Skagafjörður (municipality)

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Skagafjörður
(Sveitarfélagið Skagafjörður)
Basic data
State : IcelandIceland Iceland
Region: Norðurland vestra
Constituency : Norðvesturkjördæmi
Sýsla : Skagafjarðarsýsla
Population: 3992 (January 1, 2019)
Surface: 4180 km²
Population density: 0.96 inhabitants / km²
Post Code: 550, 551 (Sauðárkrókur)
560 (Varmahlíð)
565, 566 (Hofsós)
570 (Fljót)
politics
Community number 5200
Mayor: Ársæll Guðmundsson
Contact
Address of the municipal administration: Skagfirðingabraut 21
550 Sauðárkróki
Website: www.skagafjordur.is
map
Location of Skagafjörður

Coordinates: 65 ° 45 ′  N , 19 ° 38 ′  W

The Skagafjörður fjord with the islands of Drangey and Málmey
Hólar Cathedral
The Pakkhúsið in Hofsós

The municipality Skagafjörður (isl. Sveitarfélagið Skagafjörður ) is a municipality in the north of Iceland in the region Norðurland vestra . On January 1, 2019, the community had 3992 inhabitants. The largest settlements are Sauðárkrókur with 2612 inhabitants, Hofsós with 142 inhabitants, Varmahlíð with 132 inhabitants and the bishopric Hólar with 93 inhabitants.

geography

The municipality is located on the fjord of the same name . In the area is the extinct central volcano Tinná .

To the north of Hofsós lies the approximately 10 km² lake Höfðavatn . The Héraðsvötn river flows into the Skagafjörður; it flows east of Varmahlíð and the place Sauðárkrókur (with the Miklavatn ) past. In the south, the municipality extends to Hofsjökull .

history

The area of ​​Skagafjörður has been inhabited since the land was conquered. The Skagafjörður played a special role during the Sturlungar era in the 12th and 13th centuries. Especially during the civil war in the 13th century, some decisive battles took place here, such as Flugumýrarbrenna .

The municipality was formed on June 6, 1998 by the merger of the town of Sauðárkrókur ( Sauðárkrókskaupstaður ) with ten rural communities:

  • Rural municipality of Skefilsstaðahreppur
  • Rural municipality of Skarðshreppur
  • Rural municipality of Staðarhreppur
  • Seyluhreppur rural community
  • Rural municipality of Lýtingsstaðahreppur
  • Ríp Rural Commune ( Rípurhreppur )
  • Rural Municipality Viðvík ( Viðvíkurhreppur )
  • Rural municipality of Hólar ( Hólahreppur )
  • Rural community Hof ( Hofshreppur ) with the rural communities Hofsós ( Hofsóshreppur ) and Fell ( Fellshreppur ), which were incorporated on June 10, 1990
  • Rural municipality Fljót ( Fljótahreppur ), formed on April 1, 1988 from the rural communities Haganes ( Haganeshreppur ) and Holt ( Holtshreppur )

economy

Tourism plays a major role, for example with the Glaumbær open-air museum .

The area is famous for its horse breeding. Many traditional and important studs can be found in the area such as Flugumýri , Ytra-Skörðugil , Vatnsleysa , Miðsitja , Syðra-Skörðugil and Hjaltastaðir . In addition, the nationwide annual Landsmót horse show is often held on the Vindheimamelar slope near Varmahlíð .

Localities in Skagafjörður

Sauðárkrókur

The town of Sauðárkrókur is the largest settlement in the greater Skagafjörður municipality and the largest town in Northwest Iceland.

Hólar

Hólar was from 1106 to 1801 as the second bishopric founded by Jón Ögmundsson next to Skálholt and an important place in Iceland.

There lived and worked z. B. in the 16th century Bishop Jón Arason , who became famous as the last Catholic bishop of Iceland, who offered bitter resistance to the Reformation and who was finally beheaded by his opponents in Skálholt in 1550.

Today there is a college for horse and fish breeding as well as for tourism.

Hofsós and Gröf

Hofsós is a village on the east side of Skagafjörður , where Pakkhúsið is one of the oldest houses in the country. There is a museum on the history of the emigration of Icelanders to Canada and the United States. There is a peat church in Hof Gröf.

Víðimýri

Víðimýri is a farm with a peat church, the Víðimýrarkirkja.

Varmahlíð

Varmahlíð is a place and traffic junction on the ring road ( Hringvegur ) in a thermal area .

Population development

As in now only a few areas of Iceland apart from the southwest around the capital Reykjavík, the population development in Skagafjörður is declining (1997 to 2005: -5.7%).

date Residents
Dec. 1, 1997: 4,325 (territory 1998)
Dec. 1, 2003: 4.178
Dec. 1, 2004: 4.141
Dec. 1, 2005: 4.110
Dec. 1, 2006: 4,078
Dec. 1, 2007: 4.027
Dec. 1, 2008: 4,077

Personalities

Sons and daughters of the church

  • Konráð Gíslason (born July 3, 1808 near Skagafjörður; † January 4, 1891 in Copenhagen), linguist
  • Gudrún frá Lundi (born June 3, 1887 in the Lundi í Stíflu farm in the village of Fljótum), poet

Town twinning

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ To the extinct central volcano Tinná (English)
  2. ↑ http://wayback.vefsafn.is/wayback/20060303232902/www.skagafjordur.is/default.asp?cat_id=1136 accessed: July 20, 2010