Averøy


Averøy is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the region of Nordmøre. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Bruhagen. Other villages in the municipality include Bremsnes, Kornstad, Kvernes, Kårvåg, Langøy, Sveggen, and Vebenstad.
The municipality includes the main island of Averøya and the many small islands surrounding it. The Kornstadfjorden, Kvernesfjorden, and Bremsnesfjorden surround the municipality on three sides and the open ocean on the fourth side. The Hestskjær Lighthouse and Stavnes Lighthouse are located in the northern part of the municipality.
The municipality is the 312th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Averøy is the 163rd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 5,788. The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 5.7% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The municipality of Averøy was established on 1 January 1964 when the former municipality of Kvernes and most of the municipalities of Kornstad and Bremsnes were merged into one large municipality. On 1 January 1983, the small island of Eldhusøya was transferred from Eide Municipality to Averøy Municipality.

Name

The municipality is named after the island Averøya . The meaning of the first element is unknown and the ending -øya or -øy means "island".

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 4 April 1986. The arms show three Stone Age arrowheads in gold on a red background. The arrowheads refer to actual arrowheads, made of slate, which have been found in the municipality. The arrowheads thus symbolize the long time that the area has been inhabited.

Churches

The Church of Norway has three parishes within the municipality of Averøy. It is part of the Ytre Nordmøre deanery in the Diocese of Møre.
Parish Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
KvernesKvernes ChurchKvernes1893
KvernesKvernes Stave ChurchKvernes14th century
KornstadKornstad ChurchKornstad1871
BremsnesBremsnes ChurchBremsnes1771
BremsnesLangøy ChapelLangøy1935

History

The municipality of Averøy has many historic landmarks, like the Bremsnes cave with Mesolithic findings from the Fosna culture. Langøysund, now a remote fishing community, was once a bustling port along the main coastal route, and the site of the Compromise of 1040 between King Magnus I and the farmers along the coast. Also, the Medieval Kvernes Stave Church.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Averøy, are responsible for primary education, 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. The municipality falls under the Nordmøre District Court and the Frostating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council of Averøy is made up of 23 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the council is as follows:

Mayor

The mayors of Averøy :
The tourist attraction Atlanterhavsveien connects the island and municipality of Averøy to the neighboring Eide Municipality, which is on the mainland to the west. The Storseisundet Bridge crosses the municipal boundary. In 2005, it was awarded the "Building of the Century" prize by the Norwegian Construction Industry. On the other side of the island near the village of Sveggen, Averøy is connected to Kristiansund Municipality via the undersea tunnel. This tunnel, known as Atlanterhavstunnelen, was completed in December 2009, replacing the ferry from Bremsnes on Averøya to the city of Kristiansund.