Stord (island)
| Stord (island) | ||
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| Waters | Atlantic | |
| Geographical location | 59 ° 52 ′ N , 5 ° 25 ′ E | |
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| surface | 241.332 km² | |
| Highest elevation | Mehammarsåta 749 m |
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| Residents | 21,750 (2019) 90 inhabitants / km² |
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| main place | Leirvik | |
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Stord is an island in the southwest of the western Norwegian province of Vestland . With an area of 241.3 km², it is the second largest island in the province after the island of Osterøy . There are two municipalities on the island : Fitjar in the north-western part and Stord in the south-eastern part.
geography
Stord is part of the Sunnhordland region . It does not directly border the Atlantic, but is surrounded by fjords and other islands. In the north, Stord borders on the Selbjørnsfjord and the islands of Austevoll municipality , in the east on the Langenuen and the islands of Tysnesøy and Huglo . To the south is the Bømlafjord , which merges into the Hardangerfjord in front of the island . On the opposite side is the Valestrand peninsula, which is part of the mainland . West lies the narrow Stokksund , the Stord from the neighboring island Bømlo separates and in the northwest in a wide network of islands and straits passes, of which the largest Ålforo , Ivarsøy and Fonno are.
The highest point on the island is Mehammarsåta (also Midhamarsåta ) with a height of 749 meters. Most of the population lives in the south of the island. The Tettsted Leirvik, which is also the center of the town of Stord, with 14,126 inhabitants, by far the largest town on the island. Other localities are Sagvåg in the southwest with 3419 inhabitants and Fitjar in the northwest , the center of the municipality of the same name with 1751 inhabitants.
geology
Stord is characterized by a mountainous island interior and flatter, wooded edges. The relatively flat and gently sloping east and south of the island is contrasted by a rugged northwest with several hundred islands and holms . In the north of the island the subsoil consists mainly of gabbro and green slate . The highest central part with the Mehammarsåta consists mainly of granite . The south-eastern third of the island is separated from the rest of the island by a steep mountain wall. Here the subsoil consists mainly of sedimentary rocks such as phyllite and sandstone . There is a marble deposit in the Sagvåg area that was also mined earlier.
Flora and fauna
The deep protected valleys in the north and south of the island are very fertile and protected from sea winds. The south in particular, with its fertile phyllite soil, offers good growing conditions for a rich flora, including several protected fern species and fourteen different orchids . Even holly grow widespread on the island and some of the largest specimens of Norway can be found on Stord. The branches of the holly are used commercially to make Christmas arrangements. Norway's largest abundance of yew trees can also be found on Stord.
The fauna is also rich. A 2004 study found 232 wild vertebrate species, 210 bird species, 18 mammal species, and two amphibian and two reptile species each.
history
The island is rich in traces of settlement that go back to the end of the last ice age about 10,000 years ago. In Vespestad on the Hellandsfjord , remains of living quarters from the Neolithic Age have been found. In the Bronze Age , activity on Stord increased, as evidenced by a large number of tombs, of which Rimsvarden is the largest with a diameter of around 30 meters and a height of four meters. Several bronze finds, including a copper sword and a knife from Rimsvarden, indicate the prosperity of the area. A bronze ax was found in a nearby bog, which is considered to be the best example of a Bronze Age ax in Scandinavia.
The Fitjar farm gained importance during the Viking Age and came into the hands of King Harald Fairhair , probably after the Battle of Hafrsfjord . In the Heimskringla it is described how his son, Håkon the good , was visiting Fitjar when he was attacked and was so badly wounded in the following battle at Fitjar that he later died in Håkonshella . Later medieval kings also continued to use the royal court on Fitjar and around 1100 a stone church was built here, which was demolished with the construction of a new church in 1867.
The favorable location along the shipping route between Stavanger and Bergen and the importance as a port for Sunnhordland led to the flourishing of trade in the early modern period and in 1590 a customs house was built in Eldøyvågen near Leirvik. From here wood from the region was sold to traders from Scotland and the Netherlands - much to the displeasure of the Bergen traders, who lost an important source of income.
In the 19th century several quarries and gravel pits were opened on Stord, which marked the beginning of industrial production. At the same time, mechanical engineering began with the Stord shipyard, founded in 1919 at its head, which still plays an important role in the island's economy today. Leirvik developed into a regional center and in 1997 the municipality of Stord decided to declare the entire municipality to be a municipal municipality (bykommune), i.e. to give the entire municipality city status.
Economy and Infrastructure
The economic center of Stord is in the densely populated south of the island. Leirvik has a number of suppliers to the oil industry , including Kværner and Wärtsilä . The place also has a hospital for the Sunnhordland region and is the main regional center. The University of Western Norway also maintains a campus in Stord, which primarily offers training in the subjects of health, engineering and education.
The north of the island also has several mechanical engineering companies, mainly maritime. The Midtfjellet Vindpark with 55 wind turbines has an annual production of 422.5 GWh.
traffic
In the south, Stord is connected to the mainland via the Bømlafjordtunnel and the Stordabrua , which are part of the European route 39 . The E39 runs along the east coast of the island to Sandvikvåg, from where a ferry goes to Halhjem in Bjørnafjorden and the road continues towards Bergen. On the west side of the island the Fylkesvei 545 connects the northern and southern parts of the island. The uninhabited interior of the island is not connected to the road network, with the exception of a few forest roads. Stord has one airport, Stord Airport, Sørstokken in the southwest of the island. There are other ferry connections to Huglo and Tysnesøy, and Sunde in Kvinnherad .
Personalities
- Baard Madsen Haugland (1835–1896), politician, "first farmer in the royal cabinet"
- Kari Veiteberg (* 1961), Bishop of Oslo
- Synnøve Macody Lund (born 1976), actress
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Geir Thorsnæs: Stord - øy. In: Store norske leksikon. June 25, 2020, accessed August 17, 2020 .
- ↑ 100 most troubled areas in Norway. Kartverket, September 17, 2019, accessed on August 17, 2020 .
- ↑ Høyeste fjelltopp i hver commune. Kartverket, July 8, 2020, accessed August 18, 2020 .
- ↑ Tettsteders following og areal. In: Statistisk sentralbyrå. November 4, 2019, accessed August 17, 2020 .
- ↑ a b Geir Thorsnæs, Magnar Monastery: Fitjar. Store norske leksikon, October 28, 2019, accessed on August 18, 2020 .
- ↑ a b Geir Thorsnæs: Stord. In: Store norske leksikon. October 28, 2019, accessed August 18, 2020 .
- ↑ a b Stord. In: Grind.no. University of Bergen, accessed August 18, 2020 .
- ↑ Magnus Johan Steinsvåg, Olav Overoll: Viltet på Stord. (pdf) Kartlegging of viktige viltområde and status for viltartane. Municipalities of Stord and Fitjar, March 29, 2004, p. 59 , accessed on August 18, 2020 (nynorsk).
- ↑ a b c Magnar monastery: Fitjars historie. In: Store norske leksikon. April 15, 2018, accessed August 18, 2020 .
- ↑ Vestland fylkeskommune: Vespestad - Lok. 1, Kobbahola. In: Kulturminnesøk. Riksantikvaren, accessed August 18, 2020 .
- ↑ Øks, utan skaft. Digitalt Museum, September 11, 2015, accessed August 18, 2020 .
- ^ Danckert Monrad-Krohn: Skog, oppgangssager og skottehandel i Hardanger. In: Grind.no. University of Bergen, May 19, 2009, accessed August 18, 2020 .
- ↑ Stord i førhistorisk tid tid 2006. Stord Kommune, 10 August 2017, accessed on 18 August 2020 .
- ↑ Om Stord. Stord kommune, December 18, 2019, accessed on August 18, 2020 .
- ^ Studentliv på Stord. Westland University, accessed on August 18, 2020 .