Andøy Municipality

Template:Short description Template:Redirect Template:Infobox kommune

Andøy is the northernmost municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Vesterålen archipelago. The main island in the municipality is Andøya. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Andenes at the northernmost point in the municipality. Other villages in the municipality include Bjørnskinn, Bleik, Dverberg, Fiskenes, Fornes, Nordmela, Risøyhamn, Skarstein, Å, Åknes, and Åse.

The Template:Convert municipality is the 172nd largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Andøy is the 191st most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 4,553. The municipality's population density is Template:Convert and its population has decreased by 8.8% over the previous 10-year period.<ref name="ssb pop">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="ssb area">Template:Cite web</ref>

General information

File:Bleik andøya.jpg

Andenes and Bleik are located on the northern part of Andøya

The municipality of Andøy was established as a new municipality on 1 January 1964 due to the work of the Schei Committee. Andøy Municipality was created from the merger of Andenes Municipality (population: 3,812), Bjørnskinn Municipality (population: 1,835), and Dverberg Municipality (population: 1,719). Initially, the new Andøy Municipality had 7,366 residents. The municipal boundaries have not changed since that time.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Name

The municipality is named after the island on which it is located, Andøya (Template:Langx). The first element is the genitive case of the old uncompounded name of the island Template:Lang which has an unknown meaning. The last element is Template:Wikt-lang which means "island".<ref name="snl">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 7 January 1983. The official blazon is "Azure, a schnecke argent from base sinister to sinister" (Template:Langx). This means the arms have a field (background) that is divided by a line called a schnecke (a swirling counter-clockwise spiral design that is looks like a wave). The field located below the line 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 tincture above the line is blue. The colors and design of the arms were chosen as a symbol for the fact that the municipality is situated at the sea and that fishing is important economically to the municipality. The arms were designed by Hallvard Trætteberg after an idea of Henry Oddlo Erichsen.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Churches

The Church of Norway has three parishes (Template:Lang) within Andøy Municipality. It is part of the Vesterålen prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Sør-Hålogaland.

**Churches in Andøy**
Parish (Template:Lang)	Church name	Location of the church	Year built
Andenes	Andenes Church	Andenes	1876
Bjørnskinn	Bjørnskinn Church	Bjørnskinn	1885
Dverberg	Dverberg Church	Dverberg	1843
Dverberg	Fornes Chapel	Fornes	1965

Rocket Range

Andøya Space, formerly Andøya Rocket Range, is a civilian rocket range located a few kilometres south of Andenes. As of 2022, construction is in progress for a spaceport capable of launching small satellites. Andøya Space supports research as well as providing educational programming and military work. It also operates another launch site in Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Geography

File:Andoya3.JPG

Part of Andøya seen towards the east

File:Forfjord.jpg

Forfjord valley on Hinnøya, partly in Andøy municipality.

Andøy Municipality is spread across the island of Andøya (the northernmost island in the Vesterålen archipelago) and the northeastern part of the island of Hinnøya (the largest and most populous island in Norway). The municipality also consists of smaller skerries including Bleiksøya, Vomma, and Stavaøyan. Andøy is located between the Gavlfjorden and the Andfjorden, and the Risøysundet strait separates the two main islands in Andøy. The Andøy Bridge connects the two islands.

The highest point in the municipality is the Template:Convert tall mountain Skrivartinden.<ref name="elev" /> The midsection of the island consists of bogs and marshes, known for their Arctic cloudberries. There are numerous lakes on the island including Bleiksvatnet and Skogvollvatnet. The island is also the only place in continental Norway where coal and fossils from dinosaurs are found. Forfjorddalen nature reserve on Hinnøya has some of the oldest pine trees in Scandinavia, some more than 700 years old.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Birdlife

Lying furthest north in the area known as Vesterålen, Andøy is a mixture of vast areas of marshland fens, with a backdrop of high peaked mountains such as Kvasstinden. The coast is famous for its sheltered bays with white sandy shores. The area has a rich bird life and this is reflected in some good birding localities like Forfjorddalen Nature Reserve and Skogvoll, the latter a Ramsar site of international importance.

The bird cliff at Bleiksøya, outside of Bleik, is a spectacular and photogenic landmark outside the northern part of Andøya, with many species of seabirds including puffin.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Climate

Andøya has a subpolar oceanic climate (Cfc).

Template:Weather box

Government

Andøy 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 Midtre Hålogaland District Court and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

Mayors

The mayor (Template:Langx) of Andøy 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:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Div col

1964-1964: Anton P. Medby
1964–1966: Knut Bolstad
1966–1967: Johan Kleppe (V)
1968–1973: Harold Nicolaisen (H)
1974–1975: Ole Benjaminsen (H)
1976-1979: Johan Kleppe (V)
1980-1995: Leif A. Iversen (H)
1995-1999: Kjell-Are Johansen (Ap)
1999-2019: Jonni Helge Solsvik (H)
2019–2023: Knut Andreas Nordmo (Sp)
2023–present: Kjell-Are Johansen (Ap)

Template:Div col end

Transportation

The Hurtigruten boat stops at Risøyhamn in Andøy. Andøya Airport at Andenes is served by Widerøe airlines. During the summer, Andenes is connected to Gryllefjord on the island of Senja by the Andenes–Gryllefjord Ferry. By car, you reach Andøy on Norwegian County Road 82, northbound from Sortland.

Military

Andøya Air Station is located next to Andenes. It is the home of the 333rd Squadron of the Royal Norwegian Air Force and houses all P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft in the Norwegian Armed Forces.

Notable people

Torbjørn Bratt (ca.1502 in Andenes – 1548), a clergyman who was the first Bishop of Trondheim
Helmer Hanssen (1870 in Bjørnskinn – 1956), a sailor, pilot, and polar explorer who was one of the first five explorers to reach the South Pole with Roald Amundsen
Nanna With (1874 in Andenes – 1965), a journalist and voice pedagogue
Torstein Raaby (1918 in Dverberg – 1964), a telegrapher, resistance fighter, explorer, and crew member on the Kon-Tiki expedition
Finn Myrvang (born 1937 in Bjørnskinn), a historian, folklore collector, and academic
Nick Borgen (born 1952 in Andenes), a Norwegian–Swedish musician, singer, and writer

References

Template:Reflist

External links

Municipal fact sheet from Statistics Norway Template:In lang

Template:Use dmy dates Template:Sister bar Template:Nordland Template:Authority control