Veøy
Herredyes
Formeryes
Former nameVeø herred
Idnumber1541
CountyMøre og Romsdal
DistrictRomsdal
CapitalVeøya
Established1 Jan 1838
Precedednone
Disestablished1 Jan 1964
SucceededMolde Municipality and Rauma Municipality
DemonymVeøygjelding
LanguageNynorsk[1]
Elevation max1263 m
Area rank329
Area total247.1 km²
Population as of1963
Population rank406
Population total2208
Population density8.9 km²
Population increase-8.2
Coordinates62°40′14″N 07°25′29″E

Veøy is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The 247-square kilometre (95-square mile) municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The area is now part of Molde Municipality and Rauma Municipality in the traditional district of Romsdal. The administrative centre was located on the small island of Veøya where the Old Veøy Church is located (the island was also the namesake of the municipality).[2]

Prior to its dissolution in 1964, the 247.1-square kilometre (95.4-square mile) municipality was the 329th largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Veøy Municipality was the 406th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 2,208. The municipality's population density was 8.9 inhabitants per square kilometre (23 /sq mi) and its population had decreased by 8.2% over the previous 10-year period.[3][4]

General information

The parish of Veøy was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). In the fall of 1838, the western district of Veøy Municipality was separated from Veøy to become the new Vestnes Municipality.[5]

During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, Veøy Municipality ceased to exist and its area were divided into two.[5]

Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the island of Veøya (Old Norse: Véøy) since the first Veøy Church was built there and it was the religious center of the whole Romsdal region. The first element part is vé which means "sanctuary" (Vé is a word that comes from German paganism). The last element is øy which means "island". Thus, the name refers to it being a holy island.[6] Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Veø. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Veøy.[7]

Churches

The Church of Norway had three parishes (sokn) within Veøy Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Veøy prestegjeld and the Ytre Romsdal prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nidaros.[4]

Churches in Veøy Municipality
Parish (sokn)Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
VeøyVeøy ChurchSølsnes1907
Sekken ChurchSekken1908
Old Veøy ChurchVeøyac. 1200
HolmHolm ChurchHolm (east of Åfarnes)1907
Rødven ChurchRødven1907
Rødven Stave ChurchRødvenc. 1200
VågstrandaVågstranda ChurchVågstranda1870

Geography

The municipality was located around the great Romsdalsfjorden. Vestnes Municipality and Tresfjord Municipality were to the west, Bolsøy Municipality was to the north, and Nesset Municipality and Eresfjord og Vistdal Municipality were to the east. Hen Municipality, Grytten Municipality, Eid Municipality, and Voll Municipality were all located to the south of Veøy Municipality. The highest point in the municipality was the 1,263-metre (4,144-foot) tall mountain Prosten, on the border with Voll Municipality.[8]

History

Landslide

Just before 8:00 p.m. on 22 February 1756, a landslide with a volume of 12,000,000 to 15,000,000 cubic metres (16,000,000 to 20,000,000 cubic yards) — the largest known landslide in Norway in historic time — traveled at high speed from a height of 400 metres (1,312 ft) on the side of the mountain Tjellafjellet into the Langfjorden 25 kilometres (16 mi) from Veøy. The slide generated three megatsunamis in the immediate area in the Langfjorden and the Eresfjorden with heights of 40 to 50 metres (131 to 164 ft). Damaging waves reached Veøya, where, although reduced in size, they washed inland 20 metres (66 ft) above normal flood levels.[9]

Government

While it existed, Veøy Municipality was 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 was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.[10] The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Frostating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council (Heradsstyre) of Veøy Municipality 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.

Mayors

The mayor (Norwegian Nynorsk: ordførar) of Veøy Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:[11]

