Notodden

Notodden (pronunciation ) is a city and municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Øst-Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Notodden.

Notodden kommune
Municipality
Coat of arms
Vestfold og Telemark within
Norway
Notodden within Vestfold og Telemark
Coordinates: 59°37′46″N 9°11′29″E
CountryNorway
CountyVestfold og Telemark
DistrictAust-Telemark
Administrative centreNotodden
Government
 • Mayor (2015)Gry Bløchlinger (Ap)
Area
 • Total914 km2 (353 sq mi)
 • Land852 km2 (329 sq mi)
Area rank120 in Norway
Population
 (2005)
 • Total12,359
 • Rank90 in Norway
 • Density14/km2 (40/sq mi)
 • Change (10 years)
0.5%
Demonym(s)Notodding[1]
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeNO-3808
Official language formNeutral[2]
Websitewww.notodden.kommune.no
Data from Statistics Norway
Rjukan–Notodden Industrial Heritage Site
UNESCO World Heritage Site
The old ammonia factory at Notodden industrial site
CriteriaCultural: ii, iv
Reference1486
Inscription2015 (39th session)
Area4,959.5 ha
Buffer zone33,967.6 ha

Notodden was separated from the municipality of Heddal in 1913 to become a separate city and municipality. On 1 January 1964, the rural municipalities of Heddal and Gransherad were merged into Notodden to form a new enlarged municipality.

Notodden is on the shore of Heddalsvatnet lake, and the Tinn River runs through the town into the lake. Norway's biggest stave church, Heddal Stave Church, can be seen a few kilometres from the city centre.

Notodden Airport, Tuven, is located west of the city centre. Norsk Hydro was founded in this town. Notodden is well known for the annual Notodden Blues Festival, which is considered one of the best blues festivals in Europe. It also has a well-known metal festival called Motstøy Festivalen.

The football club Notodden FK is headquartered here.

Name

The first element of the name is not which means "to fish using a seine" and the last element is the finite form of odde meaning "headland". Thus the general meaning of the name is "the fishing place".

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 11 August 1939. The arms show a silver-colored river and four lightning strikes. One of the first hydroelectric power stations in Norway was established in the late 19th century at the Tinnfoss waterfall on the Tinn River.[3]

Twin towns
Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Norway

In 2008, Notodden city council decided to end the twin city agreements with Ilisalmi, Nyköping and Stelle. At the same time Suwałki was approved as a new twin city.[4][5]

The following cities are twinned with Notodden:

Former twin cities of Notodden:

Notable residents

Notodden is the hometown of organist Kåre Nordstoga, the internationally known author Hans Herbjørnsrud who was born in Heddal, and the Hardanger fiddlemaker Olav Gunnarsson Helland (1875–1939) who many consider the finest of the twentieth century. Composer Klaus Egge, born 1906 in Gransherad, also lived in Notodden.

Olympic gold medalist Ådne Søndrål was born in Notodden.

American blues musician Seasick Steve, who is achieving fame in the United Kingdom, currently resides in Notodden. Norwegian blues musician Margit Bakken and painter and author Tor-Arne Moen also live in Notodden.

One of the most influential Norwegian black metal bands, Emperor, came from Notodden, as does Mortiis, Peccatum, Star of Ash, Leprous, and Zyklon. Emperor's singer, Ihsahn, still resides in Notodden.

References
  1. "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet.
  2. "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no.
  3. Norske Kommunevåpen (1990). "Nye kommunevåbener i Norden". Retrieved 2009-01-17.
  4. "Ny vennskapsby" (in Norwegian). Telen. Retrieved 2011-01-16.
  5. "Vennskapsbyer" (in Norwegian). Notodden kommune. Archived from the original on 2011-07-19. Retrieved 2011-01-16.
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