The 1,091-square-kilometre (421 sq mi) municipality is the 104th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Kvinnherad is the 93rd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 13,058. The municipality's population density is 12.5 inhabitants per square kilometre (32/sq mi) and its population has decreased by 1.9% over the previous 10-year period.[6][7]
In the southern part of Kvinnherad you will find the typical fjord landscape of western Norway. The areas of Mauranger and Rosendal are said to have about the most beautiful fjord landscape of Hardanger as a whole: narrow fjords, wild water-falls, and the nearby Folgefonna, the third biggest glacier in Norway.[5]
The parish of Qvindherred was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). On 1 January 1907, a small area northwest of the villages of Ølve and Husa (population: 67) was transferred from neighboring Tysnes municipality to Kvinnherad. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1965, the following areas were merged into one large municipality of Kvinnherad:[8]
All of the old Kvinnherad municipality (population: 5,831)
All of Varaldsøy municipality, except for the Mundheim area, (population: 511)
On 1 January 2013, the southwestern part of the Folgefonna peninsula (south of Kysnesstranda) was transferred from Kvinnherad to the neighboring Jondal municipality. This removed forty residents and 37.1 square kilometres (14.3 sq mi) of land area from the municipality.[9]
Name
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old name for the area (Old Norse: Kvinnaherað). The first element may be derived from the word tvinnr which means "double", likely referring to the two rivers running through Rosendal, the administrative centre of the municipality. The last element is herað which means "district" or "countryside".[10] The municipal name has been spelled several ways throughout history. Before 1889, the name was written Quindherred, then in 1889 the spelling was "modernized" to Kvinnherred. At that time, all municipalities in Norway were titled herred (which was used similarly to the word "municipality"), so it was formally named Kvinnherred herred, which looked a little repetitive.[1] On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Kvinnherad.[11]
Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted on 18 June 1982. The official blazon is "Argent, a pall wavy azure" (Norwegian: På kvit grunn ein blå gaffelkross laga med bølgjesnitt). This means the arms have a field (background) 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 ordinary is a pall with wavy edges. The design of the arms show the confluence of two blue rivers into one on a white or silver background. The rivers symbolize the many streams and rivers in the municipality, especially the Hattebergselvi and the Melselvi, that come together just before they run into the sea at Rosendal. The arms were designed by Truls Nygaard, after a proposal by Magnus Hardeland. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.[12][13][14]
The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Kvinnherad is made up of 35 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.
The municipality is located along the large Hardangerfjorden, mostly on the southeast side of the fjord on the Folgefonna peninsula, but also a small part on the other side. It includes several notable islands in the fjord including Varaldsøy, Fjelbergøya, Borgundøya, and Halsnøya.[5]
The municipality has many large lakes including Blådalsvatnet, Juklavatnet, and Onarheimsvatnet. Many of these lakes are utilized for hydroelectric power generation.
Population
Historical population
Year
Pop.
±% p.a.
1845
4,044
—
1855
4,532
+1.15%
1865
4,547
+0.03%
1875
4,627
+0.17%
1891
4,760
+0.18%
1900
5,045
+0.65%
1910
5,108
+0.12%
Year
Pop.
±% p.a.
1920
5,272
+0.32%
1930
5,293
+0.04%
1946
5,701
+0.47%
1951
5,638
−0.22%
1960
5,514
−0.25%
1970
11,811
+7.92%
1980
12,821
+0.82%
Year
Pop.
±% p.a.
1990
13,121
+0.23%
2000
13,196
+0.06%
2010
13,187
−0.01%
2020
13,071
−0.09%
2023
13,058
−0.03%
Note: The municipal borders were changed in 1965, causing a significant change in the population. Source: Statistics Norway[6][37] and Norwegian Historical Data Centre[38]
Tourism and places of interest
Kvinnherad is a popular tourist location because of its natural landscape as well as several places of interest. The most notable of which include Kvinnherad Church, the Bondhusbreen glacier, the shipping mural in Høylandsbygd, and Radiohola. Rosendal, the administrative centre of the municipality, is the site of the greatest tourist attraction in Kvinnherad: the Barony Rosendal. The Barony is the only one of its kind in Norway. It is a museum, which offers valuable information about the Union with Denmark, an important period of Norwegian history.[5] It was one of the locations of the 1958 film "The Vikings" starring Kirk Douglas, Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh and Ernest Borgnine. Many of the citizens of Kvinnherad/Hardanger, Norway were used as extras.[39]
Andreas Lavik (1854–1918), a revivalist, temperance advocate, magazine editor, farmer, headmaster, and politician who lived in Kvinnherad from 1885 where he was Mayor for eight years
Jens Tvedt (1857 in Kvinnherad – 1935), a Norwegian novelist and writer of short stories
Gisle Midttun (1881 in Kvinnherad – 1940), a Norwegian cultural historian and museologist
Olav Midttun (1883 in Mauranger – 1972), a philologist, biographer, and magazine editor
Ragnvald Vaage (1889 in Husnes – 1966), a Norwegian poet, novelist, and children's writer
Sigurd Valvatne DSO DSC (born 1913 in Kvinnherad), a naval officer and submariner
Frank Meidell Falch (1920 in Kvinnherad – 2013), a Norwegian media director and politician
^ abHelland, Amund (1921). "Kvinnherred herred". XII. Søndre Bergenhus Amt. Anden del. Norges land og folk (in Norwegian). Kristiania, Norway: H. Aschehoug & Company. p. 30. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
