Samnanger Municipality


Samnanger is a municipality in the Midhordland region of Vestland county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Tysse. Other main villages in the municipality include Haga, Bjørkheim, and Ådland. The municipality is located about east of the city of Bergen, Norway's second largest city. It surrounds the inner part of the Samnangerfjorden and the surrounding valleys. There are mountains that surround the municipality. The development of hydroelectric power plants started here in 1909.
The municipality is the 274th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Samnanger Municipality is the 257th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of. The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 2.7% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The municipality of Samnanger was established on 1 January 1907 when it was separated from the large Os Municipality. Initially, Samnanger Municipality had 3,025 residents. The borders of the municipality have not changed since that time.
Historically, this municipality was part of the old Hordaland county. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became a part of the newly-formed Vestland county.

Name

The municipality is named after the Samnangerfjorden since it is a central geographic feature in the area. The first element is likely the old name for a local river, possibly derived from the word which has an unknown meaning. The last element is which means "bay" or "inlet".

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 27 April 1990. The official blazon is "Gules, six gouttes Or in annulo". This means the arms have a red field and the charge is a set of six gouttes arranged in a circle. The charge has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. Water was chosen as a symbol on the arms because of the wet climate and the source of hydroelectricity that is prevalent in the area. The arms were designed by Even Jarl Skoglund. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Churches

The Church of Norway has one parish within Samnanger Municipality. It is part of the Hardanger og Voss prosti in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.
Parish Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
SamnangerHaga ChurchHaga1995
SamnangerÅdland ChurchÅdland1851

Geography

Samnanger Municipality lies at the inner end of the Samnangerfjorden. Bjørnafjorden Municipality lies to the south, Bergen Municipality is to the west, Vaksdal Municipality is to the north, and Kvam Municipality is to the east. Samnanger Municipality lies on the mainland of Norway, but its western parts lie on the Bergen Peninsula—a large peninsula connected to the mainland by a small isthmus of land running between Trengereid in Bergen and Trengereidfjorden in Samnanger.
The Gullfjellet mountains lie along the western border of the municipality. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Tveitakvitingen, a tripoint on the border of the municipalities of Samnanger, Bjørnafjorden, and Kvam. The mountain Sveningen is another tripoint on the border with Samnanger, Bergen, and Bjørnafjorden municipalities. The Kvamskogen mountain plateau lies along the eastern border of the municipality.

Government

Samnanger 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 Samnanger Municipality is made up of 21 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 Samnanger Municipality is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:
  • 1907–1916: Nils S. Røsseland
  • 1916–1928: Knut Tvedt
  • 1929–1943: Johannes Gaupholm
  • 1943–1945: Johannes Tveiterås
  • 1945–1945: Nils K. Langeland
  • 1946–1959: Ingjald Tveit
  • 1960–1963: Mons Tveit
  • 1964–1967: Martin K. Nilsen
  • 1968–1971: Ragnvald Brigsten
  • 1972–1975: Martin K. Nilsen
  • 1976–1977: Knut N. Langeland
  • 1978–1979: Martin K. Nilsen
  • 1980–1981: Knut N. Langeland
  • 1982–1991: Brynjulv Hernes
  • 1991–1999: Brigt Olav Gåsdal
  • 1999–2015: Marit A. Aase
  • 2015–2023: Knut Harald Frøland
  • 2023–present: Karl Bård Kollbotn

    Police

In 2016, the chief of police for Vestlandet formally suggested a reconfiguration of police districts and stations. He proposed that the police station in Samnanger be closed.

Population

Notable people