court of Appeal ( no, Frostating lagmannsrett) is one of six Court of appeal (Norway), courts of appeal in the Norway, Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Trondheim (city), Trondheim. The court has jurisdiction ov ...

Municipal council

The

() of Surnadal is made up of 27 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 Surnadal (incomplete list): *2019–present: Margrethe Svinvik ( Sp) *2014-2019: Lilly Gunn Nyheim ( Ap) *2007-2014: Mons Otnes (Ap) *1997-2007: Bergsvein Brøske (Sp) *1995-1996: Asbjørn Ørsal (Ap) *1992-1995: Ola O. Fiske (Sp) *1987-1991: Helge Vold (Ap) *1984-1986: Helge Røv (Ap) *1976-1983: Nils Magnar Torvik (Sp)

Transportation

Transportation services include ferries to the southwest and the northwest, which lead to the coastal areas of

, and a highway to the city of

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, an ...

to the east.

Notable residents

* Ole Andreas Lindeman (1769–1857) a musician, organist, composer and music educator *

Hans Hyldbakk Hans Hyldbakk (8 May 1898 – 18 August 2001) was a Norwegian poet and historian. He was born and died in Surnadal. As a writer he is best known for the song '' Vårsøg''. His poetry debut came in 1929 with ''Harpespel'', and his last iss ...

(1898–2001) a Norwegian

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, r ...

poet * Anders Sæterøy (1901–1991) a politician and Mayor of Surnadal three times after WWII * Kaare Espolin Johnson (1907–1994) a Norwegian artist and illustrator *

Helge Seip Helge Lunde Seip (5 March 1919 – 29 January 2004) was a Norwegian politician for the Liberal Party and later the Liberal People's Party. He was born in Surnadal. At a young age he became involved in the Young Liberals, the youth wing of the ...

(1919–2004) politician, leader of the Liberal party * Alf Ramsøy (1925–2014) a long-distance runner, cross-country skier, actor and farmer * Sverre Årnes (born 1949) a writer serial novels, short stories and articles *

Henning Sommerro Henning Sommerro (born 3 May 1952 in Surnadal) is a Norwegian musician, composer and professor at NTNU. Biography Sommerro grew up on the Sommerro farm at Skei in Surnadal. His name became widely known in 1977 when the folk music group Vårs� ...

(born 1952) a Norwegian musician, composer and academic *

Lars Steinar Ansnes Lars Steinar Ansnes (born March 1, 1956) is a Norwegian editor. Ansnes was born in Surnadal. He received his '' examen artium'' from Tingvoll High School in 1976, and completed the foundation course in Norwegian at Møre og Romsdal Regional Col ...

(born 1956) a Norwegian editor *

Euronymous Øystein Aarseth (; 22 March 1968 – 10 August 1993), better known by his stage name Euronymous, was a Norwegian musician and a founder of and central figure in the early Norwegian black metal scene. He was a co-founder and guitarist of the No ...

(1968–1993) real name ''Øystein Aarseth'',

early Norwegian black metal scene The early Norwegian black metal scene of the 1990s is credited with creating the modern black metal genre and produced some of the most acclaimed and influential artists in extreme metal. It attracted massive media attention when it was revealed ...

* Rune Gjeldnes (born 1971) a Norwegian adventurer and explorer * Ivar Loe Bjørnstad (born 1981) a Norwegian jazz and rock musician

Gallery

File:Mo kirke Surnadal.jpg, Mo kirke, Surnadal File:Giklingdalshytta 1991.jpg, Giklingdalshytta File:Vaulen.JPG, Markagården Vaulen File:Todalshytta - panoramio.jpg, Todalshytta

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 Nordmøre Municipalities of Møre og Romsdal 1838 establishments in Norway