Ibestad


Ibestad is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Central Hålogaland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hamnvik. Some of the other larger villages in Ibestad include Engenes, Laupstad, Rollnes, Sørrollnes, Sørvika, and Å.
The municipality is the 292nd largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Ibestad is the 307th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 1,361. The municipality's population density is and its population has decreased by 3.3% over the last decade.

General information

The municipality of Ibestad was established on 1 January 1838. Initially, Ibestad municipality covered a large area from the Vågsfjorden to the border with Sweden. In 1854, the rural eastern half of the municipality was separated from Ibestad to form the new Bardu Municipality. This left Ibestad with 4,741 residents.
Then, on 1 January 1871, the northeastern part of the municipality was separated from Ibestad to form the new Salangen Municipality. This left Ibestad with 4,301 inhabitants. On 1 January 1907, the easternmost area of Ibestad became the separate Lavangen Municipality. Ibestad had 5,709 residents remaining after the split. In 1926, the municipality of Ibestad was divided into four separate municipalities: Andørja in the northeast, Gratangen in the southeast, Astafjord in the southwest, and Ibestad in the northwest.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, the municipality of Ibestad was merged with the municipality of Andørja and the part of Skånland Municipality located on the island of Rolla, creating a new Ibestad Municipality with a total of 3,294 residents.
On 1 January 2020, the municipality became part of the newly formed Troms og Finnmark county. Previously, it had been part of the old Troms county.

Name

The municipality is named after the old Ibestad farm, since the first Ibestad Church was built there. The first element is the genitive case of the male name Ívarr and the last element is staðir which means "" or "farm". Prior to 1918, the name was spelled Ibbestad.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms is modern and it was approved on 19 December 1986. The blue and white arms symbolize one of the oldest Norwegian stone churches. The church was built in Ibestad around the year 1200. As a symbol for this church, the arms show a cross on a medieval tombstone that was found at the church in 1960.

Churches

The Church of Norway has two parishes ' within the municipality of Ibestad. It is part of the Trondenes prosti in the Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland.
Parish 'Church NameLocation of the ChurchYear Built
AndørjaAndørja ChurchEngenes1914
IbestadIbestad ChurchHamnvik1881
IbestadSørrollnes ChapelSørrollnes1976

Geography

The municipality encompasses the islands of Andørja and Rolla and the tiny surrounding islets. The two main islands are connected by the undersea Ibestad Tunnel. The Mjøsund Bridge connects Andørja to Salangen Municipality on the mainland. There is a regular ferry connection from Sørrollnes on Rolla to the town of Harstad.
The Astafjorden forms the southeastern border of the municipality and the Vågsfjorden forms the western and northern borders. The small Mjøsundet strait forms the eastern border. The highest point in Ibestad is the tall Langlitinden mountain.

Climate

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Ibestad, 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 elect a mayor. The municipality falls under the Trondenes District Court and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council of Ibestad is made up of 19 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the council is as follows: