Nissedal is a rural municipality in Telemark region of Telemark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional regions of Upper Telemark and Vest-Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Treungen. Other villages in Nissedal include Kyrkjebygda and Felle.
The municipality is the 129th largest by area of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Nissedal is the 303rd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 1,442. The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 0.8% over the previous 10-year period. Nissedal has 2,246 vacation homes, so the population swells during holidays and vacation times.
Nissedal has been nicknamed the "Telemark Riviera" for its close proximity to Gautefall Alpine Center and for its many campgrounds and outdoor activities. There are a total of 1,750 lakes in Nissedal, including Nisser, the seventh-largest lake in Norway, which Nissedal is named after. Gautefall, which is home to Telemark County's largest alpine center, lies adjacent to the municipality. For residents of the Oslo Fjord area, Gautefall is the nearest winter sport destination.
Nissedal's terrain is characterized by roche moutonnée rock formations, mountains, valleys, forests, wetlands, and lakes. Nissedal is a popular destination for outdoor activities such as paddling, fishing, swimming, mountain biking, hiking, kayaking, skiing, boating, and more. It is recognized as one of Norway’s best places for mountain climbing. Nissedal is home to Hægefjell, one of Norway's most popular mountain climbing destinations.
General information
Nissedal was originally a part of the Kviteseid parish until Nissedal established its own parish in 1810.
Etymology
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after Nissedal valley () since the first Nissedal Church was built in the valley. Nissedal was first mentioned in a written source in the 1300s under the name Nizudal. The current written form first emerged in the 1400s. The first element of the municipal name comes from the local lake Nisser, which was historically spelled Nizir. The first element is the lake name comes from the local river , the old name for the river Nidelva. The last element of the lake name is which means "inland sea" or "large lake". Thus it is "the inland sea that feeds the river Nidelva". The last element of the municipal name is which means "valley" or "dale".
Today, the name Nissedal refers to three geographical areas: 1) the municipality of Nissedal, 2) the Nissedal parish in the Church of Norway which includes the villages on both sides of the lake Nisser, and 3) the villages of Nordbygda and Kyrkjebygda that are jointly referred to as "Nissedal village".
Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted on 30 October 1992. The official blazon is "Or, three nisse hats gules" (). This means the arms have a field (background) has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. The charge is a set of three nisseluer, traditional red woolen hats often associated with the nisse, which were commonly worn until the late 19th century by farmers and common folk. It is a canting arms, since the name Nissedal has been "translated" into a visual pun with the three woolen hats, in spite of the name having nothing to do with the folkloric nisse. The arms were designed by Halvor Holtskog Jr. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.
Churches
The Church of Norway has one parish () within the municipality of Nissedal. It is part of the Øvre Telemark prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Agder og Telemark.
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ style="font-size:medium"|Churches in Nissedal
!Parish ()!!Church name!!Location of the church!!Year built
|-
|rowspan="3"|Nissedal||Nissedal Church||Kyrkjebygda||1764
|-
|Treungen Church||Treungen||1863
|-
|Felle Chapel||Felle||1970
|}
History
thumb|right|250px|Lake [[Nisser during winter.]]
thumb|right|250px|Sundmoen Stone Center.
250px|thumb|right|Bjønntjønndammen
Nissedal has been populated for over 10,000 years. The paintings at Ovnen are naturally filled in iron oxides.
Heigeitilen, a boundary marker on the border between the three historic parishes of Tørdal, Nissedal, and Treungen, was first mentioned in written sources in 1792. It is likely an ancient marker and can be reached from the Heigeitilløypa trail (Heigeitilstien). It is a Milky Quartz mineral rock.
Economy
250px|thumb|right|Telemark Treindustri AS.
Important industries in Nissedal are farming, forestry, fur farming, power supply and tourism.
An additional museum, Sputnik Museum, is located nearby on the property of country music singer Sputnik (Knut T. Storbukås) in Bostrak. He was awarded Artist of the Year in 1990 by Dagbladet and is listed in the Guinness Book of Records. His collection of over 36 silver, gold, diamond, and platinum records are among the exhibits at the museum. The museum is notable for having a rocket placed on its rooftop.
Government
thumb|right|Village center in Treungen.
Nissedal 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. The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Telemark District Court and the Agder Court of Appeal.
