Froland
Encyclopedia
Froland is a municipality in Aust-Agder
county
, Norway
. It is part of the traditional region
of Sørlandet. The administrative center is the village of Blakstad
, which along with Osedalen
form the main population center of the municipality.
in 1850. The new municipality had an initial population of 1,976. On 1 January 1967, the neighboring municipality of Mykland
(population: 604) was merged into the municipality of Froland. The newly enlarged municipality had a population of 3,372. On 1 January 1968, the Flateland area of neighboring Åmli
municipality (population: 6) was transferred to Froland.
On 1 January 1970, the two uninhabited areas of Neset and Råbudal were separated from Froland and transferred to neighboring Birkenes. Then on 1 January 1979, the uninhabited Landheia area was transferred from Froland to Birkenes municipality. On 1 January 1991, the Dalen area in Birkenes
municipality (population: 60) was transferred from Birkenes to Froland municipality.
) is named after the old Froland farm (Old Norse
: Fróðaland), since the first church was built there. The first element is the genitive case
of the male name Fróði
and the last element is land which means "land" or "farm
".
is from modern times. They were granted on 17 January 1986. The arms show a squirrel
as a symbol for the forest
s and wildlife
in the municipality.
production facility, Frolands verk, was founded in 1763 and continued in production through 1867. After that the facility became a sawmill
. Today the main building from 1791 is a historically protected building, and the old stable
s are used as a cultural center.
, on the south by Arendal
, Grimstad
and Birkenes, on the west by Evje og Hornnes
and Bygland
.
There are many lakes in Froland, including Homstølvatnet
, Nelaug
, Nystølfjorden
, and Uldalsåna
.
railway, from Nelaug
to Arendal connects Froland and Arendal to the railway system in Norway. Froland Station
is located in the village of Froland. There is also a station in Bøylestad
village.
Aust-Agder
is a county in Norway, bordering Telemark, Rogaland, and Vest-Agder. In 2002, there were 102,945 inhabitants, which is 2.2% of the total population in Norway. Its area is . The administrative center of the county is in Arendal....
county
Counties of Norway
Norway is divided into 19 administrative regions, called counties . The counties form the primary first-level subdivisions of Norway and are further divided into 430 municipalities...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. It is part of the traditional region
Districts of Norway
The country Norway is historically divided into a number of districts. Many districts have deep historical roots, and only partially coincide with today's administrative units of counties and municipalities. The districts are defined by geographical features, often valleys, mountain ranges, fjords,...
of Sørlandet. The administrative center is the village of Blakstad
Blakstad, Aust-Agder
Blakstad is a village which is the administrative centre of the municipality of Froland in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It is located along the river Nidelva, about northwest of the city of Arendal. The village has grown together with the neighboring village of Osedalen, and the combined...
, which along with Osedalen
Osedalen
Osedalen is a village in the municipality of Froland in Aust-Agder, Norway. The village has grown together with the administrative centre Blakstad, and the combined population is 2,083....
form the main population center of the municipality.
General information
The municipality of Froland was established when it was separated from the municipality of ØyestadØyestad
Øyestad is a former municipality in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It is located in the present-day municipality of Arendal in the Sørlandet region...
in 1850. The new municipality had an initial population of 1,976. On 1 January 1967, the neighboring municipality of Mykland
Mykland (village)
Mykland is a village and former municipality in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It is currently part of the municipality of Froland in the traditional region of Sørlandet.-Name:...
(population: 604) was merged into the municipality of Froland. The newly enlarged municipality had a population of 3,372. On 1 January 1968, the Flateland area of neighboring Åmli
Åmli
Åmli is a municipality in the county of Aust-Agder, Norway. It is located in the traditional region of Sørlandet. The main population centre and administrative center is the village of Åmli which lies along the river Nidelva.-Name:...
municipality (population: 6) was transferred to Froland.
On 1 January 1970, the two uninhabited areas of Neset and Råbudal were separated from Froland and transferred to neighboring Birkenes. Then on 1 January 1979, the uninhabited Landheia area was transferred from Froland to Birkenes municipality. On 1 January 1991, the Dalen area in Birkenes
Birkenes
Birkenes is a municipality in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sørlandet. The village of Birkeland is the administrative center and about half of the municipality's residents live there...
municipality (population: 60) was transferred from Birkenes to Froland municipality.
Name
The municipality (originally the parishParish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
) is named after the old Froland farm (Old Norse
Old Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
: Fróðaland), since the first church was built there. The first element is the genitive case
Genitive case
In grammar, genitive is the grammatical case that marks a noun as modifying another noun...
of the male name Fróði
Fróði
Fróði is the name of a number of legendary Danish kings in various texts including Beowulf, Snorri Sturluson's Prose Edda and his Ynglinga saga, Saxo Grammaticus' Gesta Danorum, and the Grottasöngr. A Danish king by this name also appears as a minor character in the Middle High German epic Die...
and the last element is land which means "land" or "farm
Farm
A farm is an area of land, or, for aquaculture, lake, river or sea, including various structures, devoted primarily to the practice of producing and managing food , fibres and, increasingly, fuel. It is the basic production facility in food production. Farms may be owned and operated by a single...
