Alta, Norway

Alta Sentrum

Alta River

Alta Airport

The municipality of Alten-Talvig was established on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). On 1 January 1863, the municipality was divided into two: Talvik to the north (population: 1,938) and Alta to the south (population: 2,442). On 1 January 1964, the two municipalities were merged back together to form the new, larger municipality of Alta. Prior to the merger, Alta had 6,629 residents and Talvik had 3,266 residents. The borders have not changed since that time.[6]

On 1 January 2020, the municipality became part of the newly formed Troms og Finnmark county. Previously, it had been part of the old Finnmark county.[7]

The rock carvings at Alta, located near the Jiepmaluokta bay, dating from c. 4200 BC to 500 BC, are on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. The Komsa culture was named after the Komsa mountain in Alta municipality, where the first archeological remains of this culture were discovered.

In the aftermath of the Sami Kautokeino rebellion of 1852, rebel leaders Mons Aslaksen Somby and Aslak Jacobsen Hætta were decapitated at Elvebakken in what is now the town of Alta on 14 October 1854.

Their bodies were buried in graves just outside the Kåfjord Church graveyard in the village of Kåfjord in Alta, but their heads were sent on to the Anatomisk Institute at the Kong Medical Frederiks University in Oslo, where they were kept for more than a century as part of the university's skull collections. The two skulls were only relinquished by the university in 1985, following a controversy and protests by Sami activists, and were in November 1997 buried at the Kåfjord Church in Alta, at the same spot as their bodies were buried over 140 years earlier.

During World War II, the German battleship Tirpitz used the Kåfjorden, an arm of Altafjorden, as a harbour, and was damaged here by attacking Allied warplanes. The town Alta was seriously destroyed by fire near the end of the World War II. It was rebuilt in subsequent years.

The Altasaken in 1979 made headlines for weeks, as many people (especially Sami people and environmentalists) demonstrated and used civil disobedience to prevent the building of a dam on the river Altaelva in order to produce hydropower. The dam was built, however, and the river still offers good salmon fishing. The King of Norway usually visits the river once in the summer to fish.

The urban area made up of Bossekop, Elvebakken, and Bukta, also known collectively now as the town of Alta, became a town on 1 January 2000. The population has been growing steadily for many years.

All municipalities in Norway, including Alta, 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.[11] The municipality falls under the Alta District Court and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.

Alta is the second northernmost city in the world surpassing 10,000 inhabitants. Alta municipality covers 3,845 square kilometres (1,485 square miles), in the west of the county, mostly situated along the Altafjord, taking in large tracts of woodlands, as well as parts of the High Plateau of Finnmarksvidda. On its way from the plateau down to the fjord, the river Altaelva has carved out the Sautso canyon, one of the largest canyons in Europe. The large Altafjorden has several notable bays and fjord arms that branch off from it including Langfjorden, Jiepmaluokta, Kåfjorden, and Lille Kufjorden.

Alta is based on the mainland of Norway, but it also includes parts of the islands of Stjernøya and Seiland. Seiland is the home of Seiland National Park where the Seilandsjøkelen glacier and the mountain Seilandstuva are located.

Several of the notable lakes in Alta include Iešjávri, Juovvajávri, Kovvatnet, and Stuorajávri.

Alta is a transportation center in Finnmark. Alta Airport served 334,132 passengers in 2009. There are direct flights to Oslo, Tromsø, Vadsø, and Kirkenes. The town of Alta also has port facilities in the town center, and European route E6 passes through Alta. The distance to southern Scandinavia is considerably shorter over European route E45 and northern Finland.

Main activities in Alta include trading, small industry, education, and public service. The town is also famous for its slate industry. Finnmark University College (Norwegian: Høgskolen i Finnmark) is situated in Alta, and there is also a research institution (Norut NIBR Finnmark). The town has the northernmost ice hotel in Europe.

Alta is home to the football club Alta IF. Cross-country skiing is very popular. Alta also has clubs for handball, track and field, alpine skiing, ice skating, taekwondo, and judo.

The bicycle race Finnmark Offroad, with 700- and 300-kilometer long courses, starts and ends in Alta (as of 2014).[33]

Alta is the starting point for the Finnmarksløpet, a 500- and 1000- kilometer sled dog race—The longest sled dog race in Europe.[34]

• Klaus Pettersen, Norwegian football coach
• Egil Rasmussen, author (1903–1964)
• Bjørn Wirkola, Norwegian ski jumper
• Finn Hågen Krogh, Norwegian cross-country skier
• Tommy Wirkola, Norwegian filmmaker
• Karl Akre, Norwegian educator and politician
• Martin Moland, Norwegian Snocross racer

• Alta Museum

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alta, Norway.

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Alta.

• Alta Tourist Information
• Unesco information
• Høgskolen i Finnmark (Finnmark University College)
• Alta kommune (in Norwegian)
• Alta Igloo Hotel
• Finnmarksløpet-the northernmost sled dog race in the world!
• Avinor:Alta Airport
• Pictures from Alta
• Øytun folk high school, Alta. Outdoor life