Klinga Municipality


Klinga is a former municipality in the old Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1891 until its dissolution in 1964. The municipality encompassed the mainland areas south of the river Namsen in what is now Namsos Municipality in Trøndelag county. The administrative centre was the village of Bangsund. Other villages in Klinga included Spillum and Klinga where Klinga Church is located.
Prior to its dissolution in 1963, the municipality was the 252nd largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Klinga Municipality was the 370th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 2,466. The municipality's population density was and its population had increased by 6.1% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The municipality of Klingen was established on 1 January 1891 when the municipality of Namsos herred was divided in two. The northern part became Vemundvik Municipality and the southern part became Klingen Municipality. In 1917, the spelling of the name was changed to Klinga Municipality.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, a large municipal merger took place with the following areas being merged into a new, larger Namsos Municipality with 10,875 residents.
The municipality is named after the old Klingen farm. The name is a form of the Old Norse word which means "circle" or "orb". This name likely refers to the round-shaped mountain located behind the farm site. Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Klingen. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Klinga.

Churches

The Church of Norway had one parish within Klinga Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Namsos prestegjeld and the Indre Namdal prosti in the Diocese of Nidaros.
Parish Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
KlingaKlinga ChurchKlinga1866

Geography

The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Hemnafjellet on the border with Otterøy Municipality. The municipality is located at the inner end of the Namsenfjorden. Namdalseid Municipality was located to the west, Otterøy Municipality was located to the northwest, the town of Namsos and Vemundvik Municipality were both located to the north, Overhalla Municipality was located to the east, and Kvam Municipality was located to the south.

Government

While it existed, Klinga 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 Frostating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council of Klinga Municipality was made up of 15 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 Klinga Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who held this position:
  • 1891–1907: Halvdan Romstad
  • 1908–1913: Eirik Spillum
  • 1914–1916: Karl Klingen
  • 1917–1922: Ole Schiefloe
  • 1923–1925: Nils Christian Pehrson
  • 1926–1939: Martin Tørring
  • 1940–1954: Konrad Aagesen
  • 1955–1955: Arne Kvam
  • 1956–1961: Sverre Lindseth
  • 1962–1963: Alf Derås