Hjelme Municipality
Hjelme is a former municipality in the old Hordaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1910 until its dissolution in 1964. The area is now part of Øygarden Municipality in the traditional district of Nordhordland in Vestland county. The administrative centre was the village of Hjelmo where the Old Hjelme Church is located.
Prior to its dissolution in 1964, the municipality was the 628th largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Hjelme Municipality was the 614th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about. The municipality's population density was and its population had decreased by 4.6% over the previous 10-year period.
General information
On 1 January 1910, Manger Municipality was divided: the western island district became the new Hjelmen Municipality and the rest of the municipality remained as a smaller Manger Municipality. On 5 November 1912, the spelling of new municipality was changed from Hjelmen to Hjelme by royal resolution.During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, Hjelme Municipality was dissolved and it was merged with the majority of the neighboring Herdla Municipality to form the new Øygarden Municipality.
Name
The municipality is named after the old Hjelme farm. The name was likely the old name for the island of Hjelme. The name is the plural form of which means "helmet", likely referring to a helmet-shaped mountain on the island near the farm. Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Hjelmen. On 5 November 1912, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Hjelme.Churches
The Church of Norway had one parish within Hjelme Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Herdla prestegjeld and the Midhordland prosti in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.| Parish | Church name | Location of the church | Year built |
| Hjelme | Hjelme Church | Hjelmo on Seløyna | 1875 |
Geography
The municipality included the main islands of Alvøyna, Seløyna, Lyngøyna, and Hernar as well as many smaller surrounding islands. The Fedjeosen strait was the northern boundary, the Hjeltefjorden was the eastern boundary, the small Nordra Straumøysundet strait was the southern boundary, and the North Sea was to the west. The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Selsstakken on the island of Seløyna.Government
While it existed, Hjelme Municipality was 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 was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Gulating Court of Appeal.Municipal council
The municipal council of Hjelme Municipality was made up of 13 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.Mayors
The mayor of Hjelme Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people held this position:- 1910–1916: O. Sture
- 1917–1928: Mons L. Skjold
- 1929–1931: Ivar O. Sture
- 1932–1947: Theodor O. Hellesøy
- 1948–1951: Halvor Halvorsen Sæle
- 1952–1955: Johannes M. Skjold
- 1956–1963: Halvor Halvorsen Sæle