Sykkylven 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 (; ) is a Counties of Norway, county in the northernmost part of Western Norway, Western Norway. It borders the counties of Trøndelag, Innlandet, and Vestland. The county administration is located in the Molde (town), town of M ...

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 ...

. It is part of the

Sunnmøre Sunnmøre (, ) is the southernmost traditional district of the western Norwegian county of Møre og Romsdal. Its main city is Ålesund. The region comprises the municipalities () of Fjord, Giske, Hareid, Herøy, Sande, Haram, Stranda Mu ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

. 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 ...

is the village of Aure. Other villages in the municipality include Ikornnes,

Straumgjerde Straumgjerde is a village in Sykkylven Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The village is located where the lake Fitjavatnet empties into the Sykkylvsfjorden. It is about south of the municipal center of Aure and about south of ...

, and Tusvika. The municipality is the 252nd largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Sykkylven Municipality is the 136th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 7,617. 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 1.5% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The municipality of Sykkylven was established on 1 August 1883 when the large

Ørskog Municipality Ørskog is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 2020. The area is now part of Ålesund Municipality in the traditional district of Sunnmøre. The administrative c ...

was divided into two: the southern part became Sykkylven Municipality (population: 2,029) and the northern part remained as (a smaller)

(population: 1,735). On 1 June 1955, the Søvik-Ramstad area of Ørskog Municipality (population: 348) on the southern side of the Storfjorden was transferred to Sykkylven Municipality.

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 Sykkylvsfjorden (). The first element is which means "small

lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...

" or "

inlet An inlet is a typically long and narrow indentation of a shoreline such as a small arm, cove, bay, sound, fjord, lagoon or marsh, that leads to an enclosed larger body of water such as a lake, estuary, gulf or marginal sea. Overview In ...

" (referring to the lake, originally probably an inlet of Fitjavatnet). The last element is which is frequently used in the

area in the names of

fjord In physical geography, a fjord (also spelled fiord in New Zealand English; ) is a long, narrow sea inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Antarctica, the Arctic, and surrounding landmasses of the n ...

s. It possibly comes from the word which means "low, wet terrain". Historically, the name was spelled ''Søkelven''. In 1889, the spelling was changed to ''Søkkelven''. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to ''Sykkylven''. The slogan for the municipality was formerly "Sykkylven - vennlig, vill og vakker" meaning "Sykkylven - friendly, wild and beautiful". The current slogan is "Skaparkraft" literally meaning "creative" or "creating force", believed to create focus on the municipality's need for creating a new creative drive towards diversifying the somewhat one-sided furniture industry and more forcus on tourism, especially "experince industry" possibilities.

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 30 April 1984 by royal decree. 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 pile

embowed Embowed () is a term in heraldry and architecture which means: *''curved like a bow'' (when applied to fish, animals or heraldic charges) *''bent'' (when applied to the human arm or leg), or *''having an arch or arches'' but, in the Anglophone h ...

issuant from base

azure Azure may refer to: Color * Azure (color), a hue of blue ** Azure (heraldry) ** Shades of azure, shades and variations Arts and media * ''Azure'' (Art Farmer and Fritz Pauer album), 1987 * Azure (Gary Peacock and Marilyn Crispell album), 2013 * ...

"'' (). 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) 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 ...

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 a pile (triangle) with

(curved) sides. The design was chosen to symbolize the landscape of the Sykkylvsfjorden and is reminiscent of a large mountain

silhouette A silhouette (, ) is the image of a person, animal, object or scene represented as a solid shape of a single colour, usually black, with its edges matching the outline of the subject. The interior of a silhouette is featureless, and the silhouett ...

from the municipality. The arms were designed by Norbert Hovet and Kårstein Blindheim. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

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 two parishes () within Sykkylven Municipality. It is part of the Nordre Sunnmøre 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 Møre The Diocese of Møre () 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 center of Molde. , the Bisho ...

Geography

Sykkylven is a part of the

region and is surrounded by the beautiful alpine mountain range Sunnmørsalpene, including the mountain

Råna Råna is a mountain in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The mountain sits on the municipal border between Ørsta Municipality and Sykkylven Municipality. It is part of Hjelledalstindane mountains in the Sunnmørsalpene range. The tall mountain ...

. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Brekketindane, located on the border of

Ørsta Municipality is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Møre og Romsdal Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Sunnmøre Districts of Norway, region of Western Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Ørsta (v ...

and Sykkylven Municipality (and very close to the border with

Stranda Municipality Stranda is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Møre og Romsdal Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Sunnmøre Districts of Norway, region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Stranda, ...

). Most of the people in Sykkylven live along the Sykkylvsfjorden, which is a branch of the Storfjorden. The

Sykkylven Bridge The Sykkylven Bridge () is a concrete bridge that crosses the Sykkylvsfjorden in Sykkylven Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It connects the municipal center of Aure with the village of Ikornnes on the other side of the fjord. ...

crosses the fjord connecting Aure to Ikornnes. Sykkylven Municipality shares land borders with

Fjord Municipality Fjord is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnmøre. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Stordal. Other villages in the municipality include Valldal, E ...

to the east,

to the southeast, and

to the southwest. The

Hjørundfjorden Hjørundfjorden is a fjord in the traditional district of Sunnmøre in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is located mostly within Ørsta Municipality, although part of the mouth of the fjord lies in Sykkylven Municipality and the innermost ...

forms part of the western municipal border, and the Storfjorden forms the northern border. Across the Storfjorden to the north lies

Ålesund Municipality Ålesund (, sometimes spelled Aalesund in English) is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal County, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Sunnmøre and the centre of the Ålesund Region. The town of Ålesund is the administrative ce ...

Economy

Sykkylven is primarily an industrial community where

furniture Furniture refers to objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., Stool (seat), stools, chairs, and sofas), eating (table (furniture), tables), storing items, working, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks). Furnitur ...

and furnishings manufacturing is the dominant industry (78% of manufacturing employment in 2004). Some of the largest factories in the industry are located here. Major companies in Sykkylven include Ekornes AS, Scandinor ANS, Hjellegjerde, Brunstad AS, Hjelle, and Cylindra.

Drone Drone or The Drones may refer to: Science and technology Vehicle * Drone, a type of uncrewed vehicle, a class of robot ** Unmanned aerial vehicle or aerial drone *** Unmanned combat aerial vehicle ** Unmanned ground vehicle or ground drone ** Unma ...

s are also manufactured.

Agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

is important along the fjord and in the valleys. The farms are small, with emphasis on

livestock Livestock are the Domestication, domesticated animals that are raised in an Agriculture, agricultural setting to provide labour and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, Egg as food, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The t ...

. There is also some

fish farming Fish farming or pisciculture involves commercial breeding of fish, most often for food, in fish tanks or artificial enclosures such as fish ponds. It is a particular type of aquaculture, which is the controlled cultivation and harvesting of ...

at Hundeidvik and Søvik, along the Storfjorden. The local newspaper '' Sykkylvsbladet'' is published in Sykkylven. Ekornes is the largest employer (as of 2020); however, a new round of

layoff A layoff or downsizing is the temporary suspension or permanent termination of employment of an employee or, more commonly, a group of employees (collective layoff) for business reasons, such as personnel management or downsizing an organization ...

s was announced in January 2023.

Government

Sykkylven 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

Sunnmøre District Court Sunnmøre District Court () is a district court in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The court is based at two different courthouses in Ålesund and Volda. The court existed for hundreds of years until 2021, but it was re-established in 2025. Case ...

and the

Frostating Court of Appeal The Frostating Court of Appeal () is one of six courts of appeal in the Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Trondheim. The court has jurisdiction over the counties of Trøndelag and Møre og Romsdal. These areas constitute the ...

Municipal council

The

() of Sykkylven is made up of 29 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 Sykkylven 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: *1883–1887: Lars P. Grebstad *1888–1898: Ole E. Vik *1899–1904: P.C.N. Aure *1905–1907: Ole E. Vik *1908–1910: P.C.N. Aure *1911–1919: Ole I. Strømme *1919–1924: P.C.N. Aure *1924–1933: Hans Tandstad *1933–1937: Johan Eidem *1938–1941: Ola Tandstad *1945–1946: Ola Tandstad *1946–1951: Johan Eidem *1952–1956:

Jens E. Ekornes Jens Ellingsen Ekornes (20 January 1908 – 28 November 1976) was a Norwegian businessperson. He was the founder of Norwegian-based furniture company, Ekornes, Ekornes AS. Biography Ekornes was born at Sykkylven Municipality in Møre og Romsd ...

( KrF) *1956–1959: Fridtjof Fredriksen *1959–1963: Ola Tu *1964–1969:

Arnold Weiberg-Aurdal Arnold Weiberg-Aurdal (18 June 1925 – 3 February 2016) was a Norwegian agronomist, military officer and politician for the Centre Party. He was born in Ålesund as a son of physician Bastian Weiberg-Aurdal (1891–1973) and nurse Elise Ringda ...

( Sp) *1970–1975: Øystein Eliassen ( Ap) *1976–1986: Johan Welle ( Sp) *1987–1999: Svein Helgheim ( H) *1999–2011: Jan Kåre Aurdal ( KrF) *2011–2015: Petter Lyshol ( H) *2015–2023: Odd Jostein Drotninghaug ( Sp) *2023–present: Olav Harald Ulstein ( FrP

Notable people

Edvard Drabløs Edvard Drabløs (1 April 1883 – 29 April 1976) was a Norwegian actor and theatre director. Biography Drabløs was born at Sykkylven Municipality in Møre og Romsdal, Norway. He was the son of Jens Helgesen Drabløs (1856–1925) and Olave Vell ...

(1883 in Sykkylven – 1976), an actor and theatre director *

(1908 in Sykkylven – 1976), the founder of the furniture company Ekornes AS, (Norwegian Wiki) *

(1925–2016), an agronomist, military officer, and mayor of Sykkylven * Jan Otto Myrseth (born 1957 in Sykkylven), a prelate and Bishop of Tunsberg from 2018

Musicians

Kenneth Ekornes Kenneth Ekornes (born 7 July 1974 in Sykkylven Municipality, Norway) is a Norwegian jazz musician (percussion) and member of the 'Brazz Brothers', known from a number of recordings, as well as for his multiethnic musical expression and his crea ...

(born 1974 in Sykkylven), a jazz musician (percussion) and one of

The Brazz Brothers The Brazz Brothers, alias Brazz Bros (established 1981 in Langevåg, Sula Municipality, Norway) is a Norwegian jazz band. They are particularly known for their improvisations, and for the cooperation with Lester Bowie. Biography Brazz Brothers ...

Hilde Louise Asbjørnsen Hilde Louise Asbjørnsen (born 3 June 1976 in Sykkylven Municipality, Norway) is a Norwegian jazz singer, songwriter, cabaret artist and songwriter, known from her own releases and appearances. Career After moving to Oslo in 1996 she studied Sc ...

(born 1976 in Sykkylven), a jazz singer, songwriter, cabaret artist, and songwriter. Retrieved on 24 March 2021.

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 Møre og Romsdal 1883 establishments in Norway Populated places established in 1883