Fana is a borough of the city ofBergen in Vestland county, Norway. The borough makes up the southeastern part of the municipality of Bergen. The borough was once part of the historic municipality of Fana which was incorporated into Bergen in 1972. The old municipality was much larger than the present-day borough of Fana. It also included all of the present-day boroughs of Ytrebygda and Fyllingsdalen as well as the southern part of the present-day boroughs of Årstad. As of 1 January 2012, Fana had a population of 39,216.
Toponomy
"The name is really farm name, in Old Norsefani, which probably means swampland or myrlende", according to the Store norske leksikon.
Geography
Fana is the geographically largest of the city's boroughs, with an area of. Most major industries in Fana are located near the neighborhood of Nesttun. The northeastern part is dominated by residential areas, being home to the majority of the borough's population, while the rest of the borough contains mostly forest, mountains, some farmland, in addition to a few settlements. The mountain Livarden lies along the northeastern boundary of the borough.
is located by the lakeNordåsvannet in northern Fana, south of the present-day Fjøsangerresidential area. The mansion is the residence of the Royal Family in Bergen, and is surrounded by a park. It was commissioned by Christian Michelsen, a shipping magnate and later Prime Minister of Norway, in 1899, and he lived there until his death in 1925. While the park is open to the public at almost all times, the building is only open for a few hours a dayin the summer and receives about 2000 visitors a year. Hop is the location of Troldhaugen, a museum and home of the composer Edvard Grieg 1885-1907. A replica of the Fantoft Stave Church has been located in Fana since 1997. The original was built in 1150 and it burned down in 1992, 109 years after it was moved to Bergen in 1883. Fana Church is a more recently built church that is used for most church functions in the area.
The European route E39 highway passes through the borough of Fana. From the border with Årstad borough to the neighborhood of Hop, the E39 highway is the 4-lane dual carriageway called Fritz C. Riebers veg. At Hop, the E39 highway branches off from the 4-lane road and passes through two tunnels on its way to the village of Nesttun, where-from it continues southwestwards through Valla and Kaland before entering the neighboring municipality of Os. From Hop, Fritz C. Riebers veg continues southwards as Rv 580 to Lagunen Storsenter. Prior to the construction of Fritz C. Riebers veg, the main road between central Bergen and Fana had been Fv 582, which passes through Storetveit, Paradis, Hop, Nesttun and Skjold from Årstad borough to Lagunen Storsenter. Other significant roads include Rv 546 from Lagunen Storsenter through Fanahammeren to Krokvåg, Fv 585 from Landås in Årstad through Nattland to Paradis, Fv 163 over Fanafjellet to Nordvik, and Fv 183 past Bjøllebotn to Myrdal. Due to the insufficient standard of E39, the main road between Bergen and Os and Stavanger, plans have been prepared for a new 4-lane road southwards from Bergen. The new road, which will branch off from Fritz C. Riebers veg north of Lagunen, will be funded partly by toll revenue. As elsewhere in Bergen, the bus service in Fana is operated byTide Buss.
Education
In Fana, there are 13 elementary schools, three lower secondary schools, two combined elementary/lower secondary schools, one special school, and 3 upper secondary schools in Fana. With the exception of the upper secondary schools, all the schools are owned and administered by Bergen municipality.
