Harstad Municipality


Harstad is the second-most populated municipality in Troms county, Norway. It is mostly located on the large island of Hinnøya. The municipal center is the town of Harstad, which is the most populous town in Central Hålogaland and the third-largest in all of Northern Norway. The town was incorporated in 1904. Villages in the municipality include Elgsnes, Fauskevåg, Gausvika, Grøtavær, Kasfjord, Lundenes, Nergården and Sørvika.
The municipality is the 225th largest by area out of Norway's 357 municipalities and the 49th most populous, with a population of 25,056. The municipality's population density is and the population has increased by 2.5% over the previous 10-year period.

Geography

The municipality is located on many islands in southern Troms county. Most of the municipality is located on the large island of Hinnøya, which is Norway's largest coastal island. The northern part of the municipality is located on the smaller islands of Grytøya, Bjarkøya, Sandsøya, Helløya, Flatøya and Krøttøya and many even smaller islands between the Andfjorden and the Vågsfjorden. The municipality contains several small islands, including Arnøya, Gressholman, Helløya, Kjeøya, Kjøtta, Kjøttakalven, Flatøya, Meløyvær, Måga, Rogla, Lille Rogla and Åkerøya.
Harstad is bordered by Kvæfjord Municipality to the west. To the south and east, the Tjeldsund Bridge connects Hinnøya with Tjeldsund Municipality and the mainland across Tjeldsundet, and to the northeast is the Vågsfjorden, where Harstad shares a water border with Ibestad Municipality. The city of Harstad itself is located on the northeastern part of Hinnøya; it is the only city on the island, and is popularly known as Vågsfjordens perle.
The highest point in Harstad Municipality is Sætertinden, which is above sea level. It is located near the village of Sandtorg in southern Harstad. The tall mountain, Nupen, is located in the northwestern part of the municipality on the border with Kvæfjord.

Climate and light

Despite being located north of the Arctic Circle, Harstad features either a dry-summer subarctic climate, or the rare cold-summer mediterranean climate, depending on if the or the isotherm is used. Harstad features relatively mild, wet winters and cool, dry summers. Harstad does not have the brutal winters most locations north of the Arctic Circle experience, and is sheltered from Atlantic gales by mountains in the west, and has the main part of the Scandinavian Mountains to the east. The city experiences warmer winters than major cities located 25 degrees farther south in latitude such as Beijing, Chicago and Toronto. Summers in Harstad are cool, with average high temperatures seldom breaking the mark. Since the weather station opened August 2002, July 2014 was the warmest month with mean, average daily high and all-time high on 10 July. The record low of was recorded in February 2010. The coldest month recorded was January 2003 with mean and average daily low. On 9. September 2024 Harstad recorded high, the warmest temperature in September recorded in Troms.
The municipality enjoys the midnight sun during the summer months, from 22 May to 18 July. There is also a period from early May to early August with twilight for a few hours each night as the sun just dips below the horizon, so there is no darkness. The polar night, when the sun is always below the horizon, lasts from 30 November to 12 January. At this time, there are 3–4 hours of dawn and dusk around noon, sometimes with colourful skies towards the south. From late January, the period of daylight rapidly increases, reaching 12 hours by March and 18 hours in April. Harstad is located in the midst of the aurora borealis zone, and the aurora can often be seen on clear nights, but not in summer due to the continuous daylight.

History

The town of Harstad was established as a municipality on 1 January 1904 when it was separated from the large Trondenes Municipality because it had just been declared a ladested. The initial population of the town of Harstad was 1,246. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, the town of Harstad was merged with neighboring Sandtorg Municipality and Trondenes Municipality to form a new, larger Harstad Municipality with a population of 17,882. Prior to the merger, the town of Harstad had 3,808 residents. On 1 January 2013, the neighboring Bjarkøy Municipality was merged with Harstad, forming a new, larger Harstad Municipality.
On 1 January 2020, the municipality became part of the new Troms og Finnmark county which replaced the old Troms county. On 1 January 2024, the Troms og Finnmark county was divided and the municipality once again became part of Troms county.
In recent years, a 3000-year-old bronze axe and a 2600-year-old bronze collar have been found at the Trondenes peninsula, just north of the city center. These, together with the burial cairns built close to the sea, are indications of a well-developed Bronze Age culture in the Harstad area.
There is also substantial archeological evidence of a well-developed Iron Age culture in the area, around 200 AD.
Trondenes is mentioned in the Heimskringla as a power centre in the Viking Age and a place to meet and discuss important issues. In 2020 archeologist concluded that Sandtorg, located along the Tjeldsundet strait, south of the town of Harstad, was the location of the only known Viking Age trading place in Northern Norway. The Tjeldsundet strait was very likely an important ship lane back then as it still is today.
Trondenes Church, the world's northernmost medieval church, which dates back to the 13th–15th century, is situated just outside the town.
Adjacent to the church is the Trondenes Historical Center and nearby is the Adolf Gun, an enormous land-based cannon from World War II, and the last of four cannons originally constructed by the Nazis. Harstad is one of the few towns in this part of Norway which were left largely undamaged by World War II.

Origin of the name

The municipality is named after the old Harstad farm, since the town is built where the farm once was located. The first element is the genitive case of the male name Hǫrðr. The last element is which means "homestead" or "farm". On 6 February 2017, the municipality of Harstad adopted a co-equal Sami language name for the municipality: Hárstták. The Sami language name spelling changes depending on how it is used. It is called Hárstták when it is spelled alone, but it is Hársttáid suohkan when using the Sami language equivalent to "Harstad municipality".

