Midsund is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdalcounty, Norway. It was part of the Romsdalregion. The administrative centre was the village of Midsund on Otrøyaisland. Other settlements on the island included Uglvik and Raknes in the north and Nord-Heggdal in the southeast. The municipality consisted of many islands. The main islands were Otrøya, Midøya, and Dryna, as well as the smaller populated islands of Magerøya and Tautra—both are less than. There were also many tiny uninhabited islands and skerries. The islands all sit at the mouth of the great Romsdalsfjord. At the time if its dissolution in 2020, the municipality is the 384th largest by area out of the 422 municipalities in Norway. Midsund is the 323rd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 2,049. The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 7.8% over the last decade.
General information
The municipality of Midsund was established on 1 January 1965 when the old municipality of Sør-Aukra was merged with part of Midøya island and the neighboring island of Dryna which were part of the old Vatne Municipality. On 1 January 2020, the municipality of Midsund was merged into the neighboring Molde Municipality, along with the municipality of Nesset. Together, the new Molde Municipality is significantly larger.
Name
The municipality is named after the strait that flows between the islands of Otrøya and Midøya, the Midsundet. The first element of the name Miðja means "middle" and the second element sund means "strait" or "sound".
Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted on 15 May 1987. The arms show two silver triangles on a blue background, representing Otrøya and Midøya islands in the ocean. These two main islands in the municipality are separated by a small strait, the Midsund. The geographical situation is symbolised in the arms.
The islands of Midsund Municipality are separated from the mainland by the wide Julsundet strait to the east and the wide Midfjorden to the south. To the north are many smaller islands including Gossa and Harøya, Sandøya, and Orta. To the west lie the islands of Fjørtofta, Skuløya, and Haramsøya. The three largest islands of the community lie in a line from ENE to WSW. The island of Magerøya lies between Midøya and Otrøya and a bridge connects it to the latter. Tautra lies in the Moldefjorden, southeast of Otrøya. Otrøya is the main island of the community, measuring about from east to west. The southern coasts of Otrøya, Midøya, and Dryna rise from the fjord as sheer tall cliffs. At Oppstad, the cliff is feared to collapse, which would cause a small tsunami in the Moldefjorden. On the southern coast of Otrøya the following small villages can be found: Solholmen, Nord-Heggdal, Oppstad, Sør-Heggdal, and Klauset. The north has the following villages: Ræstad, Rakvåg, Tangen, Raknes, and Uglvik. On the western side of Otrøya, facing the bay that separates it from Midøya, lies the village of Midsund, the largest settlement in the community. The Midsund Bridge connects it with Midøya. Dryna and Midøya are also connected with a bridge. Ferries run between the islands and the mainland. There is a ferry from Solholmen across the Julsundet to Molde Municipality and from the island of Dryna to the village of Brattvåg. The larger three islands' interior is wilderness, but the rims are used for keeping cattle and small farming.
The municipal council of Midsund is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The party breakdown for the final municipal council was as follows:
Demographics
The municipality had 1,939 inhabitants, with 50.3% male. The percentage of people older than 67 is 18.3%. Unemployment is 2.3%. Population growth is stable. Most inhabitants are fishers or small farmers.
Media
The newspaper Øyavis was published in Midsund from 1983 to 2016.
