Balsfjord (municipality)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
coat of arms map
Coat of arms of the municipality of Balsfjord
Balsfjord (Norway)
Balsfjord
Balsfjord
Basic data
Commune number : 5422
Province  (county) : Troms and Finnmark
Administrative headquarters: Storsteinnes
Coordinates : 69 ° 18 ′  N , 19 ° 12 ′  E Coordinates: 69 ° 18 ′  N , 19 ° 12 ′  E
Surface: 1,496.96 km²
Residents: 5,559  (Feb 27, 2020)
Population density : 4 inhabitants per km²
Language form : Bokmål
Website:
traffic
Street: Europastraße 6 , Europastraße 8
politics
Mayor : Gunda Johansen  ( Ap ) (2015)
Located in the province of Troms and Finnmark
Location of the municipality in the province of Troms og Finnmark

Balsfjord is a municipality in the Norwegian Fylke Troms og Finnmark . The municipality has 5559 inhabitants (as of February 27, 2020). The administrative seat is the village of Storsteinnes .

geography

The municipality borders on the neighboring municipalities of Tromsø , Målselv , Senja and Storfjord . The municipality covers the area around the fjords of Malangen and Balsfjord . Between the two fjords lies the Malangshalvøya peninsula, most of which belongs to the municipality. Storsteinnes is located in the inner area of ​​the Balsfjord. In addition to Storsteinnes, there is another so-called Tettsted in the municipality of Nordkjosbotn .

The southeastern border runs close to the Norwegian-Swedish border. There is also the Vassdalsfjellet, which with a height of 1587  moh. represents the highest elevation of the community. Several valleys run through the area, through which rivers flow towards the fjords. Lakeside Sagelvvatnet is one because of its bird population under conservation posed area.

In the south of the municipality and further at the southern end of the Balsfjord runs the European route 6 (E6), which crosses the European route 8 (E8) at Nordkjosbotn . This continues on the north bank of the fjord to Tromsø.

The inhabitants of the municipality are called Balsfjording . As in many municipalities in Troms og Finnmark , the official written language is Bokmål , i.e. the more widespread of the two Norwegian language forms.

history

Balsfjord Municipality was established in 1860 when it was separated from Tromsø. In 1871 Malangen was spun off from Balsfjord, and in 1964 they were reunited into one municipality.

In January 2017, a process was started to have the many unofficial Sami geographical names officially recognized. The Sami , which originally settled in the area, were displaced from the region.

Until December 31, 2019, Balsfjord belonged to the then province of Troms . As part of the regional reform in Norway, this was transferred to the newly created province of Troms og Finnmark on January 1, 2020.

economy

The municipality is one of the most suitable for agriculture in the Troms region . Cattle, sheep and goat husbandry are important areas for farmers. The municipality has the largest goat farms in Norway and Storsteinnes has the country's largest goat cheese producer. Food production is the most important industrial sector. Besides the production of goat cheese , beer is also brewed in Nordkjosbotn.

In 2019, 1,887 of 2,720 people worked in Balsfjord itself, 425 people were employed in Tromsø and 121 in Målselv.

Surname

The origin of the name Balsfjord is not exactly known. The component "Bals-" could be derived from the name of the god Balder or from the Sami word "balsa".

Attractions

Sights include some 6,000 year old rock carvings near Tennes, Nordby's old market house and an 18th century sawmill in Aursfjord. In Storsteinnes are the Balsfjord Fjord Museum and the Våtmarksenter.

Personalities

Web links

Commons : Balsfjord  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. Statistisk sentralbyrå - Befolkning
  2. Balsfjord Municipality. In: Norgeskart. Kartverket, accessed August 19, 2020 (Norwegian).
  3. Tettsteders following og areal. Statistisk sentralbyrå , December 4, 2019, accessed August 19, 2020 (Norwegian).
  4. Høyeste fjelltopp i hver commune. September 1, 2015, accessed on August 19, 2020 (Norwegian Bokmål).
  5. Innbyggjarnamn. Språkrådet, accessed on 19 August 2020 (Norwegian Nynorsk).
  6. Forskrift om målvedtak i Kommunar og fylkeskommunar (målvedtaksforskrifta). In: Lovdata. January 6, 2020, accessed August 19, 2020 (Norwegian).
  7. a b c Geir Thorsnæs: Balsfjord . In: Store norske leksikon . July 25, 2020 (Norwegian, snl.no [accessed August 19, 2020]).
  8. Godkjenning av samiske stedsnavn i Balsfjord. Balsfjord Municipality, January 23, 2017, accessed August 19, 2020 (Norwegian).
  9. Thor Anders Angelsen: Tromsø-seeds som ble "svensksamer". iTromsø, December 28, 2018, accessed on August 19, 2020 (Bokmål in Norwegian).
  10. Kommunal- og moderniseringsdepartementet: Nye kommune- og fylkesnummer fra 2020. In: regjeringen.no. October 27, 2017, accessed August 19, 2020 (Norwegian).
  11. Pendlingsstrømmer. Statistics Norway, accessed August 19, 2020 (Norwegian).
  12. Balsfjord. In: Norsk stadnamnleksikon. Retrieved August 19, 2020 (Norwegian).