Alvdal Municipality


Alvdal is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Østerdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Alvdal. Other villages include Barkald, Plassmoen, and Strømmen. The municipality is located to the south of Tynset Municipality, north and west of Rendalen Municipality, north of Stor-Elvdal Municipality, and east of Folldal Municipality. The Rørosbane railway and the Norwegian National Road 3 both pass through Alvdal.
The municipality is the 124th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Alvdal Municipality is the 254th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 2,509. The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 3.9% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

In 1864, the parish of Lille-Elvdalen was separated from the large Tynset Municipality to become the new Lille-Elvdalen Municipality. Initially, the new municipality had a population of 3,216. On 1 January 1914, the western part of Alvdal Municipality was separated to become the new Folldal Municipality. This left Alvdal Municipality with 2,135 residents.
Historically, the municipality was part of Hedmark county. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became a part of the newly-formed Innlandet county.

Name

The area was historically known as Elvdalen or Øvre Elvdalen. The first element is meaning "upper", the next part is the genitive case of which means "river", and the last element is which means "valley" or "dale". Thus the name means " river valley", referring to the upper part of the Glåma river valley. When the municipality was established in 1864, it was named Lille-Elvdalen Municipality, which meant "Little" Elvdalen in order to distinguish it from the nearby Store Elvedalen Municipality. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Alvdal, to better represent the local pronunciation of the name.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 25 November 1988. The official blazon is "Azure, two skis in bend issuant from base sinister". This means the arms have a blue field and the charge is a set of two diagonal skis. The charge has a tincture of argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The design symbolizes the history and importance of skiing in the area. One of the oldest pairs of skis discovered by archeologists in Norway was found in Alvdal. The skis were dated to about 500 AD. The arms were designed by Helge Ness from Alvdal. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Churches

The Church of Norway has one parish within Alvdal Municipality. It is part of the Nord-Østerdal prosti in the Diocese of Hamar.
Parish Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
AlvdalAlvdal ChurchAlvdal1861

Geography

Alvdal is bordered by Tynset Municipality to the north, Rendalen Municipality to the east and south, Stor-Elvdal Municipality to the south, and Folldal Municipality to the west. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Storsølnkletten. Another notable mountain in the municipality is Tronfjell. The lake Savalen is partially located in Alvdal. The rivers Sivilla and Glåma both flow through the municipality. The Jutulhogget canyon is located in this municipality as well.

Economy

Agriculture and forestry are the most important industries in Alvdal Municipality. The municipality rented public land to a bitcoin mining operation. In 2022, the municipality decided not to continue renting land to this company since no jobs were created from that enterprise, although one local company did some service work on occasion at the site. In 2023, the municipality was sued for by the operator of the former bitcoin mining facility.

Government

Alvdal Municipality is responsible for primary education, outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor is indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Hedmarken og Østerdal District Court and the Eidsivating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council of Alvdal Municipality is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.

Mayors

The mayor of Alvdal Municipality 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:
  • 1864–1865: Fritz Emil Aas
  • 1866–1873: Morten Mortensen
  • 1874–1881: Fritz Emil Aas
  • 1882–1883: Johan Steien
  • 1884–1891: Morten Mortensen
  • 1892–1893: Johan Steien
  • 1894–1895: Morten Sandvold
  • 1896–1898: P. Randmæl
  • 1899–1901: Jacob Stamoen
  • 1902–1904: P. Randmæl
  • 1905–1907: Haldo Müller
  • 1908–1910: P. Randmæl
  • 1911–1916: Per Hoel
  • 1917–1919: P. Randmæl
  • 1920–1922: Per Hoel
  • 1923–1925: Arne Mellesmo
  • 1926–1931: Per Hoel
  • 1932–1934: Martin Müller
  • 1935–1942: Olav Nyeggen
  • 1942–1945: Embret Mellesmo
  • 1946–1955: Harald Reinertsen
  • 1956–1963: Eivind Kveberg
  • 1963–1967: Lars Holen
  • 1968–1969: Oddgeir Skarpsno
  • 1970–1971: Asmund Westgård
  • 1971–1979: Kåre Blystad
  • 1979–1983: Per Arnfinn Bergebakken
  • 1983–1991: Sverre Dalen
  • 1991–1995: Sverre Sørbø
  • 1995–1999: Per Hvamstad
  • 1999–2007: Svein Borkhus
  • 2007–2011: Olov Grøtting
  • 2011–2015: Svein Borkhus
  • 2015–2019: Johnny Hagen
  • 2019–present: Mona Murud

    Notable people

  • Ivar Mortensson-Egnund, an author, journalist, theologian, researcher, translator, writer, philosopher, and advocate of nynorsk
  • Lars Olsen Aukrust, a farmer and politician
  • Arvid Nilssen, an actor, revue artist, singer, and comedian
  • Kjell Aukrust, an author, humourist, poet, and artist; the Huset Aukrust, is dedicated to him and he is famous for creating the fictional Norwegian village of Flåklypa and its cast of idiosyncratic characters
  • Ola Jonsmoen, an educator, poet, novelist, and children's writer
  • Svein Borkhus, a politician and Mayor of Alvdal from 1999 to 2007
  • Olov Grøtting, a politician and Mayor of Alvdal from 2007 to 2011
  • Anne Nørdsti, a dansband singer who was influenced by country music

    Sport

  • Per Samuelshaug, a cross-country skier who participated at the 1936 Winter Olympics
  • Kristian Bjørn, a cross-country skier who competed at the 1948 Winter Olympics
  • Torgeir Bjørn, a retired cross-country skier who competed at the 1988 Winter Olympics
  • Harald Stormoen, a retired footballer with over 200 club caps