Kvam Municipality


Kvam is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The municipality is located along the Hardangerfjorden in the traditional district of Hardanger. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Norheimsund. Other larger settlements in the municipality include Øystese, Strandebarm, Ålvik, Tørvikbygd, Omastranda, Vikedal, Vikøy, and Mundheim. Historically, it was named Vikør Municipality.
The municipality is the 187th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Kvam Municipality is the 129th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of. The municipality's population density is and its population has decreased by 1% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

Name

The municipality was first named Vikør after the old Vikøy farm since the first Vikøy Church was built there. The first element is which means "small bay", "cove", or "inlet". The last element is the genitive case of which means "island". This is likely referring to the small island in the little cove just east of the farm.
On 1 December 1911, a royal resolution changed the name of the municipality to Kvam, bringing back an old name for the area. The name is identical to the word which means "small valley" or "grassy hollow", possibly referring the Steinsdalen valley west of Norheimsund.
Kvam Municipality is one of only three municipalities in Norway that uses the word herad instead of kommune in its name. Both Norwegian words can be translated to be "municipality", but herad is an older word that historically was only used for rural municipalities. Municipalities can choose to use one or the other, but most use the more modern kommune. From 1838 until the mid-20th century, most municipalities used herad or herred for their name, but after some legal changes in the law on municipalities in the 1950s and onwards, most municipalities switched to kommune. The only other municipalities to use herad in 2026 are Voss Municipality and Ulvik Municipality. There are also a few municipalities with herad in the name such as Kvinnherad Municipality.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 27 November 1981. The official blazon is "Azure, a pale pattee argent". This means the arms have a blue field and the ordinary is a pale that curves inwards on each side. The ordinary has a tincture of argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The arms were designed to look like the Fyksesund, a narrow fjord in the municipality. The shape of the fjord is that it is narrower in the middle and this is symbolized in the design. The arms were designed by Magnus Hardeland. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Churches

The Church of Norway has four parishes within Kvam Municipality. It is part of the Hardanger og Voss prosti in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.
Parish Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
StrandebarmStrandebarm ChurchStrandebarm1876
VikøyNorheimsund ChurchNorheimsund1992
VikøyVikøy ChurchVikøy1838
ØysteseØystese ChurchØystese1868
ÅlvikÅlvik ChurchÅlvik1962

History

The old parish of Vikør was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838. According to the 1835 census, the parish had a population of 2,321. On 1 January 1882, a small area of Ullensvang Municipality was transferred to Vikør Municipality. In 1912, the municipality changed its name from "Vikør" to "Kvam".
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1965, the Åsgrenda area on the Folgefonna peninsula was moved from Kvam Municipality to the neighboring Ullensvang Municipality. On the same date, Kvam Municipality also gained a considerable amount of territory, making it a much larger municipality. The following places were merged to create a new, larger Kvam Municipality a population of 9,119:
Kvam Municipality borders Voss Municipality to the north and east; Vaksdal Municipality, Samnanger Municipality, and Bjørnafjorden Municipality to the west; and the Hardangerfjorden to the south. The Fyksesund fjord branches off the main fjord and heads north into the municipality. The Fyksesund Landscape Park surrounds the inner part of the Fyksesund, north of the Fyksesund Bridge. The largest lakes are Bjølsegrøvvatnet and Holmavatnet. In addition a portion of Hamlagrøvatnet is located in Kvam Municipality. The Kvamskogen plateau lies west of Norheimsund and is home to hundreds of holiday cabins. The Steinsdalsfossen waterfall, located in Steine is one of the most visited tourist attractions in Norway. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Fuglafjellet.

Population

Government

Kvam 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 Hordaland District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council of Kvam 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 Kvam Municipality is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. In 2007, Kvam Municipality participated in a trial where the mayor was directly elected. The sitting mayor, Astrid Selsvold, won the election with 26.7% of the votes. The following people have held this position: