Fjaler Municipality
Fjaler is a municipality in the county of Vestland, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative centre is the village of Dale. Other places in Fjaler include Espedal, Flekke, Folkestad, Guddal, and Hellevika.
The municipality is the 233rd largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Fjaler Municipality is the 233rd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of. The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 0.6% over the previous 10-year period.
Fjaler was the birthplace of famous Norwegian poet Jakob Sande. The UWC Red Cross Nordic at Haugland, one of the eighteen United World Colleges of the world is also located here, as well as the Nordic Art Centre at Dalsåsen. The Dalsfjord Bridge crosses the Dalsfjorden connecting Dale to Eikenes in the neighboring Askvoll Municipality. Buses depart from Dale to Førde, Rysjedalsvika, Hyllestad, and the western part of the municipality. Førde Airport, Bringeland is located about to the east, with flights to Oslo and Bergen.
General information
Ytre Holmedal was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838. The original municipality was identical to the Ytre Holmedal parish with the sub-parishes of Holmedal, Dale, and Fjaler. In 1912, the name Ytre Holmedal Municipality was changed to Fjaler Municipality.On 1 January 1990, some changes were made to the boundaries between Fjaler Municipality, Gaular Municipality, and Askvoll Municipality as follows:
- the areas surrounding the villages of Fure, Folkestad, and Våge in Askvoll Municipality were transferred to Fjaler Municipality
- he areas surrounding the villages of Vårdal, Holmedal, Rivedal, and a part of Hestad in Fjaler Municipality were transferred to Askvoll Municipality
- the parts of Hestad that did not go to Askvoll Municipality were transferred to Gaular Municipality
Name
The municipality was named Ytre Holmedal, after the old Holmedal farm since the first Holmedal Church was built there. The meaning of the first element of Holmedal is uncertain, but it may have been an old name for a local river, Holma. It is unknown what the river name meant. The last element is which means "valley" or "dale". The prefix was added to distinguish the area from its neighbor, Indre Holmedal.On 6 December 1912, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Fjaler. This new name brought back a very old name for the area. The name was the ancient name for the fjord. The name comes from the plural form of the word which means "board" or "table". Older forms of the name were Fjalir or Fjalar.
Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted on 8 February 1991. The official blazon is "Gules, two arched bridges argent". This means the arms have a red field and the charge is two arched stone bridges. 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 two bridges symbolize the old, historic bridges in the municipality that are part of the old post road that goes through Fjaler on its way to Trondheim. The arms were designed by Inge Rotevatn from Nordfjord. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.Churches
The Church of Norway has one parish within Fjaler Municipality. It is part of the Sunnfjord prosti in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.| Parish | Church name | Location of the church | Year built |
| Fjaler | Dale Church | Dale | 1864 |
| Fjaler | Folkestad Chapel | Våge | 1913 |
| Fjaler | Guddal Church | Guddal | 1870 |
| Fjaler | Hellevik Chapel | Hellevika | 1978 |
Government
Fjaler 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 Sogn og Fjordane District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.Municipal council
The municipal council of Fjaler Municipality is made up of 23 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 Fjaler 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:- 1838–1847: Johan Widing Heiberg Landmark
- 1847–1847: Bertel Vonen
- 1847–1855: Peder J. Fossedal
- 1855–1860: P. J. Smith
- 1860–1862: Ola Mathiasson Bakke
- 1863–1868: Peder C. Mork
- 1868–1868: J. Vonen
- 1868–1872: J. Kalstad
- 1872–1876: Mons Davidson Huustvedt
- 1876–1880: P. J. Smith
- 1880–1892: L. Larsen
- 1892–1896: Mons Davidson Huustvedt
- 1896–1898: David Olsen Bakke
- 1899–1904: Ole A. Skarstein
- 1904–1910: David Olsen Bakke
- 1911–1913: Øystein Sørebø
- 1914–1916: Andreas Sande
- 1917–1919: Ola J. Espedal
- 1920–1928: Andreas Sande
- 1929–1934: Knut Bakkelid
- 1935–1940: Ragnvald Fagerheim
- 1941–1942: Søren K. Hauge
- 1945–1945: David M. Hustveit
- 1945–1947: Ragnvald Fagerheim
- 1948–1959: Søren K. Hauge
- 1960–1961: Jonas Mork
- 1961–1963: Aksel Hovland
- 1964–1965: Gustav Stavøstrand
- 1966–1967: Ola Sørebø
- 1968–1971: Andreas Sande
- 1972–1975: Arne Barnsnes
- 1976–1981: Trygve Bjånes
- 1982–1987: Kåre Kleppe
- 1988–1989: Magnar Vagstad
- 1990–1995: Rasmus Felde
- 1995–2002: Arne Kyrkjebø
- 2002–2003: Jan Ulltang
- 2003–2015: Arve Helle
- 2015–2019: Gunhild Berge Stang
- 2019–2023: Kjetil Høgseth Felde
- 2023–present: Leif Jarle Espedal
Geography
Notable people
- Nikka Vonen, an educator, folklorist, and author
- Haldis Halvorsen, a mezzo-soprano opera singer
- Erik Grant Lea, a mythical tycoon and Norwegian ship-owner, banker, insurer, and mill owner who settled in Gjølanger in Fjaler in 1922
- Jakob Sande, a writer, poet, and folk singer who wrote in Nynorsk
- Herbjørn Sørebø, a journalist and broadcasting personality