Editing Leirvik

{{about|the town in Norway|the town in the Faroe Islands|Leirvík|other uses|Leirvik (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2023}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name          = Leirvik
|other_name             = Stord
|native_name            = 
|nickname               = 
|settlement_type        = [[List of towns and cities in Norway|Town]]
|image_skyline          = Catamaran ‘Tidebris’ - Leirvik, Norway.jpg
|image_caption          = View of the town harbour area
|pushpin_map            = Vestland#Norway
|pushpin_label_position = top
|pushpin_label          = 
|pushpin_mapsize        = 
|pushpin_map_caption    = Location of the town
|subdivision_type       = Country
|subdivision_name       = [[Norway]]
|subdivision_type1      = [[List of regions of Norway|Region]] 
|subdivision_name1      = [[Western Norway]]
|subdivision_type2      = [[Counties of Norway|County]] 
|subdivision_name2      = [[Vestland]]
|subdivision_type3      = [[Districts of Norway|District]]
|subdivision_name3      = [[Sunnhordland]]
|subdivision_type4      = [[List of municipalities of Norway|Municipality]]
|subdivision_name4      = [[Stord Municipality]]
|timezone1              = [[Central European Time|CET]] 
|utc_offset1            = +01:00
|timezone1_DST          = [[Central European Summer Time|CEST]] 
|utc_offset1_DST        = +02:00
|established_title      = Established as
|established_date       = &nbsp;
|established_title1     = [[List of towns and cities in Norway|''By'']] (town)
|established_date1      = 1997
|area_footnotes         = <ref name="ssb" />
|area_total_km2         = 9.8
|population_as_of       = 2019
|population_footnotes   = <ref name="ssb" />
|population_total       = 14126
|population_density_km2 = 1441
|population_demonym     = Stordabu
|postal_code_type       = Post Code
|postal_code            = 5417 Stord
|coordinates            = {{coord|59.7798|5.5005|region:NO_type:city|display=inline,title}}
|elevation_m            = 2
|elevation_footnotes    = <ref>{{cite web|title=Leirvik, Stord (Vestland)|url=https://www.yr.no/place/Norway/Vestland/Stord/Leirvik/|publisher=[[yr.no]]|access-date=2020-03-03|archive-date=4 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200304024915/https://www.yr.no/place/Norway/Vestland/Stord/Leirvik/|url-status=live}}</ref>}}

'''Leirvik''' is a [[List of cities and towns in Norway|town]] and the [[administrative centre]] of [[Stord]] municipality in [[Vestland]] county, [[Norway]]. The town lies along the southern coast of the large [[Stord (island)|island of Stord]], along the [[Hardangerfjorden]].  The town gained "town status" in 1997.  The town includes the [[Eldøyane]] peninsula where the large Kværner Stord industrial area is located.<ref name="snl">{{cite web|url=https://snl.no/Leirvik%2Ftettsted_i_Stord|title=Leirvik – tettsted i Stord|author=Store norske leksikon|author-link=Store norske leksikon|language=no|access-date=2015-02-03|archive-date=5 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150205045013/https://snl.no/Leirvik%2Ftettsted_i_Stord|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:On our way to Bergen.jpg|thumb|left|View of the harbor area of Leirvik]]
Leirvik is the regional centre of the [[Traditional districts of Norway|traditional district]] of [[Sunnhordland]], and has many public services and offices such as the Sunnhordland [[District court (Norway)|District court]] and the [[Sunnhordland Museum]],<!-- the museum's website refers to the it as "Sunnhordland Museum" on its english web pages --> as well as many shops and restaurants. [[Stord Church]] and several schools such as [[Stord Upper Secondary School]] and [[Western Norway University of Applied Sciences]] are all located in the town.<ref name="snl" />

The {{convert|9.8|km2|acre|adj=on}} town has a population (2019) of 14,126 and a [[population density]] of {{convert|1441|PD/km2}}.<ref name="ssb">{{cite web|title=Urban settlements. Population and area, by municipality|url=https://www.ssb.no/en/befolkning/statistikker/beftett/aar|date=1 January 2019|author-link=Statistics Norway|author=Statistisk sentralbyrå|access-date=22 November 2023|archive-date=14 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200514042201/https://www.ssb.no/en/befolkning/statistikker/beftett/aar|url-status=live}}</ref> The entire municipality has about 18,700 residents in it (2019), so Leirvik has about 75% of the total population of the municipality. Leirvik is also the largest urban area that is located in a municipality where [[Nynorsk]] is the preferred language form.