Municipal council
The municipal council of Nissedal is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to four-year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.
Mayors
The mayors () of Nissedal (incomplete list):
- 1995-2007: Øyvind Tveit (KrF)
- 2007-2011: Anne-Nora Oma Dahle (Sp)
- 2011–2023: Halvor Homme (Ap)
- 2023-present: Ian Parry-Jones (Sp)
Geography
thumb|right|250px|[[Nisser is the largest lake in Telemark County, and one of 1,750 lakes in Nissedal.
The only urban area in Nissedal is the village of Treungen (which includes Tveitsund), but the other notable villages include Felle, Nordbygda, Fjone, and Kyrkjebygda. Precipitation is fairly evenly spread out over the year, with significant precipitation also in the driest months. The wettest months are August - November, and the driest months are February - April. The Tveitsund weather station has been recording since 1944.
Demographics
thumb|right|250px|Farm near Husfjell mountain.
Nissedal has the second-lowest population of all municipalities in Telemark. According to Statistics Norway, Nissedal was home to 1,489 inhabitants in 2017, but had 2,246 cabins. 28.2 percent of local residents lived on agricultural- or forestry properties. 74.3 percent were members of Church of Norway as of 2017, while 10.7 percent were members of another religious community. Cross-country skiing trails are found throughout Nissedal, including at Kykjebygdheia, Fjone Høgfjell, Felle, Gautefallheia, and Vrådal. Opportunities for alpine skiing, snowblading, snowboarding, Telemark skiing, and mountain skiing are found at Vrådal Ski Center and Gautefall Alpine Center.
Summer activities include fishing, swimming, mountain climbing, hiking, mountain biking, kayaking, camping, and more. Many of Nissedal's 1,750 lakes are used for fishing, including Nisser Lake. A ferry, Fjoneferja (M/F "Nissen"), has been operating at Nisser Lake since 1947 and is Norway's smallest cable ferry. Hægefjell has since the late 1980s become one of the most popular sites for mountain climbing in Norway. The mountain, which has been featured in the TV series 71 Degrees North in 2010, has around 50 different hiking trails. It has an elevation of . Some of these include Havrefjell, Grønlifjell, Reinvassnuten, Skornetten, Hægefjell, and Skuggenatten in Treungen. While the trail to the mountain Havrefjell also has trailheads by Bjønntjønn Lake and Gautefall Alpine Center, the closest trail is found in the village of Felle.
A large number of trailheads are found near the lake Bjønntjønn, including trails maintained by the Norwegian Trekking Association leading to Felehovet, Mjåvassdammen, Havrefjell, and Reinvassnuten. There are also trails from Bjønntjønn to Gautefall Tourist Hotel and lakes such as Øverlandsvatnet and Østre Breivatn. The trail Heigeitilløypa, which has its trailhead at Gautefall Biathlon, leads to Jørundskårheia, Gråndalsfjell mountain, and Djupvatn Lake, before reaching the seter Holmvasstøylen by Holmvatn Lake at Kyrkjebygdheia. A dirt road leads from the lake down to the village center in Kyrkjebygda. Heigeitilløypa trail is named for the ancient boundary marker Heigeitilen. Tjørull is another place used for fishing, kayaking and camping. The potholes are located at Eikhom and is a tourist destination during summers. The area is used for picnicking, swimming, and there are areas to slide down the riverbed as well as mountain ledges suited for jumping. After the river here was dammed for the production of power, the potholes were revealed and have since been a popular bathing destination.]]
- Gautefall, largest ski resort in Telemark County.
- Nisser Lake, 7th-largest lake in Norway.
- Heimdalsheia, the site with the largest continuous slopes of naked rocks (svaberg) in Northern Europe. Reindeer are often observed near Fjone. More rare but occasionally encountered are the Gray wolf, Eurasian lynx and Brown bear. Avifauna includes raptors such as various species of owls, eagles, falcons, and hawks, including the Western Osprey. Olav Tverrstøyl of Åmli shot a total of eight bears at Horgevika. The last bear to be shot in this area was by Landtaksdammen in 1920 by Jon Kraakenes of Vrådal. Hunting is particularly popular among Nissedal's southern border to Gjerstad where small game, deer and beavers are regularly hunted.