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 24 April 1953. The official blazon is "Azure, two bars wavy argent". This means the arms have a blue field and the charge is two wavy bars. The bars have a tincture of argent which means they are commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The blue color in the field symbolizes the importance of sea and the wavy bars were chosen to represent the waves in the sea. Since the town of Harstad is located in the municipality, a mural crown is typically shown above the shield. The arms were designed by Jardar Lunde in cooperation with Hallvard Træteberg.

Government

Harstad 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 Midtre Hålogaland District Court and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council of Harstad Municipality is made up of 35 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 Harstad 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:
  • 1904–1906: Hans Buck
  • 1914–1916: Karl Eystein Kvam
  • 1929–1932: Israel Wulff
  • 1932–1935: Nils J. Hunstad
  • 1935–1938: Hans Stordahl
  • 1938–1940: Nils J. Hunstad
  • 1941–1945: Hans Methi
  • 1945–1945: Odd Gangnæs
  • 1945–1945: Alf Haaland
  • 1945–1945: Nils J. Hunstad
  • 1946–1947: Sigurd Simensen
  • 1948–1952: Sigurd Torgersen
  • 1952–1964: Leif Bothner
  • 1964–1968: Bjarne Berg-Sæther
  • 1968–1969: Leif Arne Heløe
  • 1970–1977: Arnljot Norwich
  • 1978–1987: Johan Nordvik
  • 1987–1993: Kjell Joachimsen
  • 1993–1995: Britt S. Nordlund
  • 1995–1998: Helge Aune
  • 1998–2007: Halvar Hansen
  • 2007–2011: Helge Eriksen
  • 2011–2019: Marianne Bremnes
  • 2019–present: Kari-Anne Opsal

    Economy

The oil industry of North Norway is centered in Harstad; including Statoil's main office for a new operational area for Northern Norway, the DNV office for Northern Norway, as well as other regional offices including TotalEnergies, Det Norske Oljeselskap ASA and Aibel. Harstad also has shipyards and other industries that are important for the economy. Harstad and the surrounding area have traditionally been among the most productive agricultural regions in Northern Norway,. The old seabed, now dry land due to isostatic rebound, creating fertile soil that is well-suited for farming.

Institutions and culture

The city hosts the annual week-long Festival of North Norway in June. It is also the home of the Arctic Moving Image and Film Festival, held in October each year.
Harstad University College, with approximately 1,100 students, has a thriving foreign exchange program with students from all over the world. The hospital in Harstad is part of the University Hospital of North Norway.
The most successful local football team is Harstad Idrettslag, and the most successful basketball team is the Harstad Vikings.
Harstad is home port for the Anna Rogde, the world's oldest sailing schooner, also known as the sailing queen of Norway.
Harstad Camping is a campsite located in the municipality.

Churches

The Church of Norway has five parishes within Harstad Municipality. It is part of the Trondenes prosti in the Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland.
Parish Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
Bjarkøy og SandsøyBjarkøy ChurchNergården1766
Bjarkøy og SandsøySandsøy ChurchSandsøya1888
GrytøyGrøtavær ChurchGrøtavær1915
GrytøyLundenes ChurchLundenes1974
HarstadHarstad ChurchHarstad1958
KanebogenKanebogen ChurchKanebogen1999
SandtorgGausvik ChurchGausvika1979
SandtorgSandtorg ChurchSørvika1932
TrondenesTrondenes ChurchTrondenes15th century
TrondenesElgsnes ChapelElgsnes1985

Military connections

Harstad traditionally has strong ties with the Norwegian Armed Forces. Kystjegerkommandoen has its home base at Trondenes, just north of the town of Harstad. Marinejegerkommandoen is based in Ramsund, a village in neighboring Tjeldsund Municipality on the mainland south of Harstad. General Carl Gustav Fleischer led the field operations of the Norwegian Armed Forces in World War II, among them the 7,500 soldiers which from the north pushed the Nazi Germans back to Narvik and participated in retaking Narvik on 28 May 1940. A street in Harstad is named Gen. Fleischers Gate in his honour.
Operation Judgement took place on 4 May 1945, when the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy attacked a U-boat base at Kilbotn, a village in the Harstad district, sinking two ships and a U-boat.
Harstad is also the hometown of the Norwegian army band "Forsvarets Musikkorps Nord Norge" with professional musicians.

Transportation

The local airport is Harstad/Narvik Airport, Evenes, located on the mainland in neighboring Evenes Municipality. It is by road from the town center. The airport offers daily flights to Oslo, Trondheim, Bodø, Tromsø and Andenes.
Every morning a northbound and a southbound Hurtigruten ship stop in Harstad.
High-speed craft regularly go between Harstad and Tromsø, Finnsnes, Senja and other places.
There are several ferries and buses in the district, and in Harstad there are local buses.
The leading helicopter company in Northern Norway, Heli-Team, is located in Harstad.

Local areas

;Villages north/west of the city
Alvestad, Aune, Elgsnes, Ervik, Grøtavær, Hagan, Kasfjord, Kilhus, Kjøtta, Lundenes, Mustaparta, Nergården, Røkenes, Steinnes, Stornes, Storvassbotn, Sørlia, Tennvassåsen, Tømmeråsen, Undlandet, Vika, and Årnes.
;City neighbourhoods
Bergseng, Blåbærhaugen, Breivika, City Center, Eineberget, Gangsås, Grønnebakkan, Harstadbotn, Harstadåsen, Heggen, Holtet, Kanebogen, Kilbotn, Medkila, Ruggevika, Sama, Seljestad, Skaret, Stangnes, Trondenes, and Åsby.
;Villages south of the city
Brokvik, Fauskevåg, Gausvik, Halsebø, Haukebø, Melvik, Nordvik, Sandtorg, and Sørvika.

Notable people

Public Service

Twin towns – Sister cities

The twin towns of Harstad are:
Harstad used to be a sister city to Kirovsk, but this agreement was ended in November 2022, due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.