Helgeland is the most southerly district in Northern Norway . Generally speaking, Helgeland refers to the part of Nordland county that is located south of the Arctic Circle . It is bordered in the north by the Saltfjellet mountains and Svartisen glacier, which form a natural border with the Salten district. In the south, Helgeland borders Trøndelag county.
24-450: The district covers an area of about 18,832 square kilometres (7,271 sq mi), with nearly 79,000 inhabitants. There are four towns in the district: from south to north these are Brønnøysund , Mosjøen , Sandnessjøen , and Mo i Rana . The Old Norse form of the name was Hálogaland (see Hålogaland ). Helgeland is commonly divided into three or four sections: Helgeland is characterized by pointed mountains and Strandflaten ,
48-549: A narrow peninsula on the mainland surrounded by islands and water. The town is connected to the island Torget by the Brønnøysund Bridge . Brønnøysund has a temperate oceanic climate with mild winters (Koppen Cfb ) considering the northerly location, and a long frost-free season. 9 of the 12 monthly all-time lows are from 1940 or older; 3 from before 1900. The coldest low after 2000 is −14.8 °C (5.4 °F) from February 2010. The all-time low −18.4 °C (−1.1 °F)
72-925: A shallow lowland area, sometimes just above the sea surface, and sometimes just below the surface. People living on the coast have settled on this lowland (while inland towns, such as Mo and Mosjøen, are situated in valleys). A consequence of the Strandflaten is thousands of islands, and shallow waters going far into the sea. This has provided some shelter from stormy weather, which might occur in winter. Some islands are fairly large, often with unique mountains, such as Torghatten , De syv søstre (The Seven Sisters), Hestmannen , Rødøyløva (in Rødøy Municipality ), Dønnamannen ( picture ), and several small islands in Træna Municipality . There are several sea bird colonies, such as Lovund ( picture Archived 2007-09-29 at
96-484: A small number of small seaports with ladested status. A committee led by Nikolai Schei , formed in 1946 to examine the situation, proposed hundreds of mergers to reduce the number of municipalities and improve the quality of local administration. Most of the mergers were carried out, albeit to significant popular protest. By 1966, most of the mergers had been carried out and there were only 470 municipalities remaining. This number continued to slowly decrease throughout
120-642: Is a town and the administrative centre of Brønnøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway . The 3.38-square-kilometre (840-acre) town has a population (2024) of 5,093 and a population density of 1,507 inhabitants per square kilometre (3,900/sq mi). It is also a former municipality within Nordland county. The village of Brønnøysund originally was declared a ladested in 1923 which made it an independent municipality. After merging with Brønnøy Municipality in 1964, it lost its town status. Then in 2000, it once again received town status . The town lies along
144-591: Is a list of people who held this position: The town is the administrative and commercial centre of Brønnøy Municipality. In recent years, Brønnøysund has managed to create a certain economic growth. Fjord Seafood originated here, as well as the largest limestone mine in Northern Europe and the highest foodstuff production in Northern Norway are examples of entrepreneurship and well-run economy in this somewhat prosperous region. Modern agriculture, hydroponics,
168-537: Is also base for some of the offshore helicopter services, making it possible to exploit the vast petroleum resources offshore. The town has a number of cultural institutions: The NRK series Himmelblå , a franchise of the British Two Thousand Acres of Sky , was filmed in part in Brønnøysund and on various locations nearby. The local Brønnøy Church serves the town of Brønnøysund. Brønnøysund sits on
192-587: Is the second largest lake in Norway. There are three large national parks in Helgeland: Saltfjellet–Svartisen National Park (partly), Børgefjell National Park (partly), and Lomsdal–Visten National Park (created in May 2009). Helgeland is the scene for Henrik Ibsen 's 1857 historical play " The Vikings at Helgeland " ( Hærmændene paa Helgeland ), whose plot takes place at this region during
216-536: The Brønnøysund Register Centre , in which the new e-government portal Altinn is the newest addition. Torghatten ASA has its headquarters in Brønnøysund. Brønnøysund Airport, Brønnøy is located only about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) from the town centre, and is a vital communications link not only for the town, but also for a large region surrounding the town. The airport opened in 1968, providing modern and much needed, time-effective transportation to
240-540: The Schei Committee . On 1 January 1964, the town of Brønnøysund (population: 2,064) was merged with Velfjord Municipality (population: 1,380), Sømna Municipality (population: 2,347), Brønnøy Municipality (population: 2,635), and the Lande -Tosen area of Bindal Municipality to form a new, enlarged Brønnøy Municipality . At that time, it lost its status as a ladested (town). In 2000, after some changes to Norwegian law,
264-660: The Wayback Machine ) with thousands of puffins . The Solvær Islands ( Solværøyene ) in Lurøy Municipality consists of about 300 small and flat islands and has the highest densities of Eurasian eagle-owls in Europe. The highest mountains, are located inland, where Oksskolten is the highest mountain in Northern Norway. There are many valleys inland, such as the Dunderlandsdalen , Vefsndalen, and Hattfjelldalen . Røssvatnet
