Gran Municipality


is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Hadeland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Jaren. Other villages in Gran include Bjoneroa, Brandbu, Egge, Gran, and Ringstad.
The municipality is the 148th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Gran Municipality is the 89th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of. The municipality's population density is and its population has decreased by 0.1% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The prestegjeld of Gran was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838. On 1 January 1874, an unpopulated area of Gran Municipality was transferred to the neighboring Jevnaker Municipality. On 1 January 1897, the municipality was divided into two. The northern part of the municipality became the new Brandbu Municipality and the southern part of the municipality remained as Gran Municipality.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1962, the Furulund area of Gran Municipality on the west side of the lake Randsfjorden was transferred to the neighboring Jevnaker Municipality. Also on that date, the remaining part of Gran Municipality was merged with Brandbu Municipality to form a new, larger Gran Municipality. On 1 January 1964, the part of Gran Municipality located at the south end of the lake Einavatnet was transferred to the neighboring Vestre Toten Municipality.

Name

The municipality is named after the old Gran farm. The name is identical with the word which means "spruce tree".

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 11 December 1987. The official blazon is "Gules, two piles reversed from each emerges a cross bottony Or". This means the arms have a red field and the charge is two triangles stretching upwards with a bottony cross on the tip of each triangle. 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. The triangles and crosses were meant to represent the spires of the medieval Sister Churches which are located in the municipality. The arms were designed by Kari Ruud Flem from Jevnaker. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Churches

The Church of Norway has four parishes within Gran Municipality. It is part of the Hadeland og Land prosti in the Diocese of Hamar.
Parish Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
BjoneroaSørum ChurchBjoneroa1861
BrandbuNes ChurchRøykenvik1730
Gran/TingelstadGrymyr ChurchGrymyr2003
Gran/TingelstadSt. Mary's ChurchGranavollenc. 1150
Gran/TingelstadSt. Nicholas' ChurchGranavollenc. 1150
Gran/TingelstadTingelstad ChurchTingelstad1866
Gran/TingelstadOld Tingelstad ChurchTingelstadc. 1220
Moen/ÅlMoen ChurchJaren1914
Moen/ÅlÅl ChurchGran1929

History

Granavollen is the site of the Sister Churches. These two stone churches are from the Middle Ages and were constructed side by side. The smaller and older is the Mariakirke, a single nave church built in the Romanesque style, built sometime before 1150. The neighbouring Nikolaikirke is a three-aisled basilica, probably inspired by the construction of the St. Halvardskirke in Oslo. It was built sometime between 1150 and 1200. According to local folklore, the churches were built by two sisters. These two detested each other so much they could not share the same church. A more likely explanation however, is that the Mariakirke was built for the local congregation, while the Nikolaikirke was the main church for Hadeland parish. The Granavollen stone is located behind the Nikolaikirken.
The Old Tingelstad Church is another medieval stone church. It is a Romanesque stone church, dated to the 12th century and dedicated to St.Peter. This church has survived even though it has not been in regular use for some 140 years.
This is also the location of Hadeland Folkemuseum with a collection of buildings from the area, farm implements, a grave mound from the Viking Age, and a replica of the 11th century Dynna Runestone. It also holds an archive of photographs and documents.

Economy

In 2002, the economy of the municipality was in free income per inhabitant, and the net debt per inhabitant was . Health care spending represents about one-third of the total municipal budget, which is 7.5% higher than the average for Norway. The Norwegian National Road 4 runs through the most populated parts of Gran, bringing lots of transportation traffic.

Geography

Gran Municipality is part of the Hadeland region. It is bordered to the north by Søndre Land Municipality and Vestre Toten Municipality, to the east by Hurdal Municipality and Nannestad Municipality, to the south by Lunner Municipality and Jevnaker Municipality, and to the west by Ringerike Municipality. There are several lakes in Gran Municipality including Øyangen, Randsfjorden, and Vestre Bjonevatnet. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Lushaugen, located on the border with Hurdal Municipality.

Government

Gran 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 Vestoppland og Valdres District Court and the Eidsivating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council of Gran Municipality is made up of 27 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 Gran 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:
  • 1838–1839: Carl Jacob Bergh
  • 1840–1841: Lars Hvinden
  • 1842–1843: Anders Iversen Kjeffen
  • 1844–1846: Mr. Schandorff
  • 1847–1847: Ole Horgen
  • 1848–1849: N. Stenersen
  • 1850–1851: Tharald Bergh
  • 1851–1855: Thorvald Buchholz
  • 1856–1861: Amund Larsen Gulden
  • 1864–1867: Amund Larsen Gulden
  • 1871–1871: Peder Horgen
  • 1872–1875: Gulbrand Hvaleby
  • 1876–1877: T. Grindaker
  • 1878–1885: Iver Larsen Hvamstad
  • 1886–1901: Peder S. Mørtvedt
  • 1902–1907: Lars Dynna
  • 1908–1909: J. Horgen
  • 1909–1910: Helge Klæstad
  • 1911–1913: J.A. Elnæs
  • 1914–1916: Helge Klæstad
  • 1917–1919: Nils Helmen
  • 1920–1922: Helge Klæstad
  • 1923–1925: P.P. Grini
  • 1925–1928: Emil Nielsen
  • 1929–1931: P.P. Grini
  • 1931–1934: Emil Nielsen
  • 1934–1937: Tollek Onsaker
  • 1937–1941: Olaf Prestsæter
  • 1941–19: Kåre Framstad
  • 1945–1946: Olaf Prestsæter
  • 1946–1948: Paul A. Grini
  • 1948–1951: Axel Moger
  • 1952–1954: Lars Skovly
  • 1955–1956: Axel Bråten
  • 1956–1959: Torgrim Dynna
  • 1960–1961: Kristian Torgalsen
  • 1962–1965: Jens Røisli
  • 1966–1970: Alf Skovly
  • 1970–1979: Gunnar Sagbakken
  • 1980–1995: Lars Arne Høydal
  • 1996–2005: Rigmor Aasrud
  • 2005–2007: Roald Braathen
  • 2007–2011: Inger Staxrud
  • 2011–2015: Knut Magnar Lehre
  • 2015–2019: Willy Westhagen
  • 2019–2023: Randi Eek Thorsen
  • 2023–present: Gunn Elisabeth Alm Thoresen

    Sister cities

Gran has sister city agreements with the following places: