Gáivuotna – Kåfjord – Kaivuono

Kåfjord kommune
Gáivuona suohkan
Kaivuonon komuuni
Municipality
View of Olderdalen

Coat of arms
Troms within
Norway

Kåfjord within Troms
Coordinates: 69°36′14″N 20°31′57″E / 69.60389°N 20.53250°E / 69.60389; 20.53250Coordinates: 69°36′14″N 20°31′57″E / 69.60389°N 20.53250°E / 69.60389; 20.53250
Country Norway
County Troms
District Nord-Troms
Established 1929
Administrative centre Olderdalen
Government
 • Mayor (2015) Svein O. Leiros (Sp)
Area
 • Total 991.18 km2 (382.70 sq mi)
 • Land 950.33 km2 (366.92 sq mi)
 • Water 40.85 km2 (15.77 sq mi)  4.1%
Area rank #107 in Norway
Population (2017)
 • Total 2,132
 • Rank #319 in Norway
 • Density 2.2/km2 (6/sq mi)
 • Change (10 years) -4.0%
Demonym(s) Kåfjording[1]
Time zone UTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST) UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 code NO-1940
Official language form Bokmål and Sami
Website kafjord.kommune.no
Data from Statistics Norway

Gáivuotna (Northern Sami), Kåfjord (Norwegian), or Kaivuono (Kven)[2] is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Olderdalen. Other villages include Løkvollen, Manndalen, Birtavarre, Trollvik, Samuelsberg, Nordmannvik, and Djupvik.

The 991-square-kilometre (383 sq mi) municipality is the 107th largest by area out of the 422 municipalities in Norway. Kåfjord is the 319th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 2,132. The municipality's population density is 2.2 inhabitants per square kilometre (5.7/sq mi) and its population has decreased by 4% over the last decade.[3]

General information

The municipality is dominated by mountains, the fjord branch named Kåfjord and some valleys

The municipality of Kåfjord was established in 1929 when the large Lyngen Municipality was divided into three: Lyngen in the northwest, Kåfjord in the northeast, and Storfjord Municipality in the south. The initial population of Kåfjord was 2,482. Then on 1 January 1992, the Nordnes area along the Lyngen fjord in Lyngen Municipality (population: 38) was transferred to Kåfjord Municipality.[4]

Name

Kåfjord is a Norwegianized form of the Sámi name Gáivuotna. The meaning of the first element is unknown and the last element is vuotna which means "fjord".

The name of the municipality was Kåfjord until 2 May 1994, when it was changed to Gáivuotna–Kåfjord.[4][5] It was the fifth municipality in Norway to get a Sami name. In 2005, the name was again changed such that either the Sami Gáivuotna or the Norwegian Kåfjord name can be used.[6]

In 2016 the name was changed again. This time the Kven language name was added to the list of official names. All three names are equal and parallel names for the municipality. The official names of the municipality are Gáivuotna – Kåfjord – Kaivuono, or more formally Gáivuona suohkan – Kåfjord kommune – Kaivuonon komuuni.[7]

Coat of arms

The coat of arms is from 1988. It shows a silver or white spinning wheel on a red background. This was chosen to reflect the crafts and traditions of the local community.[8][9]

Churches

The Church of Norway has one parish (sokn) within the municipality. It is part of the Nord-Troms prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland.

Churches in Gáivuotna-Kåfjord-Kaivouno
Parish (Sokn)Church NameLocation of the ChurchYear Built
KåfjordKåfjord ChurchOlderdalen1949
Birtavarre ChapelBirtavarre1937

History

In 1945, the villages of Kåfjord were burned to the ground during the retreat of German forces from Finland and Finnmark. This was as far west as the Wehrmacht used their scorched earth tactics.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Kåfjord, are responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, unemployment and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of elected representatives, which in turn elect a mayor.[10] The municipality falls under the Nord-Troms District Court and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Kåfjord is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to four year terms. Currently, the party breakdown is as follows:[11]

Gáivuotna Kåfjord Kaivuono Kommunestyre 2015–2019
Party NameName in NorwegianNumber of
representatives
 Labour PartyArbeiderpartiet5
 Progress PartyFremskrittspartiet1
 Conservative PartyHøyre2
 Christian Democratic PartyKristelig Folkeparti2
 Green PartyMiljøpartiet De Grønne1
 Centre PartySenterpartiet4
 Local ListsLokale lister2
Total number of members:17

Geography

Kåfjord valley (Kåfjorddalen).

The municipality is situated on the eastern side of the Lyngen fjord, and around its eastern arm, the Kåfjord. The municipal centre is Olderdalen. Other villages include Birtavarre, Kåfjorddalen, Djupvik, Nordmannvik, and Manndalen, where the international indigenous peoples' festival Riddu Riđđu is hosted each year.

On the border with Finland, is the mountain Ráisduattarháldi which has a height of 1,365 m (4,478 ft).

Economy

Fishing and small-scale farming have been the most important sources of income. Now many people work in education and other public services. The population has declined for many years, but the decline is now less rapid than earlier. A new optimism has arisen among young people, largely due to the increasing cultural activities.

Population

The majority of the population is of Sami origin. Due to assimilation pressure from the Norwegian State, the language was largely lost in the 20th century. Efforts are being made to reintroduce the Northern Sami language which is largely concentrated in the municipality's largest village, Manndalen/Olmmáivággi.

Notable residents

Erik Johnsen (1844–1941), a Laestadian preacher. He received the King's Medal of Merit (Kongens Fortjenstmedalje) in 1938 for his work for the salvation of the soul.[12]

References

  1. ↑ "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet. Retrieved 2015-12-01.
  2. ↑ "Stadnamn og rettskriving" (in Norwegian). Kartverket. Retrieved 2018-07-13.
  3. ↑ Statistisk sentralbyrå (2017). "Table: 06913: Population 1 January and population changes during the calendar year (M)" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 2017-09-09.
  4. 1 2 Jukvam, Dag (1999). "Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Statistisk sentralbyrå.
  5. ↑ "Ot.prp. nr. 111 (2001-2002)" (in Norwegian). regjeringen.no. Retrieved 2008-12-02.
  6. ↑ "Endring av skrivemåten for tospråklige kommunenavn" (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved 2008-12-02.
  7. ↑ "Stadnamn og rettskriving" (in Norwegian). Statens kartverk. Retrieved 2018-08-05.
  8. ↑ Store norske leksikon. "Gáivuotna/Kåfjord" (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 2013-02-22. Retrieved 2012-12-20.
  9. ↑ "Civic heraldry of Norway - Norske Kommunevåpen". Heraldry of the World. Retrieved 2017-09-07.
  10. ↑ Hansen, Tore, ed. (2016-05-12). "kommunestyre". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 2018-08-05.
  11. ↑ "Table: 04813: Members of the local councils, by party/electoral list at the Municipal Council election (M)" (in Norwegian). Statistics Norway.
  12. ↑ "Biografi: Predikant Erik Johnsen, Manndalen". predikanterikjohnsenblog. Retrieved 2018-08-05.

The dictionary definition of gáivuotna – kåfjord – kaivuono at Wiktionary Troms travel guide from Wikivoyage

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