Samnanger (Urban East Norwegian:[ˈsɑ̂mnɑŋər]) is a municipality in the Midhordland region of Vestland county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Tysse. Other main villages in the municipality include Haga and Bjørkheim in Nordbygda. The municipality is located about 20 kilometres (12 mi) east of the city of Bergen, Norway's second largest city. It surrounds the inner part of the Samnangerfjorden and the surrounding valleys. There are mountains that surround the municipality. The development of hydroelectric power plants started here in 1909.
The 269-square-kilometre (104 sq mi) municipality is the 274th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Samnanger is the 251st most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 2,495. The municipality's population density is 9.7 inhabitants per square kilometre (25/sq mi) and its population has increased by 2.5% over the previous 10-year period.[4][5]
In 2016, the chief of police for Vestlandet formally suggested a reconfiguration of police districts and stations. He proposed that the police station in Samnanger be closed.[6]
General information
The municipality of Samnanger was established on 1 January 1907 when it was separated from the municipality of Os. Initially, Samnanger had 3,025 residents. The borders of the municipality have not changed since that time.[7]
Name
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the Samnangerfjorden (Old Norse: Samnangr) since it is a central geographic feature in the area. The first element is likely the old name for a local river, possibly derived from the word sǫmn which has an unknown meaning. The last element is angr which means "bay" or "inlet".[8][9]
Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted on 27 April 1990. The official blazon is "Gules, six gouttes Or in annulo" (Norwegian: På raud grunn seks gule dråpar som lagar ein sirkel). This means the arms have a red field (background) and the charge is a set of six gouttes (drops of water) arranged in a circle. The charge has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. Water was chosen as a symbol on the arms because of the wet climate and the source of hydroelectricity that is prevalent in the area. The arms were designed by Even Jarl Skoglund. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.[10][11][12]
The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Samnanger is made up of 21 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.
The Gullfjellet mountains lie along the western border of the municipality. The mountain Sveningen lies at the tripoint border with Samnanger, Bergen, and Bjørnafjorden municipalities. The Kvamskogenmountain plateau lies along the eastern border of the municipality.
Population
Notable people
Knud Langeland (1813–1886), an American editor, farmer, and politician who emigrated in 1843
^ a bStatistisk sentralbyrå. "Table: 06913: Population 1 January and population changes during the calendar year (M)" (in Norwegian).
^Statistisk sentralbyrå. "09280: Area of land and fresh water (km²) (M)" (in Norwegian).
^Fjelltveit, Ingvild; Raunholm, Per Vidar (20 December 2016). "Foreslår å legge ned 17 lensmannskontor i Vest politidistrikt". NRK Hordaland (in Norwegian). Retrieved 20 October 2017.
^Jukvam, Dag (1999). Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen (PDF) (in Norwegian). Statistisk sentralbyrå. ISBN 9788253746845.
^Rygh, Oluf (1910). Norske gaardnavne: Søndre Bergenhus amt (in Norwegian) (11 ed.). Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. pp. 186 and 221.
^"Civic heraldry of Norway - Norske Kommunevåpen". Heraldry of the World. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
^"Samnanger, Hordaland". Flags of the World. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
^"Godkjenning av våpen og flagg". Lovdata.no (in Norwegian). Norges kommunal- og arbeidsdepartementet. 30 June 1990. Retrieved 22 May 2023.
^Hansen, Tore; Vabo, Signy Irene, eds. (20 September 2022). "kommunestyre". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
^"Kommunestyrevalg 2023 - Vestland". Valgdirektoratet. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
^"Kommunestyrevalg 2019 – Vestland". Valgdirektoratet. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
^ a b c d"Table: 04813: Members of the local councils, by party/electoral list at the Municipal Council election (M)" (in Norwegian). Statistics Norway.
^"Kommunestyrevalg 2011 – Hordaland". Valgdirektoratet. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
^"Kommunestyrevalget 1995" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1996. Retrieved 20 February 2020.
^"Kommunestyrevalget 1991" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1993. Retrieved 20 February 2020.
^"Kommunestyrevalget 1987" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1988. Retrieved 20 February 2020.
^"Kommunestyrevalget 1983" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1984. Retrieved 20 February 2020.
^"Kommunestyrevalget 1979" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1979. Retrieved 20 February 2020.
^"Kommunevalgene 1975" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1977. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
^"Kommunevalgene 1972" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1973. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
^"Kommunevalgene 1967" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1967. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
^"Kommunevalgene 1963" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1964. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
^"Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1959" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1960. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
^"Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1955" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1957. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
^"Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1951" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1952. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
^"Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1947" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1948. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
^"Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1945" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1947. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
^"Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1937" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1938. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
^"Karl Bård Kollbotn vald som ny ordførar i Samnanger". Samnanger kommune (in Norwegian). Retrieved 22 January 2024.