Bjarkøy

Bjarkøy is a former municipality in Troms county, Norway. The 73.6-square-kilometre (28.4 sq mi) municipality existed from 1838 until it was merged with Harstad Municipality on 1 January 2013. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Nergården on the island of Bjarkøya. The island municipality was spread across several islands: Bjarkøya, Sandsøya, Grytøya (northern half), Krøttøya, and many smaller ones. Originally, the municipality also included the southwestern part of the large island of Senja.

Bjarkøy kommune
Bjarkedjo suohkan
Former municipality
Flag of Bjarkøy kommune
Flag
Coat of arms of Bjarkøy kommune
Coat of arms
Official logo of Bjarkøy kommune
Troms within
Norway
Bjarkøy within Troms
Bjarkøy within Troms
Coordinates: 68°59′55″N 16°29′53″E
CountryNorway
CountyTroms
DistrictCentral Hålogaland
Established1 Jan 1838
 • Created asFormannskapsdistrikt
Disestablished1 Jan 2013
 • Succeeded byHarstad Municipality
Administrative centreNergården
Area
 (upon dissolution)
 • Total73.61 km2 (28.42 sq mi)
 • Land73.44 km2 (28.36 sq mi)
 • Water0.17 km2 (0.07 sq mi)  0.2%
Population
 (2013)
 • Total455
 • Density6.2/km2 (16/sq mi)
DemonymBjarkøyværing[1]
Official language
[2]
 • Norwegian formNeutral
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeNO-1915
Data from Statistics Norway

One of the reasons why Bjarkøy merged with Harstad in 2013 was due to the promised funding of the Bjarkøy Fixed Link project. It would link the main islands of Bjarkøy together with a bridge and undersea road tunnel enabling residents to drive further which would drastically shorten the ferry ride to Harstad.

General information
View of Grytøya island

The prestegjeld (church parish) of Sand was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The name was later changed to Bjarkøy. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, the southernmost part of the island of Senja (the Senjehesten peninsula) and the Lemmingsvær island (total population of the two locations: 480) was transferred from Bjarkøy to Tranøy Municipality.[3] On 1 January 2013, Bjarkøy Municipality was merged with Harstad Municipality to the south, forming a new, larger municipality called Harstad.

Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the island of Bjarkøya (Old Norse: Bjarkarey) since the first Bjarkøy Church was built there. The first element is the genitive case of bjǫrk which means "birch". The last element is ey which means "island". (The name of the island, since it is an old trading place, is perhaps inspired by the name of the old and well-known town of Birka in Sweden, which has the same meaning).[4][5]

Prior to 1887, the municipality was called Sand after the name of the church site on the nearby island of Sandsøya. In 1887, the church was moved to the island of Bjarkøya, so the municipal name was changed to Bjarkø (an older spelling). More recent spelling reforms have it spelled Bjarkøy.[5]

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 11 April 1986. The official blazon is "Azure, a demi-griffin passant Or" (Norwegian: I blått en halv gull griff). This means the arms have a blue field (background) and the charge is a demi-griffin (upper half showing, no legs). The griffin has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. Bjarkøy wanted to have its coat of arms to be the same as those used by the medieval Bjarkøy noble family, however, the old 13th century family arms were already in use by Troms county. So a variation was adopted - a demi-griffin was used instead. This family was one of the most influential families in the northern part of Norway during medieval times. They used a griffin for the arms of the family starting in the late 13th century. The arms were designed by Øystein H. Skaugvolldal.[6][7][8] The arms of Bjarkøy were retired after the merger in 2013 since Harstad retained its old coat of arms after the merger.[9]

See also: Coat of arms of Troms county

Churches

The Church of Norway had one parish (sokn) within the municipality of Bjarkøy. It was part of the Trondenes prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland.

Churches in Bjarkøy
Parish (sokn)Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
Bjarkøy og SandsøyBjarkøy ChurchNergården1766
Sandsøy ChurchSandsøya1888

History

This is old Viking territory, and it was a chieftain seat during the Viking Age and the Middle Ages. Among the more famous chieftains you find Thorir Hund, who killed Norway's Patron Saint, Saint Olav in the Battle of Stiklestad in 1030. In 1323, the chieftain seat was raided and burned by Karelian and Novgorod warriors.