".
Coat-of-arms
The coat-of-armsCoat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
is from modern times. They were granted on 17 January 1986. The arms show a squirrel
Squirrel
Squirrels belong to a large family of small or medium-sized rodents called the Sciuridae. The family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels, chipmunks, marmots , flying squirrels, and prairie dogs. Squirrels are indigenous to the Americas, Eurasia, and Africa and have been introduced to Australia...
as a symbol for the forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
s and wildlife
Wildlife
Wildlife includes all non-domesticated plants, animals and other organisms. Domesticating wild plant and animal species for human benefit has occurred many times all over the planet, and has a major impact on the environment, both positive and negative....
in the municipality.
History
The ironIron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
production facility, Frolands verk, was founded in 1763 and continued in production through 1867. After that the facility became a sawmill
Sawmill
A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....
. Today the main building from 1791 is a historically protected building, and the old stable
Stable
A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals...
s are used as a cultural center.
Geography
The municipality is bordered on the north by the municipality of Åmli, on the east by TvedestrandTvedestrand
is a town and municipality in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sørlandet. The administrative center is the village of Tvedestrand....
, on the south by Arendal
Arendal
is a town and municipality in the county of Aust-Agder, Norway. Arendal belongs to the traditional region of Sørlandet.The town of Arendal is the administrative center the municipality and also of Aust-Agder county...
, Grimstad
Grimstad
is a town and municipality in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It belongs to the geographical region of Sørlandet. The administrative center of the municipality is the town of Grimstad. Other notable places in Grimstad include Eide, Fevik, Fjære, Landvik, Prestegårdskogen, Reddal, and Roresanden.It is...
and Birkenes, on the west by Evje og Hornnes
Evje og Hornnes
Evje og Hornnes is a municipality in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It is located in the traditional region of Setesdal. Evje og Hornnes was created as a new municipality on 1 January 1960 after the merger of the two older municipalities of Evje and Hornnes....
and Bygland
Bygland
Bygland is a municipality in the county of Aust-Agder, Norway. The municipal center is the village of Bygland. Other villages in the municipality include Byglandsfjord, Lauvdal, and Åraksbø...
.
There are many lakes in Froland, including Homstølvatnet
Homstølvatnet
Homstølvatnet is a lake in the far western part of the municipality of Froland in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It is located about east of the village of Byglandsfjord. The lake has an area of and is at an elevation of above sea level....
, Nelaug
Nelaug (lake)
Nelaug is a lake in the municipalities of Froland and Åmli in Aust-Agder county, Norway. The lake is formed by a dam which regulates a hydroelectric power plant on the Nidelva river. The village of Nelaug is located near the dam. The lake is located about south of the municipal center of Åmli...
, Nystølfjorden
Nystølfjorden
Nystølfjorden is a lake in the municipalities of Birkenes and Froland in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It is part of the Tovdalselva river drainage basin. It flows into the Vågsdalsfjorden and eventually the Uldalsåna before emptying into the Tovdalselva river....
, and Uldalsåna
Uldalsåna
Uldalsåna is a lake in the municipalities of Birkenes and Froland in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It is part of the Tovdalselva river drainage basin. On the southeastern end of the lake, there is a hydroelectric dam which releases water into the waterfall, Hanefoss, on its way down to the...
.
Transportation
ArendalsbanenArendal Line
The Arendal Line is a long railway line between Arendal and Simonstad in Norway. At Nelaug, north of Arendal, the line intersects with the Sørland Line. The southern section is electrified and provides a feeder passenger service. The line originally ran north from Arendal to Treungen and the...
railway, from Nelaug
Nelaug
Nelaug is a village in the southern part of the municipality of Åmli in Aust-Agder county, Norway. The population was 161. The village lies east of the Nelaug lake, which is regulated by a hydroelectric power plant...
to Arendal connects Froland and Arendal to the railway system in Norway. Froland Station
Froland Station
Froland Station is a railway station in Froland, Norway. Located on Arendalsbanen it is served by Norges Statsbaner. The station was opened in 1908 as part of Arendal - Åmlibanen.-External links:*...
is located in the village of Froland. There is also a station in Bøylestad
Bøylestad
Bøylestad is a small village in the municipality of Froland in Aust-Agder county, Norway. The village is located along the river Nidelva about northeast of the village of Blakstad–Osedalen. The population of Bøylestad was 214....
village.
Notable residents
- Niels Henrik AbelNiels Henrik AbelNiels Henrik Abel was a Norwegian mathematician who proved the impossibility of solving the quintic equation in radicals.-Early life:...
, a brilliant 19th century mathematicianMathematicianA mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
, died here in April 1829 and is buried at Froland cemetery.
External links
- Municipal fact sheet from Statistics NorwayStatistics NorwayStatistics Norway is the Norwegian statistics bureau. It was established in 1876.Relying on a staff of about 1,000, Statistics Norway publish about 1,000 new statistical releases every year on its web site. All releases are published both in Norwegian and English...
- Arendals fossekompani
- Froland.org
- Municipal website
- Froland Curlingklubb