==Transportation==
The town lies along the [[European route E39]] highway, just east of the [[Stord Bridge]] which is part of the [[Triangle Link]] which connects a number of islands to the mainland via road bridges and an undersea tunnel.  There is a ferry quay at Skjersholmane in the western part of the town which has regular ferry connections to the nearby islands of [[Halsnøy|Halsnøya]], [[Fjelbergøya]], and [[Borgundøya]] which lie to the east in the [[Hardangerfjorden]].  A regular ferry connection to the nearby island of [[Huglo]] departs just north of Leirvik at the quay at Jektavik. In the main harbour of Leirvik, there are several daily expressboat departures to nearby islands of Halsnøy, Fjellbergøy and Borgundøy as well as the villages of [[Husnes]], [[Skånevik (village)|Skånevik]] and [[Ølensjøen|Ølen]] and the county capital of [[Bergen]]. [[Stord Airport, Sørstokken|Stord Airport]] is located approximately 12 kilometers west of Leirvik center close to the village of [[Sagvåg]]. From the main bus terminal of Leirvik, there are local busses, as well as regional express busses towards Bergen to the north and Stavanger to the south. 

==Media==
The newspaper ''[[Sunnhordland (newspaper)|Sunnhordland]]'' is published in Leirvik,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mediebedriftene.no/Om-medie/Medlemmer/AVIS/Sunnhordaland/ |title=Mediebedriftene: ''Sunnhordland''. |access-date=28 June 2017 |archive-date=5 February 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180205072114/http://www.mediebedriftene.no/Om-medie/Medlemmer/AVIS/Sunnhordaland/ |url-status=live }}</ref> as well as the online newspaper [http://www.stord24.no Stord24]. [[NRK]] also has a local office in Leirvik.

==Name==
Confusingly, when the municipality of [[Stord]] declared that Leirvik was a town in 1997, they decided to name the town "Stord", with the village of Leirvik being the central part of the town.  This was done because the [[Government of Norway|Norwegian government]] required a populated place to have at least 5,000 residents in order to be called a [[List of towns and cities in Norway|town]]. Leirvik alone did not have enough residents unless the whole surrounding areas were also included, so the name "Stord" would represent the whole area. Even though this is the official name, the public acceptance of this has been minimal and controversial, and the name of the urban community remains "Leirvik".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.sunnhordland.no/article/20070131/NYHENDE/101310004|title=Heiter byen Stord eller Leirvik?|newspaper=Sunnhordland|date=2007-01-31|language=no|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150205053506/http://www.sunnhordland.no/article/20070131/NYHENDE/101310004|archive-date=2015-02-05}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.sunnhordland.no/article/20080731/LEIAR/482807680|title=Skal Stord skifta namn no?|newspaper=Sunnhordland|date=2008-07-31|language=no|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150205045448/http://www.sunnhordland.no/article/20080731/LEIAR/482807680|archive-date=2015-02-05}}</ref>

The name Leirvik ({{lang|non|Leirvík}}) translates into "clay bay".  The word "leire" meaning "[[clay]]" and "vik" meaning "[[bay]]".<ref>{{cite book|title=Norske gaardnavne: Søndre Bergenhus amt|edition=11|author-link=Oluf Rygh|last=Rygh|first=Oluf|publisher=W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri|date=1910|location=Kristiania, Norge|pages=144|url=http://www.dokpro.uio.no/perl/navnegransking/rygh_ng/rygh_bla.prl?enhid=170494&avid=38258&s=n|language=no|access-date=5 February 2015|archive-date=23 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923223558/http://www.dokpro.uio.no/perl/navnegransking/rygh_ng/rygh_bla.prl?enhid=170494&avid=38258&s=n|url-status=live}}</ref>  The name comes from the high concentration of clay in the ground. The locals often [[colloquially]] refer to Leirvik by the name "Vikjo", meaning "the bay" in local dialect, rather than "Leirvik".

==See also==
*[[List of towns and cities in Norway]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Vestland|towns}}
{{Most populous urban areas of Norway}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Stord]]
[[Category:Cities and towns in Norway]]
[[Category:Populated places in Vestland]]
[[Category:1997 establishments in Norway]]