Sauda (town)

Sauda is a town in Sauda municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The town, which is also the administrative centre of the municipality, is located in a river valley at the northern end of the Saudafjorden.[3] The small suburb of Saudasjøen lies about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) west of the town centre. A large part of the industrial harbour area of Sauda is built on reclaimed land that was once underwater in the fjord.

Sauda
Town
View of the town at night (looking towards the fjord)
Sauda
Location in Rogaland county
Coordinates: 59°39′02″N 06°21′14″E
CountryNorway
RegionWestern Norway
CountyRogaland
DistrictRyfylke
MunicipalitySauda
Area
 • Total3.73 km2 (1.44 sq mi)
Elevation8 m (26 ft)
Population
 (2013)[1]
 • Total4,253
 • Density1,140/km2 (3,000/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Post Code
4200 Sauda

Sauda received "town status" in 1998. The 3.73-square-kilometre (920-acre) town (which includes the small suburb of Saudasjøen) has a population (2013) of 4,253. This gives the town a population density of 1,140 inhabitants per square kilometre (3,000/sq mi) and makes it the largest settlement in the municipality as well as the only "urban" area.[1]

The newspaper Ryfylke has been published in Sauda since 1926.[4]

The town has four churches: Sauda Church and Solbrekk Chapel in the town centre, Saudasjøen Chapel in the western suburb of Saudasjøen, and Hellandsbygd Chapel a few miles north of Sauda. There is also a high school in the town as well as the Ryfylkesmuseet (Ryfylke museum).[3]

History
View of the Sauda Smeltverk

Sauda was originally (as with many Norwegian towns/cities) an old farming village. The village survived on agriculture and the timber industry throughout the Middle Ages. Due to its proximity to many nearby waterfalls, several mills were built for pulp and paper. Over time, Sauda grew up as industrialization began, especially at the start of the 1900s. Zinc mining in the late 1800s at the nearby Allmannajuvet mine caused Sauda's harbor to grow as the mining ships began arriving.

In 1915, the American company Union Carbide Corporation built the Sauda Smelteverk, a smelting factory near the centre of Sauda. This factory led directly or indirectly to a huge development in the area. Sauda suddenly became the place people both from Rogaland county and the rest of the country moved to in order to gain employment. It was a tripling in population into a few years, with a population peak around the year 1960. Recent industry and several power development project kept alive the city and made more development. The village received town status in 1998.

References
  1. Statistisk sentralbyrå (1 January 2013). "Urban settlements. Population and area, by municipality".
  2. "Sauda, Rogaland" (in Norwegian). yr.no. Retrieved 2015-05-05.
  3. Store norske leksikon. "Sauda – tettstedet" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 2015-05-05.
  4. Store norske leksikon: Ryfylke – avis.



This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.