Kvinesdal Municipality

The parish of Kvinesdal was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). In 1841, the rural neighboring Fjotland Municipality (population: 980) to the north was merged with Kvinesdal Municipality (population: 3,226) to form a new, larger Kvinesdal Municipality, although this was short-lived. In 1858, the merger was un-done and Kvinesdal Municipality was divided: the northern district (population: 1,044) became Fjotland Municipality once again and the southern district (population: 4,485) continued on as smaller Kvinesdal Municipality.^[8]

On 1 January 1900, Kvinesdal Municipality was divided into two: the southern area around the Fedafjorden (population: 1,090) became the new Feda Municipality and the northern district (population: 2,937) was renamed as Liknes Municipality. In 1917, Liknes Municipality was changed (back) to Kvinesdal Municipality.^[8]

During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee.^[9][10] On 1 January 1963, the following areas were merged to form a much larger Kvinesdal Municipality:^[8]

Historically, this municipality was part of the old Vest-Agder county. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became a part of the newly-formed Agder county (after Aust-Agder and Vest-Agder counties were merged).^[11]

The long, narrow Kvinesdal Municipality stretches from the mountains in the north, along the Kvinesdal valley to the Fedafjorden in the south. To the west, Kvinesdal Municipality is bordered by Flekkefjord Municipality and Sirdal Municipality. To the east, it is bordered by Åseral Municipality and Hægebostad Municipality. To the south, it is bordered by Lyngdal Municipality, and it is bordered by Farsund Municipality in the east and south. A small segment of the northern boundary borders Bygland Municipality.

The highest point in the municipality is the 992.62-metre (3,256.6 ft) tall mountain Venehei, located a short distance north of the village of Knaben.^[1] Two valleys meet in Kvinesdal's center: the larger Kvinesdal, known as the Vesterdalen (lit. 'the Western Valley') through which flows the river Kvina and the smaller Austerdalen (lit. 'the Eastern Valley') through which flows the river Litleåna until it joins the Kvina. The river Kvina, which runs through the municipality, is known for its salmon, and salmon fishing is a popular activity.

About 10% of the inhabitants of Kvinesdal Municipality are American citizens, and the municipality does enjoy a special relationship with the United States. Every year, the municipality hosts a special festival remembering the days when local people emigrated to the new world.

The Kvinesdal valley was home of many prominent characters in the Saga Period. Among them were the Skald Tjodolv the Frode. Frode means one with great knowledge of the history of ancestors. He composed a historic poem for his king Harold Fairhair. His work was later combined into the Heimskringla when it was recorded by Snorri Sturluson.

In northern Kvinesdal, along the high plateau which sits at 550 metres (1,800 ft) above sea level, records show that the Salmeli Farm dates back at least to the year 1300. During the Black Death years of 1350 the farm became deserted, but was back as a working farm again by 1647. It is now a historic site.

The bailiff Stig Bagge, who was granted local leadership from 1536 to 1542 by king Christian III, was an energetic man when he lived at his ancestral home of Eikeland in Kvinesdal. According to the reports of Peder Claussøn Friis, he executed refractory peasants so willingly that the district thought it was to excess; he was the district's bogeyman for many years thereafter. When the bailiff in Nedenes was killed in his bed and rebels came in an unsuccessful attempt to capture and execute Stig, he collected his men and brutally stifled the revolt. Stig himself died by being drawn and quartered by the Dutch when he was caught in piracy or espionage off their coast at Walcheren.^[19]

Kvinesdal 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.^[20] The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Agder District Court and the Agder Court of Appeal.

In addition to various small businesses and public services, Kvinesdal's economy is driven in part by hydroelectric power. The Sira-Kvina power company derives hydroelectric power from the Kvina river, in addition to various smaller dams. Eramet is an important local employer that provides work to about 200 persons in producing manganese-alloys.^[42] There is also a small tourism industry, with golfing and fishing being the main draws.

• Peder Jacobsen Bøgvald (1762 in Feda – 1829), a sea captain, farmer, and politician
• Kristian Marcelius Førland (1891–1978), an artist who lived and painted in Kvinesdal
• Erling Moi (1918 in Kvinesdal – 1944), a Norwegian resistance member in WWII
• Sigbjørn Hølmebakk (1922 in Feda – 1981), an author
• Anne Gullestad (1925 in Kvinesdal – 1998), an actress and theatre director^[43]
• Gordon Hølmebakk (1928 in Feda – 2018), a publishing editor, essayist, and novelist
• Aril Edvardsen (1938 in Kvinesdal – 2008), an evangelical preacher and missionary whose former home is now a museum
• Andreas Hompland (born 1946 in Kvinesdal), a social scientist, journalist, and non-fiction writer
• Arnfinn Moland (born 1951 in Kvinesdal), a historian and writer
• Odd Omland (born 1956), a politician who was mayor of Kvinesdal from 2003 to 2013
• Per Sverre Kvinlaug (born 1974), a politician who was mayor of Kvinesdal starting in 2015
• Silvia Moi (born 1978 in Kvinesdal), an opera singer^[44]
• Luxus Leverpostei, (Norwegian Wiki), a band formed in Kvinesdal in 1991

• Kvinesdal Rock Festival