Jondal Municipality

Jondal is a former municipality in the old Hordaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1863 until its dissolution in 2020. The area is now part of Ullensvang Municipality in the traditional district of Hardanger in Vestland county. The administrative centre was the village of Jondal. Other villages in the municipality included Herand, Kysnesstranda, and Torsnes.

Prior to its dissolution in 2020, the municipality was the 305th largest by area out of the 422 municipalities in Norway. Jondal Municipality was the 387th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about . The municipality's population density was and its population had increased by 6.4% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

thumb|left|View of Jondal

thumb|left|Village of Jondal, with the church in the back

The municipality of Jondal was established on 1 January 1863 when the large Strandebarm Municipality was divided as follows:

the eastern district which was mostly east of the Hardangerfjorden (population: 1,663) became the new Jondal Municipality
the western district which was mostly west of the Hardangerfjorden (population: 2,200) remained as a smaller Strandebarm Municipality

During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1965, there were two changes that effected Jondal municipality: the part of Jondal located on the northwestern side of the Hardangerfjorden (population: 515) was transferred to Kvam Municipality and the Kysnesstranda area of Strandebarm Municipality (population: 100) was transferred to Jondal Municipality.

On 1 January 2020, Jondal Municipality, Odda Municipality, and Ullensvang Municipality were merged. The new municipality was named Ullensvang Municipality and its administrative centre is the town of Odda. Historically, this municipality was part of the old Hordaland county. On 1 January 2020, the newly-enlarged Ullensvang Municipality became a part of the newly-formed Vestland county (after Hordaland and Sogn og Fjordane counties were merged).

Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the Jondalen valley () which runs through the municipality and it is where the village of Jondal is located. The first element is an old river name (now called Jondalselvi). The meaning of the river name is unknown. The last element is which means "valley" or "dale".

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 27 November 1987 and it was in use until 1 January 2020 when the municipality was dissolved. The official blazon is "Gules, three boathooks bendwise issuant from sinister base Or" (). This means the arms have a red field (background) and the charge is a set of three boat hooks lined up diagonally. The charge has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. This design was chosen to symbolise the importance of sailing and shipping along the Hardangerfjord. Historically, Jondal Municipality has been known for its shipyards and sailing college. The arms were designed by Arvid Sveen. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Churches

The Church of Norway has one parish () within Jondal Municipality. It is part of the Hardanger og Voss prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

|+ style="font-size:medium"|Churches in Jondal Municipality

!Parish ()!!Church name!!Location of the church!!Year built

|Jondal||Jondal Church||Jondal||1888

Geography

Jondal Municipality was located on the Folgefonna peninsula in the Hardanger district, on the eastern shore of the Hardangerfjorden. It was bounded by the large Folgefonna glacier to the southeast (inside Folgefonna National Park). The highest point in the municipality was the tall point at the top of the Folgefonna glacier.

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Government

While it existed, Jondal 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. The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Hardanger District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council of Jondal Municipality was made up of 17 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.

Mayors

The mayor () of Jondal Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:

1863–1865: Hans Galtung
1946–1947: Johannes S. Bakke
1947–1951: Theodor Sandven (LL)
1951–1967: Johannes S. Bakke (Sp)
1967–1975: Lars Vetlesand (LL)
1975–1979: Leif Galtung (Sp)
1979–1995: Bjørg Hope Galtung (Sp)
1995–2007: John Skogseth (Ap)
2007–2009: Sigrid Brattabø Handegard (Sp)
2009–2019: Jon Larsgard (Sp)

Police

In 2016, the chief of police for Vestlandet formally suggested a reconfiguration of police districts and stations. He proposed that the police station in Jondal be closed.

Notable people

Herborg Kråkevik, a singer and actress
Bjørg Hope Galtung, the mayor of Jondal Municipality from 1979 to 1993 (only leaving to sit in the national Parliament)