Kyrkjebø Municipality


Kyrkjebø is a former municipality in the old Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1858 until its dissolution in 1964. The area is now part of Høyanger Municipality in the traditional district of Sogn in Vestland county. The administrative centre was the village of Kyrkjebø. Other villages in the municipality included Vadheim, Ortnevik, Høyanger, and Bjordal.
Prior to its dissolution in 1964, the municipality was the 146th largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Kyrkjebø Municipality was the 190th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about. The municipality's population density was and its population had increased by 0.1% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The parish of Klævold was established as a municipality in 1858 when it was separated from the large Lavik Municipality. Initially, it had a population of 1,645. On 1 January 1875, a border adjustment took place, moving part of Klævold Municipality with 90 inhabitants to the neighboring Lavik og Brekke Municipality. On 1 July 1890, the name was changed from Klævold Municipality to Kirkebø Municipality, and then in 1917 it was changed again to Kyrkjebø Municipality.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, the following areas were merged to form the new Høyanger Municipality:

Name

The municipality was originally named after the old Klævold farm. The first element is uncertain. One possibility is that it comes from the word kleppr which means "hill" or "rock". Another possibility is that it comes from the word which means "steep area on a mountainside". The last element is which means "field", "flat ground", or "meadow". This is likely referring to a steep hill or rock located in the middle of an area of level ground.
Historically, the name of the municipality was Klævold. On 1 July 1890, a royal resolution changed the name of the municipality to Kirkebø since this was the historic location of the Kyrkjebø Church was built there. The first element is which means "church". The last element is identical to the word which means "farmland" or "farm".
From 1890 until 1917, the name of the municipality was spelled Kirkebø. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Kyrkjebø.

Churches

The Church of Norway had one parish within Kyrkjebø Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Lavik prestegjeld and the Ytre Sogn prosti in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.
Parish Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
KyrkjebøBjordal ChurchBjordal1906
KyrkjebøHøyanger ChurchHøyanger1960
KyrkjebøKyrkjebø ChurchKyrkjebø1869
KyrkjebøOrtnevik ChurchOrtnevik1925
KyrkjebøVadheim ChapelVadheim1916

Geography

The municipality of Kyrkjebø included land on the north and south side of the Sognefjorden. The highest point in the municipality was the tall unnamed mountain on the eastern border with Balestrand Municipality. Gaular Municipality was located to the north, Balestrand Municipality was located to the northeast, Vik Municipality was located to the east, Modalen Municipality was located to the south, Masfjorden Municipality was located to the southwest, Lavik Municipality was located to the west, and Fjaler Municipality was located to the northwest.

Government

While it existed, Kyrkjebø 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 Kyrkjebø Municipality was made up of 29 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 Kyrkjebø Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people held this position:
  • 1858–1859: Gullak A. Haaland
  • 1860–1863: Arne G. Afsnes
  • 1864–1865: Knud H. Hovland
  • 1866–1875: Arne G. Afsnes
  • 1876–1887: Lars Ramsli
  • 1888–1891: Edvard Liljedahl
  • 1892–1898: Lars H. Dahle
  • 1899–1904: Andreas B. Vamraak
  • 1905–1913: Gunnar O. Mjølsvik
  • 1914–1925: Anders H. Berge
  • 1826–1931: August Gunnarskog
  • 1932–1940: Knut Opdahl
  • 1940–1945: Johan Arntzen
  • 1945–1945: Anders Sterri
  • 1945–1955: Magnus L. Osland
  • 1956–1963: Albert Hellem

Notable people