Editing Oppdal Municipality (section)

===Prehistory===
Oppdal is an alpine community which dates back to the Norwegian [[Iron Age]]. It is located at a crossroads for traffic from [[Trondheim (city)|Trondheim]], the [[Dovrefjell]] mountain range, and [[Sunndal Municipality]] on the west coast. This is reflected in the three rays in the coat-of-arms.

Oppdal was first settled sometime before 600 [[Common Era|CE]]. By then there were about 50 farms in the area, and this number grew by about 20 more in the [[Viking Age]]. There are remnants of over 700 [[Norse mythology|Pagan]] [[Tumulus|grave mound]]s from the time at Vang, in which jewelry and other pieces from the [[British Isles]] were found. This indicates that the area was relatively affluent and participated in the Viking trade. Much of the affluence was likely derived from the availability of game, both in the area and from nearby mountain ranges. Several game traps can still be seen in mountains around Oppdal, particularly ditches for [[reindeer]]. There have been more than 80 finds of at least two different types of [[arrow]]heads in the area.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Haugland |first=Kjell |title=Oppdals historie – Hovudlinjer og tidsbilde |publisher=Oppdal historielag |year=2002 |isbn=82-7083-269-3}}</ref>

Archeological finds in Oppdal indicate that there were less pronounced economic disparities than elsewhere in Norway. Communal efforts to hold off famine and share burdens appear to have been common throughout several centuries.