Volda

Infobox_Kommune
name=Volda

---

idnumber=1519
county=Møre og Romsdal
landscape=Sunnmøre
capital=Volda
governor=Ragnhild Aarflot Kalland (Sp)
governor_as_of=2003
arearank=194
area=547
arealand=525
areapercent=0.17
population_as_of=2004
populationrank=123
population=8,377
populationpercent=0.18
populationdensity=16
populationincrease=2.7
language=Nynorsk
lat_deg=62| lat_min=5| lat_sec=16| lon_deg=6| lon_min=0| lon_sec=51
utm_zone=32V| utm_northing=6887551 |utm_easting=0344108| geo_cat=adm2nd


munwebpage=www.volda.kommune.no

Volda is a municipality in the county of Møre og Romsdal, Norway.

Volda was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). Dalsfjord was separated from Volda July 1, 1924, but it was again merged with Volda January 1, 1964. Ørsta was separated from Volda August 1, 1883.

The name

The municipality is named after Voldsfjorden (Old Norse "Valdr"). The name is probably derived from an old word meaning 'wave'. (Compare German "Welle" f 'wave'.)

Until 1918 the name was written "Volden".

Geography

Volda's main geographical feature are two fjords, Austefjorden and Dalsfjorden, which traverse the municipality in a south-southeastern and southern direction, respectively. It is also mountainous, particularly south of these two fjords.

Volda is bordered by Vanylven to the south-west/west, Herøy and Ulstein (only by sea) to the west, and Ørsta to the north and east. To the south it is adjacent to Sogn og Fjordane county.

The dominant centre, both in terms of population and administration, is Volda, in the northernmost part of the municipality. Other population concentrations include Mork, Folkestad, Fyrde, Steinsvika, Lauvstad, Bjørkedal and Straumshamn.

Culture

Volda is primarily known for strong cultural heritage and academic traditions. A private library at Egset, the first rural of its kind in Norway, is said to have inspired the young Ivar Aasen in the 19th century. "Volda landsgymnas" (established 1910) was the first Norwegian secondary school outside a major city. Among the most important institutions today is the Volda University College.
Volda University College is one of 25 university colleges in Norway. Volda University College enrolls about 3000 students and specializes in education of teachers, animators and journalists.

Volda also host a national documentary movie festival as well as an annual student festival. The documentary movie festival is called Den Norske Dokumentarfilmfestivalen, and is found at www.dokfilm.no. The festival is usually held in late April.

As a logical consequence of the huge influx of students, as well as a county hospital, public services are by far the most dominant sector, representing almost 50 % of economical life in Volda. Industry and agriculture are also prevalent. Bjørkedalen is noted for its tradition in building wooden boats.

Communications

These include the Ørsta/Volda airport, located in neighbouring Ørsta, and the E39 highway. As noted, the municipality is criss-crossed by fjords; therefore, both Lauvstad and Folkestad are linked to the population centre Volda by ferry. In February 2008 the underwater Eiksund Tunnel connected the municipalities of Ulstein, Hareid, Herøy and Sande to Ørsta and Volda. The tunnel is the deepest sub-sea tunnel in the world.

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms is from modern times (1987). It shows a penpoint.

External links

* [http://volda.kommune.no Official website]
* [http://www.volda.org Website about Volda]
* [http://www.yr.no/place/Norway/Møre_og_Romsdal/Volda/Volda/ Weather forecast for Volda]