Moskenes Municipality

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Moskenes is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The municipality comprises the southern part of the island of Moskenesøya in the traditional district of Lofoten. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Reine. Other villages include Sørvågen, Hamnøya, and Å.

The Template:Convert municipality is the 322nd largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Moskenes is the 338th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 954. The municipality's population density is Template:Convert and its population has decreased by 13.9% over the previous 10-year period.<ref name="ssb pop">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="ssb area">Template:Cite web</ref>

The municipal government owes Template:NOK (as of 2022), and the significance of this debt has made it difficult to find a neighboring municipality that is interested in merging with Moskenes.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

History

The municipality was established on 1 July 1916 when the southern part of Flakstad Municipality was separated to become Moskenes. Initially, Moskenes had a population of 1,306.

On 1 January 1964, the Flakstad Municipality and Moskenes Municipality were reunited, as a new, larger Moskenes Municipality. Prior to the merger, Moskenes had 2,001 residents and the new municipality of Moskenes had 4,068 residents. This new municipality did not last long because on 1 January 1976, Flakstad Municipality broke away again to once again form a separate municipality. This left Moskenes with 1,705 residents.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Moskenes farm (historically spelled "Muskenes" in 1567) since the first Moskenes Church was built there. The first element is likely an old name for the island. It may have been derived from the word Template:Lang or Template:Langwhich means "sea spray" . The last element is Template:Wikt-lang which means "headland".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Template:See also

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 12 September 1986. The official blazon is "Azure, a gurge argent" (Template:Langx). This means the arms have a blue field (background) and the charge is a vortex spiral. The spiral 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 blue color in the field and the spiral were chosen to represent vortexes or whirlpools, such as the Moskenstraumen, which appear in the channel just south of the island of Moskenesøya when the tide comes in, making it a hazardous channel. The arms were designed by Arvid Sveen.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Culture

Churches

The Church of Norway has one parish (Template:Lang) within Moskenes Municipality. It is part of the Lofoten prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Sør-Hålogaland.

**Churches in Moskenes**
Parish (Template:Lang)	Church name	Location of the church	Year built
Moskenes	Moskenes Church	Moskenes	1819
Moskenes	Reine Church	Reine	1890

Attractions

Moskenes is among the most scenic municipalities in all Norway, and the picturesque fishing villages of Hamnøya, Reine, Sørvågen, Moskenes, Å, and Tind all have a dramatic backdrop of jagged peaks rising above the Vestfjorden. The historic Glåpen Lighthouse is located just east of Sørvågen.

Between Lofotodden, the southwestern tip of the Lofoten chain, and the offshore island of Mosken, there is the tidal current of Moskenstraumen. This is better known internationally as the Maelstrom, feared by all sailors. On the isolated northwestern coast of the island, there are also interesting Stone Age cave paintings. The highest mountain is Hermannsdalstinden at Template:Convert. Lofotodden National Park is partially located within the municipality.

Government

Moskenes Municipality is responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), 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.<ref name="ks">Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref> The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Salten og Lofoten District Court and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

Mayors

The mayor (Template:Langx) of Moskenes is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who have held this position (incomplete list):<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Div col

1945-1945: Sigurd Lund Hamran (Ap)
1961-1961: Sigurd Lund Hamran (Ap)
1963-1971: Sigurd Lund Hamran (Ap)
1971-1975: Arthur Valen (Ap)
1975-1983: Hans Husby (Ap)
1983-1987: Rolf Bendiksen (Ap)
1987-2003: Geir Wulff-Nilsen (LL)
2003-2007: Lillian Hansen (Ap)
2007-2011: Geir Wulff-Nilsen (LL)
2011-2023: Lillian Rasmussen (LL/SV)
2023–present: Hanna Sverdrup (LL)

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Geography

Moskenes has a subarctic climate (Köppen Dfc). The municipality of Moskenes lies near the southern end of the Lofoten archipelago on the southern part of the island of Moskenesøya. The Vestfjorden lies to the east, the Moskenstraumen strait lies to the south, and the Norwegian Sea lies to the west. Flakstad Municipality lies to the north (on the northern part of the same island) and the nearby Værøy Municipality is located on islands about Template:Convert to the south. The highest point in the municipality is the Template:Convert tall mountain Hermannsdalstinden.<ref name="elev" />

Climate

Template:Weather box

Notable people

File:Lillian Hansen - Arbeiderpartiet.jpg

Lillian Hansen, 2012

Birger Eriksen (1875 in Flakstad – 1958), a naval commander at Oscarsborg Fortress, where the German cruiser Blücher was sunk in 1940
Rolv Thesen (1896 in Moskenes – 1966), a poet, literary researcher, and literary critic
Rolf Bendiksen (born 1938 in Moskenes), a Norwegian politician who was Mayor of Moskenes from 1983 to 1987
Lillian Hansen (born 1957 in Moskenes), a bus driver, member of parliament, and mayor
Hans Erik Dyvik Husby (born 1972), known as Hank von Hell, a punk rock musician who lived in Moskenes