Andenes was already an important fishing village during the Iron Age. By the early 1900s, it had become one of the largest fishing ports in Norway. The municipality of Andenes was established on 1 January 1924 when it was separated from Dverberg municipality. Initially, Andenes had 2,213 residents. On 1 January 1964, Andenes was merged with Dverberg and Bjørnskinn municipalities to create the new municipality of Andøy. In the early 1980s, the population of the village of Andenes was 3,770, which made it the largest village in Vesterålen. The downsizing of Andøya Air Station and general population centralization in Norway has led to a dramatic decline in inhabitants over the last 20 years. Tourism has become an important sounce of income for Andenes in recent years. The town's location on the coast by a narrow section of continental shelf has led to the town becoming a major centre for whale watching.
Name
The Old Norse form of the name was Andarnes. The first element is the genitive case of Ömd and the last element is nes which means "headland".
The construction of Andøya Air Station was commissioned in 1952 and funded in large part by NATO. It was to be situated between Haugnes and Andenes. A DC-3 Dakota of the Royal Norwegian Air Force undertook the first landing on 17 September 1954. The air station however was not fully operative until 15 September 1957. In 1961, the 333 Squadron was moved from Sola Air Station to Andøya with their Grumman HU-16 Albatross. In 1969, these were replaced by the Lockheed P-3 Orion. In 1989, the Lockheed P-3C Orion replaced the aging P-3Bs. However, two of the newest P-3Bs were converted to P-3Ns and fly missions for the Norwegian Coast Guard. Besides fisheries, Andøya Air Station has been the largest workplace in Andøy since the 1970s. In the autumn of 2011, an Orion aircraft from Andenes patrolled the Indian Ocean from a forward base in the Seychelles, supported by 44 personnel and contributing 29 patrols of 8–10 hours to NATO's anti-piracy operation. The flights led directly to the arrest of five pirate groups.
Andenes has a climate on the boundary between the subarctic and the subpolar oceanic climates, due to it being extremely mild for its latitude as a result of Gulf Stream influence. Summers are extremely cool due to the moderation, whereas even during the polar night period, daytime highs frequently rise above freezing.
Culture
is located in the central part of the village. The local newspaper is named Andøyposten. Andenes hosts the annual festival, where young people perform their own rock music as well as more known headliner such as Dead by April, Dimmu Borgir, Kvelertak, Turdus Musicus and Torch.
