Hjørundfjord

The administrative centre was the village of Sæbø, located on the shores of the Hjørundfjorden. The villages of Bjørke, Leira, and Store Standal were all a part Hjørundfjord Municipality. Prior to its dissolution in 1964, the 479 km2 municipality was the 204th largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Hjørundfjord Municipality was the 480th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 1,776. The municipality's population density was 3.7 PD/km2 and its population had decreased by 3.2% over the previous 10-year period.

• Name — Hjørundfjord • Herad — yes • Former — yes • Id Number — 1522 • County — Møre og Romsdal • District — Sunnmøre • Capital — Sæbø • Established — 1 Jan 1838 • Preceded — none • Disestablished — 1 Jan 1964 • Succeeded — Ørsta Municipality • Population Demonym — Hjørundfjording • Language — Nynorsk • Mayor — Jakob E. Øye • Mayor As Of — 1960–1963 • Elevation Max M — 1630 • Area Rank — 204 • Area Total Km2 — 479.1 • Population As Of — 1963 • Population Rank — 480 • Population Total — 1776 • Population Density Km2 — 3.7 • Population Increase — -3.2

• Illustration — View of the Hjørundfjord Church (c. 1885) The municipality was established on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). The original municipality was the same as the prestegjeld (parish) of Hjørundfjord. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, Hjørundfjord Municipality (population: 1,728), Vartdal Municipality (population: 1,315), and Ørsta Municipality (population: 6,209) were merged to form a new, larger Ørsta Municipality.

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the local Hjørundfjorden (Hjǫrundarfjǫrdr). The first element is the old name of the fjord, Hjǫrund. This origin of this name is uncertain, but it may have come from the word which means "sword". The last element is which means "fjord".

The Church of Norway had one parish (no) within Hjørundfjord Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Hjørundfjord prestegjeld and the Søre Sunnmøre prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. Churches in Hjørundfjord Municipality • Parish (no) — Church name — Location of the church — Year built • Hjørundfjord — Hjørundfjord Church — Sæbø — 1880

The municipality encircled both sides of the Hjørundfjorden as well as the Bondalen valley. The highest point in the municipality was the 1630 m tall mountain Smørskredtindane, whose peak was located about 300 m from the border with Stranda Municipality. Vartdal Municipality was located to the northwest, Ørsta Municipality was located to the west, Volda Municipality was located to the southwest, Hornindal Municipality was located to the south (in Sogn og Fjordane county), Sunnylven Municipality was located to the southeast, Stranda Municipality was located to the east, and Sykkylven Municipality was located to the northeast.

While it existed, Hjørundfjord Municipality was responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Frostating Court of Appeal.

The municipal council (Heradsstyre) of Hjørundfjord Municipality was made up of 17 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.

The mayor (ordførar) of Hjørundfjord Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position: • 1838–1851: Hans Olsen Stokke • 1852–1853: Ole Olsen Saure • 1854–1857: Ole Torstensen Standal • 1858–1859: Edvard Storm Munch • 1870–1898: Paul Andreas Jetmundsen Aklestad (V) • 1899–1899: Arne Eliasson Grønningsæter • 1900–1907: Ole Christian Larsson Tvergrov • 1908–1916: John Olson Standal • 1917–1919: Jetmund Jakobson Skjaastad • 1920–1922: Ole Karlsen Tryggeseth • 1923–1931: Bernt Ingebriktson Håndlykken • 1932–1934: Knut Jonson Standal • 1935–1941: Elias Christian Fanneløb • 1941–1942: Trygve Nilsen (NS) • 1942–1945: Ola O. Skylstad (NS) • 1945–1945: Karl A. Tryggeseth • 1946–1959: Johannes Bjøringsøy • 1960–1963: Jakob E. Øye

• Knut Skram (born 1937), a baritone • Rasmus Skylstad (1893–1972), a diplomat