Sirdal Municipality Sirdal kommune | |
|---|---|
 Ski-tracks in Sirdal | |
 Flag | |
 Agder within Norway | |
 Sirdal within Agder | |
| Coordinates:58°51′43″N06°48′48″E / 58.86194°N 6.81333°E /58.86194; 6.81333 | |
| Country | Norway |
| County | Agder |
| District | Lister |
| Established | 1849 |
| • Preceded by | Bakke Municipality |
| Disestablished | 1 January 1905 |
| • Succeeded by | Tonstad andØvre Sirdal municipalities |
| Re-established | 1 January 1960 |
| • Preceded by | Bakke,Tonstad, andØvre Sirdal |
| Administrative centre | Tonstad |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2019) | Jonny Liland (Ap) |
| Area | |
• Total | 1,554.27 km2 (600.11 sq mi) |
| • Land | 1,372.87 km2 (530.07 sq mi) |
| • Water | 181.40 km2 (70.04 sq mi) 11.7% |
| • Rank | #52 in Norway |
| Population (2023) | |
• Total | 1,837 |
| • Rank | #290 in Norway |
| • Density | 1.3/km2 (3.4/sq mi) |
| • Change(10 years) |  +0.3% |
| Demonym | Sirdøl[1] |
| Official language | |
| • Norwegian form | Neutral |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| ISO 3166 code | NO-4228[3] |
| Website | Official website |
Sirdal is amunicipality inAgder county,Norway. It is located in the northwestern part of thetraditional district ofLister. Theadministrative centre of the municipality is the village ofTonstad. Other villages in Sirdal includeBjørnestad,Haughom,Kvæven,Lunde, andTjørhom.
The 1,554-square-kilometre (600 sq mi) municipality is the 52nd largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Sirdal is the 290th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 1,837. The municipality'spopulation density is 1.3 inhabitants per square kilometre (3.4/sq mi) and its population has inmcreased by 0.3% over the previous 10-year period.[4][5]
The oldparish of Sirdal was first established as a municipality in 1849 when it was separated from the large municipality ofBakke. Initially, Sirdal had 1,804 residents. On 1 January 1903, a small area of Sirdal (population: 63) was transferred to the neighboring municipality ofFjotland. On 1 January 1905, the municipality of Sirdal was dissolved and its territories were divided into two new municipalities:Tonstad (population: 828) andØvre Sirdal (population: 753). These large, sparsely populated municipalities merged along with the Øksendal area of Bakke municipality to recreate the municipality of Sirdal on 1 January 1960. This time, Sirdal started out with a population of 1,426. On 1 January 1987, the Virak and Espetveit areas of northernFlekkefjord (population: 41) were transferred to Sirdal municipality.[6]
The municipality (originally theparish) is named after theSirdalen valley (Old Norse:Sírudalr) since the valley runs through the municipality. The first element is thegenitive case of the river nameSíra (now theSira river). The river name has an unknown meaning, but it could be something like "strong stream". The last element isdalr which means "valley" or "dale".[7]
Thecoat of arms was granted on 17 January 1986. The officialblazon is "Vert, three ptarmigansvolantargent" (Norwegian:I grønt tre oppflygande sølv ryper, 2 - 1). This means the arms have a greenfield (background) and thecharge is awillow ptarmigan (Lagopus lagopus). The ptarmigan has atincture ofargent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The green color in the field and the ptarmigans were chosen as a symbol for the hills andmoorland which make up the largest part of the municipality. The willow ptarmigan is a typical bird for the area. The arms were designed by Stein Davidsen. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.[8][9][10]
TheChurch of Norway has one parish (sokn) within the municipality of Sirdal. It is part of theLister og Mandal prosti (deanery) in theDiocese of Agder og Telemark.
| Parish (sokn) | Church name | Location of the church | Year built |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sirdal | Haughom Chapel | Haughom | 1930 |
| Kvævemoen Chapel | Kvæven | 1962 | |
| Lunde Church | Lunde | 1873 | |
| Tonstad Church | Tonstad | 1852 |
Sirdal municipality includes the westernmost valley in Agder county, borderingRogaland county to the west. To the south, it borders on the municipality ofFlekkefjord and to the east isKvinesdal. Sirdal is the largest municipality by area inAgder. Lakes in the region includeGravatnet,Kulivatnet,Kvifjorden,Øyarvatnet,Rosskreppfjorden,Sirdalsvatnet, andValevatn. The mountainUrddalsknuten lies at the northern end of the municipality.
In 1990, the mountain road opened between the Sirdalen valley and theSetesdal valley over theSuleskard mountain pass. It connected Sirdal toBrokke in the neighboring municipality ofValle to the east. It shortened the distance fromOslo toStavanger by 110 kilometres (68 mi) in the summer, and the road passes through barren,glacier-scoured highland. As it passes by theRosskreppfjorden, it ascends to over 1,000 metres (3,300 ft)above sea level.[11]
| Climate data forTonstad 1961-90 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −2.0 (28.4) | −2.2 (28.0) | 0.8 (33.4) | 4.4 (39.9) | 9.8 (49.6) | 13.4 (56.1) | 15.0 (59.0) | 14.4 (57.9) | 10.7 (51.3) | 6.9 (44.4) | 2.3 (36.1) | −1.3 (29.7) | 6.0 (42.8) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 185 (7.3) | 131 (5.2) | 139 (5.5) | 74 (2.9) | 102 (4.0) | 99 (3.9) | 109 (4.3) | 147 (5.8) | 213 (8.4) | 248 (9.8) | 239 (9.4) | 204 (8.0) | 1,890 (74.4) |
| Source: Norwegian Meteorological Institute[12] | |||||||||||||
Sirdal Municipality is responsible forprimary education (through 10th grade), outpatienthealth services,senior citizen services,welfare and othersocial services,zoning,economic development, and municipalroads and utilities. The municipality is governed by amunicipal council ofdirectly elected representatives. Themayor isindirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.[13] The municipality is under the jurisdiction of theDalane District Court and theGulating Court of Appeal.
