Fjelberg is a former municipality in the old Hordaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until 1965 when it was dissolved. In 1965, the municipality covered 79.8 square kilometres (30.8 sq mi), mostly islands and a small area on the mainland. It encompassed part of what is now Kvinnherad Municipality (in Vestland county) and Vindafjord Municipality (in Rogaland county), primarily the islands of Fjelbergøya, Borgundøya, and Halsnøya, as well as some surrounding areas on the mainland. The administrative centre of the municipality was the small village located on the island of Fjelbergøya where Fjelberg Church is located.[2]

Fjelberg Municipality
Fjelberg herred
Fjeldberg herred  (historic name)
Halsnøya island and surroundings
Halsnøya island and surroundings
Hordaland within Norway
Hordaland within Norway
Fjelberg within Hordaland
Fjelberg within Hordaland
Coordinates: 59°44′47″N 05°41′45″E / 59.74639°N 5.69583°E / 59.74639; 5.69583
CountryNorway
CountyHordaland
DistrictSunnhordland
Established1 Jan 1838
 • Created asFormannskapsdistrikt
Disestablished1 Jan 1965
 • Succeeded byKvinnherad Municipality
Administrative centreFjelbergøya
Area
 (upon dissolution)
 • Total
79.5 km2 (30.7 sq mi)
Population
 (1965)
 • Total
2,308
 • Density29/km2 (75/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC 01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC 02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeNO-1213[1]

History

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The parish of Fjældberg was established as a formannskapsdistrikt on 1 January 1838. According to the 1835 census the parish had a population of 2,986 at the time.[3] In 1855, the neighboring municipality of Eid was incorporated into Fjelberg, increasing its population to 4,794.[4]

In 1865, the parish of Vikebygd (population: 1,062) in the southwestern part of the municipality was separated from Fjelberg and merged with a part of neighboring Finnaas Municipality to create the new Sveen Municipality. On 1 January 1898, the southern part of the island of Huglo (population: 117) was transferred from Fjelberg to the neighboring Stord Municipality. On 1 July 1916, the southern (mainland) part of Fjelberg (population: 1,715) was split off to form the new Ølen Municipality, leaving Fjelberg with 1,926 inhabitants.[4]

On 1 January 1965, as part of the nationwide merging of municipalities as suggested by the Schei Committee, Fjelberg municipality was dissolved. Fjelberg municipality was merged with neighboring Kvinnherad Municipality, part of Skånevik Municipality, and most of Varaldsøy Municipality to form the new (much larger) Kvinnherad Municipality. Prior to the merger, Fjelberg had a population of 2,308, and after the merger, the new municipality had nearly 10,000 residents.[4]

Name

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The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the island of Fjelbergøya (Old Norse: Fjǫlbyrja) since the first Fjelberg Church was built there. The first element is the prefix fjǫl- which means "much" or "many". The last element is byrr which means "fair wind" or "favorable wind" (in terms of sailing). Thus it is a place with many kinds of good winds for sailing.[5]

Government

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During its existence, this municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.[6]

Municipal council

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The municipal council (Heradsstyre) of Fjelberg was made up of 21 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows:

Fjelberg heradsstyre 1960–1963 [7]  
Party name (in Nynorsk) Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) 4
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 17
Total number of members:21
Fjelberg heradsstyre 1956–1959 [8]  
Party name (in Nynorsk) Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) 2
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 19
Total number of members:21
Fjelberg heradsstyre 1952–1955 [9]  
Party name (in Nynorsk) Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) 4
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 16
Total number of members:20
Fjelberg heradsstyre 1948–1951 [10]  
Party name (in Nynorsk) Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) 3
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 17
Total number of members:20
Fjelberg heradsstyre 1945–1947 [11]  
Party name (in Nynorsk) Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) 3
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 17
Total number of members:20
Fjelberg heradsstyre 1938–1941* [12]  
Party name (in Nynorsk) Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeidarpartiet) 1
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 19
Total number of members:20
Note: Due to the German occupation of Norway during World War II, no elections were held for new municipal councils until after the war ended in 1945.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Bolstad, Erik; Thorsnæs, Geir, eds. (26 January 2023). "Kommunenummer". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget.
  2. ^ Store norske leksikon. "Fjelberg" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 13 March 2015.
  3. ^ Registreringssentral for historiske data. "Hjemmehørende folkemengde Hordaland 1801-1960" (in Norwegian). University of Tromsø. Archived from the original on 10 June 2007. Retrieved 28 November 2006.
  4. ^ a b c Jukvam, Dag (1999). Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen (PDF) (in Norwegian). Statistisk sentralbyrå. ISBN 9788253746845.
  5. ^ Rygh, Oluf (1910). Norske gaardnavne: Søndre Bergenhus amt (in Norwegian) (11 ed.). Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. p. 88.
  6. ^ Hansen, Tore; Vabo, Signy Irene, eds. (20 September 2022). "kommunestyre". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
  7. ^ "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1959" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1960. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  8. ^ "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1955" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1957. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  9. ^ "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1951" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1952. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  10. ^ "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1947" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1948. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  11. ^ "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1945" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1947. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  12. ^ "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1937" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1938. Retrieved 16 May 2020.