Geography

The municipality of Bjarkøy was located entirely on islands. The largest island, Grytøya, was shared with the municipality of Harstad. Other islands included Bjarkøya, Sandsøya, Helløya, Flatøya, and Meløyvær. The Andfjorden flowed along the northern and western side of the municipality and the Vågsfjorden flowed on the eastern and southern sides of the municipality.

Climate
Climate data for Bjarkøya
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Daily mean °C (°F) −2.4
(27.7)		 −2.4
(27.7)		 −1.3
(29.7)		 1.4
(34.5)		 5.7
(42.3)		 9.3
(48.7)		 11.8
(53.2)		 11.5
(52.7)		 7.9
(46.2)		 4.2
(39.6)		 0.7
(33.3)		 −1.5
(29.3)		 3.7
(38.7)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 93
(3.7)		 79
(3.1)		 68
(2.7)		 54
(2.1)		 41
(1.6)		 45
(1.8)		 73
(2.9)		 69
(2.7)		 88
(3.5)		 118
(4.6)		 90
(3.5)		 107
(4.2)		 925
(36.4)
Source: Norwegian Meteorological Institute[10]

Government

While it existed, this municipality was responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, unemployment, social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads. During its existence, this municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.[11]

Municipal council

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Bjarkøy was made up of 13 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows:

Bjarkøy kommunestyre 2012 [12]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Centre Party (Senterpartiet) 6
 Sandsøy/Fenes/Skjellesvik common list
 (Sandsøy/Fenes/Skjellesvik fellesliste)		4
 Bjarkøy List (Bjarkøylista)3
Total number of members:13
Bjarkøy kommunestyre 2008–2011 [13]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
 Sandsøy/Fenes/Skjellesvik common list
 (Sandsøy/Fenes/Skjellesvik fellesliste)		6
 Bjarkøy List (Bjarkøylista)7
Total number of members:13
Bjarkøy kommunestyre 2004–2007 [13]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
 Sandsøy/Fenes/Skjellesvik common list
 (Sandsøy/Fenes/Skjellesvik fellesliste)		7
 Bjarkøy List (Bjarkøylista)6
Total number of members:13
Bjarkøy kommunestyre 2000–2003 [13]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 4
 Sandsøy/Fenes/Skjellesvik common list
 (Sandsøy/Fenes/Skjellesvik fellesliste)		4
 Bjarkøy List (Bjarkøylista)9
Total number of members:17
Bjarkøy kommunestyre 1996–1999 [14]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 3
 Sandsøy/Fenes/Skjellesvik common list
 (Sandsøy/Fenes/Skjellesvik fellesliste)		6
 Bjarkøy List (Bjarkøylista)8
Total number of members:17
Bjarkøy kommunestyre 1992–1995 [15]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 8
  Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) 5
 Fenes/Skjellesvik common list (Fenes/Skjellesvik fellesliste)1
 Sandsøy local list (Sandsøy bygdeliste)3
Total number of members:17
Bjarkøy kommunestyre 1988–1991 [16]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 5
  Joint list of the Conservative Party (Høyre) and the Centre Party (Senterpartiet) 3
 Fenes and Skjellesvik Common List
 (Fenes og Skjellesvik fellesliste)		1
 Bjarkøy and Øyenes List (Bjarkøy og Øyenes liste)5
 Sandsøy local list (Sandsøy bygdeliste)3
Total number of members:17
Bjarkøy kommunestyre 1984–1987 [17]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 5
  Conservative Party (Høyre) 3
  Joint list of the Centre Party (Senterpartiet), Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti), and Liberal Party (Venstre) 5
 Fenes and Skjellesvik Local List
 (Fenes og Skjellesvik Bygdeliste)		1
 Bjarkøy/Sandsøy and Øyenes List
 (Bjarkøy/Sandsøy og Øyenes liste)		3
Total number of members:17
Bjarkøy kommunestyre 1980–1983 [18]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 6
  Conservative Party (Høyre) 4
  Joint list of the Centre Party (Senterpartiet), Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti), and Liberal Party (Venstre) 6
 Fenes and Skjellesvik Common List
 (Fenes og Skjellesvik Fellesliste)		1
Total number of members:17
Bjarkøy kommunestyre 1976–1979 [19]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 8
 Øyenes Common List (Øyenes Fellesliste)1
 Bjarkøy List (Bjarkøy Liste)6
 Fenes and Skjellesvik Common List
 (Fenes og Skjellesvik Fellesliste)		1
 Sandsøy and Fenes Common List
 (Sandsøy og Fenes Fellesliste)		1
Total number of members:17
Bjarkøy kommunestyre 1972–1975 [20]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 17
Total number of members:17
Bjarkøy kommunestyre 1968–1971 [21]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 17
Total number of members:17
Bjarkøy kommunestyre 1964–1967 [22]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 17
Total number of members:17
Bjarkøy herredsstyre 1960–1963 [23]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 17
Total number of members:17
Bjarkøy herredsstyre 1956–1959 [24]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 17
Total number of members:17
Bjarkøy herredsstyre 1952–1955 [25]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 16
Total number of members:16
Bjarkøy herredsstyre 1948–1951 [26]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  List of workers, fishermen, and small farmholders (Arbeidere, fiskere, småbrukere liste) 2
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 10
Total number of members:12
Bjarkøy herredsstyre 1945–1947 [27]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 1
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 15
Total number of members:16
Bjarkøy herredsstyre 1938–1941* [28]  
Party Name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 4
  Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) 4
  Local List(s) (Lokale lister) 8
Total number of members:16
Note: Due to the German occupation of Norway during World War II, no elections were held for new municipal councils until after the war ended in 1945.

