Ofoten (municipality)

Ofoten herred
Former municipality

Nordland within
Norway

Ofoten within Nordland
Coordinates: 68°26′11″N 17°23′54″E / 68.4363°N 17.3983°E / 68.4363; 17.3983Coordinates: 68°26′11″N 17°23′54″E / 68.4363°N 17.3983°E / 68.4363; 17.3983
Country Norway
County Nordland
District Ofoten
Established 1 Jan 1838
Disestablished 1 Jan 1884
Administrative centre Narvik
Area
 • Total 2,998.3 km2 (1,157.7 sq mi)
  *Area at municipal dissolution.
Population (1884)
 • Total 4,131
 • Density 1.4/km2 (3.6/sq mi)
Time zone UTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST) UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 code NO-1853
Created as Formannskapsdistrikt in 1838
Succeeded by Ankenes and Evenes in 1884
Data from Statistics Norway

Ofoten is a former municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The 2,998.3-square-kilometre (1,157.7 sq mi) municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1884. The municipality included the areas on both sides of the inner part of the Ofotfjorden mostly in what is now the municipalities of Narvik, Ballangen, and Evenes. The administrative centre of Ofoten was the village of Narvik (which later became a town in 1902). After the municipality was dissolved in 1884, the name Ofoten has been used to refer to the region that once was this municipality.[1]

History

View of the Ofoten area

The municipality of Ofoten was established on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). On 1 January 1884, the municipality ceased to exist when it was split into two municipalities: Ankenes (population: 1,734) in the east and Evindnæs (population: 2,397) in the west.[2]

Name

The municipality was named after the local Ofotfjorden (Old Norse: Ófóti). The meaning of the first element is unknown and the last element is derived from the Old Norse word fótr which means "foot". The oldest form of the name could have been Úffóti. In this case, the first element is úfr which means "Eurasian eagle-owl". The three inner branches of the Ofotfjord might have been compared with the three claws of an owl.[1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Thorsnæs, Geir, ed. (2017-02-13). "Ofoten – tidligere kommune". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 2018-09-15.
  2. ↑ Jukvam, Dag (1999). "Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Statistisk sentralbyrå.
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