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#1732845367144288-462: The Norwegian civil wars that raged around 1240, in the high medieval era of Norway. The region was re-populated by immigrants from Southern Norway , Trøndelag , and Sweden , which could explain the unique dialect with a Swedish-like intonation . In May 1945 "the prisoners [foreign POWs] from Ylvingen " were transported by ship from the harbour at Brønnøysund. ("the song saved my life") documents
312-519: The coast and is often called "the coastal town in the middle of Norway." Brønnøysund is also the regional center of Southern Helgeland . During the Viking Age , Torgar , by the foot of the legendary mountain Torghatten , was a nationally powerful chieftain seat and an important commercial center along the coast. The original inhabitants were wiped out in an outright massacre by Duke Skule and his men in
336-444: The farewell to Igor Trapitsin and the other Soviet ex-POWs from the harbour at Brønnøysund. The town (and former municipality) is named Brønnøysund after the small island Brønnøya ( Old Norse : Brunnøy ) since it is located on the island. The first element is brunnr which means " well " and the second element is øy which means " island ". The final element of the name is sund which means " strait ", referring to
360-511: The large TTS transport corporation, wood processing and tourism are the main driving industries. Brønnøysund has daily visits by the Hurtigruten (Coastal Express), northbound at night and southbound in the afternoon. It has its own airport, Brønnøysund Airport, Brønnøy , and a direct eastbound connection to the European route E6 highway. Throughout Norway, the town is known as the location of
384-476: The municipal elections of 2003. A small number of municipalities agreed to the plan; for instance Frei Municipality merged with Kristiansund Municipality on 1 January 2008. Others rejected the possibility following the referendums, such as Hobøl Municipality merging with Spydeberg Municipality or Hol Municipality merging with Ål Municipality . The project was abandoned by Solberg's successor Åslaug Haga in early 2006. In 2016 and 2017, when Erna Solberg
408-498: The municipality of Brønnøy designated Brønnøysund as a town once again. Prior to its dissolution in 1964, the 4.6-square-kilometre (1.8 sq mi) municipality was the 652nd largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Brønnøysund Municipality was the 439th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 1,991. The municipality's population density was 432.8 inhabitants per square kilometre (1,121/sq mi) and its population had increased by 27.3% over
432-403: The previous 10-year period. The municipal council (Bystyre) of Brønnøysund was made up of 21 representatives that were elected to four-year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party . The mayor ( Norwegian : ordfører ) of Brønnøysund was the political leader of the town-municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here
456-406: The region, and making it possible to reach both the capital and medical services within an acceptable timeframe. In May 2010, the direct flight to Oslo was launched, and since April 2011 there are three daily departures for Oslo with a 50-seat plane. There are also connections to Sandnessjøen , Mo i Rana , Rørvik , Trondheim , and Bodø . It is served by Norway's oldest airline, Widerøe . It
480-421: The remainder of the 20th century. By January 2002, there were 434 municipalities in Norway, and Erna Solberg , Minister of Local Government and Regional Development at the time, expressed a wish to reduce the current tally by 100. The Ministry spent approximately 140 million kr on a project to look into the possibilities in this field, and referendums were held in several municipalities in conjunction with
504-407: The strait of water that flows alongside the island and town. Islands with freshwater wells were important for seafarers. The village of Brønnøysund was established as a municipality on 1 January 1923 when it was separated from Brønnøy Municipality when it became a ladested (port town) and municipality of its own. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of
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#1732845367144528-627: The time of Erik Blood-axe ( c. 930 –934). Helgeland Kammerkor , a mixed choir with members from all parts of Helgeland, have recorded an album of folk music from Helgeland ( Folketoner fra Helgeland , 2005). The album contains 27 folk tunes from Helgeland, recorded in collaboration with folk musicians from the area. The album was recorded in Alstahaug Church , a 900-year-old stone church located near Sandnessjøen . Br%C3%B8nn%C3%B8ysund Brønnøysund ( Urban East Norwegian pronunciation: [ˈbrœ̂nːœʏˌsʉn] )
552-517: Was recorded in February 1966, and the all-time high 32.1 °C (89.8 °F) was set on July 27, 2019. List of former municipalities of Norway This is a list of former municipalities of Norway , i.e. municipalities that no longer exist. When the local council system was introduced in Norway in 1837-38, the country had 392 municipalities. By 1958, the number had grown to a total of 744 rural municipalities, 64 city municipalities as well as
576-493: Was the Prime Minister of Norway, she and her government pushed for further municipal consolidations which mostly took place in 2020, reducing the number of municipalities to 356. Some municipalities ceased to exist only for a limited amount of time, such as Flakstad Municipality and Hole Municipality (which were former municipalities between 1964 and 1976). In cases like these, the mergers of municipalities were reversed and
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