Mayors

The mayors of Bjarkøy (incomplete list):

  • 2002?-2007: Trond Markussen (LL)[29]
  • 2007-2011: Eddmar Osvoll (LL)[29]
  • 2011-2012: Jorunn Berg (LL)
  • Boathouse located on Krøttøy
    Boathouse located on Krøttøy
  • Skerry in shallow water, located just outside Krøttøy
    Skerry in shallow water, located just outside Krøttøy

References
  1. "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet.
  2. "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no.
  3. Jukvam, Dag (1999). "Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Statistisk sentralbyrå.
  4. Thorsnæs, Geir, ed. (14 February 2018). "Bjarkøy". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 29 July 2018.
  5. Rygh, Oluf (1911). Norske gaardnavne: Tromsø amt (in Norwegian) (17 ed.). Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. p. 30.
  6. "Civic heraldry of Norway - Norske Kommunevåpen". Heraldry of the World. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
  7. "Bjarkøy, Troms (Norway)". Flags of the World. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
  8. "Godkjenning av våpen og flagg". Lovdata.no (in Norwegian). Norges kommunal- og arbeidsdepartementet. 11 April 1986. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
  9. Tøhaug, Pia (1 February 2013). "Harstad beholder bølgesymbolet". NRK Troms (in Norwegian). Retrieved 29 July 2018.
  10. "eKlima Web Portal". Norwegian Meteorological Institute. Archived from the original on 14 June 2004.
  11. Hansen, Tore; Vabo, Signy Irene, eds. (20 September 2022). "kommunestyre". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
  12. "Tall for Norge: Kommunestyrevalg 2011 - Troms Romsa". Valg Direktoratet. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
  13. "Table: 04813: Members of the local councils, by party/electoral list at the Municipal Council election (M)" (in Norwegian). Statistics Norway.
  14. "Kommunestyrevalget 1995" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1996. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  15. "Kommunestyrevalget 1991" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1993. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  16. "Kommunestyrevalget 1987" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1988. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  17. "Kommunestyrevalget 1983" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1984. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  18. "Kommunestyrevalget 1979" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1979. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  19. "Kommunevalgene 1975" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1977. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  20. "Kommunevalgene 1972" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1973. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  21. "Kommunevalgene 1967" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1967. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  22. "Kommunevalgene 1963" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1964. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  23. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1959" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1960. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  24. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1955" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1957. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  25. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1951" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1952. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  26. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1947" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1948. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  27. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1945" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1947. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  28. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1937" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1938. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  29. "Ordførerskifte i Bjarkøy". NRK (in Norwegian). 15 September 2003. Retrieved 25 March 2023.

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