  • 1838–1842: Ole Olsen Nesje
  • 1843–1845: Rev. Tybring
  • 1846–1847: Jon Bjerke
  • 1848–1852: Christian Frost
  • 1852–1853: Knud I. Dalsæt[12]
  • 1854–1855: Jørgen Olafsen
  • 1856–1859: Knud I. Dalset
  • 1860–1861: Jørgen Olafsen[13]
  • 1862–1874: Rasmus Rolfsen Arnet[14][15]
  • 1874–1888: Jørgen Olafsen[16][17][18]
  • 1888–1889: Anders L. Dalset[19]
  • 1890–1899: Ole H. Holm[20][21]
  • 1899–1908: O. Ødegaard[22]
  • 1908–1911: Erik Flovik[23]
  • 1911–1919: Lars Ottestad[24]
  • 1920–1931: Nils Nesje[25][26]
  • 1931–1934: P.A. Kjølset[27]
  • 1934–1937: Nils Nesje[28]
  • 1937–1941: Peder Vik[29]
  • 1941–1945: David Reistad[30]
  • 1945–1955: Leif Ottestad[31]
  • 1955–1964: Peder Mork (KrF)[32]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Norsk Lovtidende. 2den Afdeling. 1932. Samling af Love, Resolutioner m.m" (in Norwegian). Norsk Lovtidend. Oslo, Norway: Grøndahl og Søns Boktrykkeri. 1932.
  2. ^
  3. ^ Statistisk sentralbyrå. "Table: 06913: Population 1 January and population changes during the calendar year (M)" (in Norwegian)
  4. ^ Statistisk sentralbyrå (1951-01-01). Norges Sivile, Geistlige, Rettslige og Militære Inndeling 1. Januar 1951 (PDF) (in Norwegian). Norges Offisielle Statistikk. Oslo, Norge: H. Aschehoug & Co.
  5. ^ Jukvam, Dag (1999). "Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen" (in Norwegian). Statistisk sentralbyrå. ISBN 9788253746845.
  6. ^ Rygh, Oluf (1908). Norske gaardnavne: Romsdals amt (in Norwegian). 13 ed. Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. p. 244.
  7. ^ "Norsk Lovtidende. 2den Afdeling. 1917. Samling af Love, Resolutioner m.m" (in Norwegian). Norsk Lovtidend. Kristiania, Norge: Grøndahl og Søns Boktrykkeri. 1917.
  8. ^ "Kart over Noreg" (in Norwegian). Kartverket
  9. ^ Hoel, Christer. "The Tjelle Rock Avalanche in 1756". fjords.com. Archived from the original on 4 August 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-22.
  10. ^
  11. ^ Olafsen, Olaf (1926). Veøy i fortid og nutid : en historisk-topografisk beskrivelse (in Norwegian). Vol. 1. Norheimsund: Skaars boktrykkeri.
  12. ^ "Romsdals Amtsformandskab" (in Norwegian). Postbudet. 1852-06-12. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  13. ^ "Indlandet" (in Norwegian). Aftenbladet. 1860-06-15. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  14. ^ "Romsdals Amtsformandskab" (in Norwegian). Møringen. 1869-06-03. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  15. ^ "Referat af Romsdals Amtsformandskabsforhandlinger 1873" (in Norwegian). Aalesunds Blad. 1873-06-11. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  16. ^ "Jernbanemøte" (in Norwegian). Aalesunds Blad. 1874-08-18. p. 2. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  17. ^ "Referat af Romsdals Amtsformandskabs Forhandlinger for Aar 1877" (in Norwegian). Aalesunds Blad. 1877-06-05. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  18. ^ "Referat af Romsdals Amtsformandskabs Forhandlinger" (in Norwegian). Romsdals Amtstidende. 1880-06-03. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  19. ^ "Romsdals Amtsthing" (in Norwegian). Søndmørsposten. 1888-06-04. p. 2. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  20. ^ "Referat af Forhandlingerne i Romsdals Amtsthing" (in Norwegian). Romsdalsposten. 1890-06-03. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  21. ^ "Romsdals Amtsthing" (in Norwegian). Romsdals Tidende. 1895-05-18. p. 2. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  22. ^ "Romsdals Amtsthing" (in Norwegian). Romsdals Tidende. 1899-04-12. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  23. ^ "Romsdals Amtsting" (in Norwegian). Romsdals Tidende. 1908-05-30. p. 2. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  24. ^ "Romsdals Amtsting" (in Norwegian). Romsdals Tidende. 1911-06-07. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  25. ^ "Møre Fylkesting" (in Norwegian). Sunnmørsposten. 1926-06-01. p. 5. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  26. ^ "Til Romsdalingar heime og ute Bjørnsonvener" (in Norwegian). Romsdals Budstikke. 1931-08-01. p. 2. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  27. ^ "Ordførervalg i Veøy" (in Norwegian). Rauma Tidende. 1931-12-03. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  28. ^ "Veøy nye heradstyre" (in Norwegian). Fylket. 1934-12-06. p. 2. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  29. ^ "Ordførervalg" (in Norwegian). Sunnmørsposten. 1937-12-17. p. 4. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  30. ^ "Veøy" (in Norwegian). Åndalsnes Avis. 1941-10-02. p. 2. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  31. ^ "Ordførervalg i Møre og Romsdal" (in Norwegian). Tidens Krav. 1951-12-31. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-03-27.
  32. ^ "Peder Mork gjenvalgt som ordfører i Veøy" (in Norwegian). Tidens Krav. 1957-12-18. p. 6. Retrieved 2025-03-27.