Sunnfjord (municipality)


Sunnfjord is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Førde. Other villages in the municipality include Naustdal, Sande, Vassenden, and Skei.
The municipality is the 27th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Sunnfjord is the 56th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 22,030. The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 7.6% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The municipality was established on 1 January 2020 when the old municipalities of Førde, Gaular, Jølster, and Naustdal were merged.

Name

The municipality was named after the traditional district of Sunnfjord, in which it is located. The first part of the name sunn- means "southern" and the last part of the name is fjord, thus it is the southern fjord region.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was approved in 2019 for use starting on 1 January 2020. The green arms show a design of four white rivers joining a larger body of water. The rivers symbolize the four main rivers of Sunnfjord: Nausta, Gaula, Anga, and Jølstra. It was meant to symbolize the many waterfalls and rivers in the municipality as well as strength and unity.

Churches

The Church of Norway has six parishes within the municipality of Sunnfjord. It is part of the Sunnfjord prosti in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.
Parish Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
FørdeFørde ChurchFørde1885
GaularBygstad ChurchBygstad1845
GaularSande ChurchSande1864
GaularHestad ChapelHestad1805
GaularViksdalen ChurchVik1848
HelgheimHelgheim ChurchHelgheim1877
Holsen og
Haukedalen		Haukedalen ChurchHaukedalen1885
Holsen og
Haukedalen		Holsen ChurchHolsen1861
NaustdalNaustdal ChurchNaustdal1891
NaustdalVevring ChurchIndrevevring1846
ÅlhusVassenden ChurchVassenden2002
ÅlhusÅlhus ChurchÅlhus1795

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Sunnfjord, 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 elects a mayor. The municipality falls under the Sogn og Fjordane District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council of Sunnfjord is made up of 45 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the council is as follows: