Karmøy

Infobox Kommune
name = Karmøy
idnumber = 1149

---

county = Rogaland
capital = Kopervik
landscape = Haugaland
language = Neutral
demonym = Karmøybu
Kartabu


munwebpage = www.karmoy.kommune.no
governor = Kjell Arvid Svendsen (KrF)
governor_as_of = 2004
arearank = 313
area = 229
arealand = 219
areapercent = 0.07
population_as_of = 2007
populationrank = 20
population = 38 349
populationpercent = 0.81
populationdensity = 170
populationincrease = 4.6
lat_deg = 59 | lat_min = 15 | lat_sec = 23 | lon_deg = 5 | lon_min = 14 | lon_sec = 57
utm_zone = 32V | utm_northing = 6574641 | utm_easting = 0286191 | geo_cat = adm2nd

Karmøy is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located southwest of the city of Haugesund. Karmøy was created as a new municipality on 1 January 1965 after the merger of Kopervik (town), Skudeneshavn (town), Skudenes, Stangaland, Torvastad, Åkra, and most of Avaldsnes.

General information

Name

The Old Norse form of the name was "Körmt". The name is probably derived from "karmr" which means 'bargeboard' (here in the sense 'the sheltering island'). The last element "øy" which means "island" was added later.

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 18 April 1975. The arms are a silver diamond and cross on a red background. The diamond symbolizes the name "Karmøy" since the island protects the mainland. The cross symbolizes the Avaldsnes church which was a royal chapel in the Middle Ages. [cite web|url=http://www.ngw.nl/int/nor/k/karmoy.htm|author=Norske Kommunevåpen|date=1990|title=Nye kommunevåbener i Norden|accessdaymonth=9 October|accessyear=2008]

History

There are several finds from stone age, the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. Karmøy was known for sailing in the old times. The skaldic poem "Grímnismál" says that Thor, the weather god, wades the straits at Karmsund every morning on his way to Yggdrasil, the tree of life. The ocean outside Karmøy is dangerous, filled with underwater currents and rocks. Thus the ships were forced into the narrow Karmsund. Chieftains and kings controlled the ships passing up and down the coast and demanded taxes.

The Karmsund strait was also the source of the name of the kingdom, at the time when the first king of the unified Norway, Harald Fairhair, lived on Karmøy. (See History of Norway.)

On the northeastern coast of the island the place Avaldsnes is located. The king Augvald who has given his name to this ancient site is mentioned in the Norse sagas as having his home here. Later the residences of Harald Fairhair and other kings are mentioned. There is also a medieval church, St. Olav's church of Avaldsnes, located on this coast.

Visnes in the northwest was once the site of an important copper mine. This mine was source of the copper used for the Statue of Liberty in New York City. [cite web|url=http://park.org/Guests/Stavanger/statue.htm|title=Statue of Liberty]

Close to Avaldsnes is also the museum known as The Viking Farm. The building and use of the farm is an ongoing experimental archaeological research and interpretation programme. The farm includes reconstructed houses.

In the 18th century, two girls from Uyea in Shetland rowed to Haaf Gruney to milk some of the cows grazing there. Unfortunately, their return was marred by a strong storm, and eventually they found their tiny boat blown to Karmøy. The Uyea girls ended up marrying Karmøy men, and their descendants still live there.cite book|last=Haswell-Smith|first=Hamish|date=2004|title=The Scottish Islands|location=Edinburgh|publisher=Canongate]

Geography

The vast part of the district is the large island Karmøy, but it also includes the peninsula between Karmsund and Førdesfjord and several small islands.

The natural and cultural landscape is highly heterogeneous, encompassing chalk-white sands, moorland and several piers around the island. The landscape in the north is mainly agricultural, while large parts of the inland south are heather moors. The island has many white, sandy beaches facing the North Sea, attracting surfers as one of the top spots for windsurfing in Norway.

Built up places are for the most part located along the coast, the main such areas being Kopervik, Åkrehamn and Skudeneshavn. The airport of Haugesund is also located on the island. Karmøy is known for its industries, as well as for fishing. Among interested people Karmøy is also well known in Norway for the heather moors and the surfing beaches.

Sister cities

* Mjölby, Sweden
* Vinderup, Denmark

Notable residents

* King Augvald, legendary king
* King Ferking, legendary king
* King Harold Fairhair, Norway's first king.
* Leif Ove Andsnes, pianist
* Egil Østenstad, football player

References

External links

* [http://www.karmoy.kommune.no/kk/portal.nsf/pages/info_en Tourist information] - from the municipality en icon