Themunicipal council (Kommunestyre) of Sirdal 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 politicalparty.
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 6 | |
| Progress Party(Fremskrittspartiet) | 1 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 3 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 5 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 1 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 8 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 3 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 2 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 4 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 1 | |
| Joint list of theProgress Party and the Sirdal list(Fremskrittspartiet og Sirdalslisten) | 1 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 6 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 3 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 4 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 1 | |
| Sirdal local list(Sirdal Bygdeliste) | 2 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 5 | |
| Progress Party(Fremskrittspartiet) | 2 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 2 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 3 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 1 | |
| Rural development list(Bygdeutviklingslista) | 3 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 3 | |
| Progress Party(Fremskrittspartiet) | 3 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 2 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 4 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 5 | |
| Socialist Left Party(Sosialistisk Venstreparti) | 1 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 1 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 3 | |
| Progress Party(Fremskrittspartiet) | 3 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 3 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 4 | |
| Socialist Left Party(Sosialistisk Venstreparti) | 2 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 1 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 4 | |
| Progress Party(Fremskrittspartiet) | 1 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 4 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 5 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 2 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 4 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 3 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 5 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 4 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 4 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 3 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 6 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 3 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 4 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 4 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 4 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 4 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 4 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 3 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 5 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 3 | |
| Sirdal local list(Sirdal Bygdeliste) | 1 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 3 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 4 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 4 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 5 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 1 | |
| Sirdal local list(Sirdal bygdeliste) | 2 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 3 | |
| Conservative Party(Høyre) | 1 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 7 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 2 | |
| Joint list of theChristian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) andNew People's Party(Nye Folkepartiet) | 3 | |
| Sirdal local list(Sirdal Bygdeliste) | 3 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 3 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 2 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 7 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 3 | |
| Local List(s)(Lokale lister) | 4 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 5 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 1 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 7 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 3 | |
| List of workers, fishermen, and small farmholders(Arbeidere, fiskere, småbrukere liste) | 1 | |
| Local List(s)(Lokale lister) | 2 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 3 | |
| Communist Party(Kommunistiske Parti) | 2 | |
| Centre Party(Senterpartiet) | 8 | |
| Liberal Party(Venstre) | 4 | |
| Local List(s)(Lokale lister) | 2 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
| Party name(in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour Party(Arbeiderpartiet) | 2 | |
| Christian Democratic Party(Kristelig Folkeparti) | 3 | |
| Socialist People's Party(Sosialistisk Folkeparti) | 4 | |
| Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties(Borgerlige Felleslister) | 10 | |
| Total number of members: | 19 | |
Themayors (Norwegian:ordfører) of Sirdal (incomplete list):
The main source of income for Sirdal is theSira-Kvina Power Company which gets its power from the bigSira andKvina rivers. Thewaterfalls on the riverSira are utilized in four power stations owned by Sira-Kvina power company. The company also owns three power stations in theKvina river system, hence the company's name. Total annual production is 6,000 gigawatt-hours (22,000 TJ), total installation is 1,760 megawatts (2,360,000 hp). The largest power station,Tonstad Hydroelectric Power Station, was inaugurated in 1968, with two units, each producing 160 megawatts (210,000 hp). The power station has now 4 units, each 160 MW, and one unit at 320 megawatts (430,000 hp), giving a total output of 960 megawatts (1,290,000 hp). Total annual production in this station is approximately 4,000 gigawatt-hours (14,000 TJ), which makes Tonstad the largest power station inNorway in terms of production. Sira-Kvina power company applied in 2007 for concession to expand the power station with two new units (reversible turbines), each containing 480 megawatts (640,000 hp), and the concession is pending.[28]
The number ofwind turbines is 51; in 2024, a political process for more wind turbines, was ended by a municipal council vote.[29]
Tourism is also an important source of income for the Sirdal economy, taking advantage of the extensive mountains, mountainous plateaus, lakes, and great views. There are multiple alpine resorts and hotels in the valley, as well as cottages and camping spots. Winter activities include sixski resorts for winter enjoyment. Downhill ski areas include Tjørhomfjellet,Bjørnestad Ski Centre,Ålsheia Ski Centre, Fidjeland Ski Centre, and Ådneram Ski lift.Cross-country skiers can enjoy dozens of trails over spectacular terrain. Summer activities includehiking,horseback riding, and riverrafting.[28]
From the oldest times the Sirdalen valley was divided by the riverSira withRogaland county controlling the west side andAgder county controlling the east side. The two sides of the valley, however, was established as one single parish in Christian times, even though it crossed county lines, something that was not very common in Norway.
In 1837, it was decided that everyparish should be a municipality, but no municipality should belong to more than one county (seeformannskapsdistrikt law). Sirdal parish was therefore first divided in two municipalities. This was a bad decision because they had very few inhabitants separately. A new solution was found in 1839 when the two municipalities were re-joined, and the county border was moved so that all of Sirdalen was in Vest-Agder county.
At Kvæven, in northern Sirdal one finds the Sirdal Mountain Museum. This museum has a collection of old Sirdal buildings. Former lifestyles are visible in the farmhouse, a schoolhouse, stable,blacksmith's shop, barn, and mountain farm cottage as well as original equipment.
Väike-Maarja Parish, Estonia (since 1994)[30]
Vest-Agder travel guide from Wikivoyage
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