Hardanger is a traditional district

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,...

 in the western part

Vestlandet

Western Norway is the region along the Atlantic coast of southern Norway. It consists of the counties Rogaland, Hordaland, Sogn og Fjordane, and Møre og Romsdal and the region has a population of approximately 1.3 million people. The largest city is Bergen, second largest is Stavanger...

 of 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...

, dominated by the Hardangerfjord

Hardangerfjord

With a length of , the Hardangerfjord in the county of Hordaland in Norway is the third largest fjord in the world and the second largest in Norway. The surrounding district is called Hardanger....

. It consists of the municipalities of Odda

Odda

is a municipality and town in the county of Hordaland, Norway. Odda was separated from Ullensvang on 1 July 1913 and on 1 January 1964 Røldal was merged with Odda. The town of Odda is the centre of the landscape of Hardanger, located at the end of the Hardangerfjord.In 1927, Erling Johnson,...

, Ullensvang

Ullensvang

Ullensvang is a municipality in the county of Hordaland, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Hardanger. The administrative centre is the village of Kinsarvik....

, Eidfjord

Eidfjord

Eidfjord is a municipality in the county of Hordaland, Norway. Eidfjord was separated from Ulvik May 1, 1891....

, Ulvik

Ulvik

Ulvik is a municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. The municipality stretches from the Hardangerfjord to 1,800 metres above sea level, and borders the municipalities of Granvin, Eidfjord, Ullensvang, Voss, Aurland, and Hol. It takes around two hours to drive from Bergen to Ulvik. The nearest...

, Granvin

Granvin

Granvin is a municipality in the county of Hordaland, Norway. The population is 964. About half of these, 444 people, live in the village of Granvin, situated at the end of a side arm of the Hardangerfjord.-Name:...

, Kvam

Kvam

Kvam is a municipality in the county of Hordaland, Norway. The parish of Vikør was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . Parts of Strandebarm were merged with Kvam on 1 January 1965...

 and Jondal

Jondal

Jondal is a municipality in the county of Hordaland, Norway. Jondal was separated from Strandebarm in 1846.-Name:The Old Norse form of the name was Jónardalr. The first element is an old rivername Jón and the last element is dalr which means "valley" or "dale"...

, and is located inside the 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...

 of Hordaland

Hordaland

is a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark and Rogaland. Hordaland is the third largest county after Akershus and Oslo by population. The county administration is located in Bergen...

.

In the early Viking Age

Viking Age

Viking Age is the term for the period in European history, especially Northern European and Scandinavian history, spanning the late 8th to 11th centuries. Scandinavian Vikings explored Europe by its oceans and rivers through trade and warfare. The Vikings also reached Iceland, Greenland,...

, before Harald Fairhair, Hardanger was a petty kingdom

Petty kingdom

A petty kingdom is one of a number of small kingdoms, described as minor or "petty" by contrast to an empire or unified kingdom that either preceded or succeeded it...

 with its capital at Kinsarvik

Kinsarvik

Kinsarvik is a village, and former municipality, in the county of Hordaland, Norway.Kinsarvik was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 . Ullensvang used to be an annex to Kinsarvik - but in 1869 Ullensvang became the main parish, and Kinsarvik became an annex to Ullensvang...

.

The name

The Norse form of the name was Harðangr. The first element could be harðr 'hard' (referring to wind and weather), or it could be the same as in the name of the county it lies (see Hordaland

Hordaland

is a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark and Rogaland. Hordaland is the third largest county after Akershus and Oslo by population. The county administration is located in Bergen...

). The last element is angr m 'fjord

Fjord

Geologically, a fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created in a valley carved by glacial activity.-Formation:A fjord is formed when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley by abrasion of the surrounding bedrock. Glacial melting is accompanied by rebound of Earth's crust as the ice...

' (the name originally belonged to the fjord, now called Hardangerfjord

Hardangerfjord

With a length of , the Hardangerfjord in the county of Hordaland in Norway is the third largest fjord in the world and the second largest in Norway. The surrounding district is called Hardanger....

).

Agriculture

The region is one of Norway's most important sources of fruit

Fruit

In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...

 and constitutes approximately 40% of the national fruit production, including apple

Apple

The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...

, plum

Plum

A plum or gage is a stone fruit tree in the genus Prunus, subgenus Prunus. The subgenus is distinguished from other subgenera in the shoots having a terminal bud and solitary side buds , the flowers in groups of one to five together on short stems, and the fruit having a groove running down one...

, pear

Pear

The pear is any of several tree species of genus Pyrus and also the name of the pomaceous fruit of these trees. Several species of pear are valued by humans for their edible fruit, but the fruit of other species is small, hard, and astringent....

, wild cherry and redcurrant

Redcurrant

The redcurrant , Ribes rubrum, is a member of the genus Ribes in the gooseberry family Grossulariaceae, native to parts of western Europe...

. Apples have been cultivated in Hardanger since the 14th century, the agricultural experience brought by English monk

Monk

A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...

s who first arrived at Lyse Abbey in 1146. The climate, soil and seasonal conditions of the region are believed to be particularly beneficial to the growth of apples. In 2005, juice produced from Hardanger apples became Norway's third product to be granted protection of origin name

Protected designation of origin

Protected Geographical Status is a legal framework defined in European Union law to protect the names of regional foods. Protected Designation of Origin , Protected Geographical Indication and Traditional Speciality Guaranteed are distinct regimes of geographical indications within the framework...

, with applications pending for other regional produce.

In 2006, an Ulvik farmer and producer of sparkling cider

Cider

Cider or cyder is a fermented alcoholic beverage made from apple juice. Cider varies in alcohol content from 2% abv to 8.5% abv or more in traditional English ciders. In some regions, such as Germany and America, cider may be termed "apple wine"...

, Nils Lekve of Hardanger Saft og Siderfabrikk, successfully navigated the narrow and complex directives of Norwegian alcohol laws, and completed a distribution agreement with monopoly alcoholic beverage outlet Vinmonopolet

Vinmonopolet

Vinmonopolet , symbolized by Ⓥ and colloquially shortened to Polet, is a government owned alcoholic beverage retailer and the only company allowed to sell beverages containing an alcohol content higher than 4.75% in Norway....

, making Hardanger Sider Sprudlande available for national sale by July 2006.
Lekve's efforts earned him a top 3 finalist nomination for the Bygdeutviklingsprisen, awarded by Innovasjon Norge.

Crafts

Hardanger Embroidery

Hardanger embroidery

Hardanger embroidery or "Hardangersøm" is a form of embroidery traditionally worked with white thread on white even-weave cloth, using counted thread and drawn thread work techniques. It is sometimes called whitework embroidery.-History:...

 is a type of whitework that takes its name from that region. It is made with geometric designs of kloster (blocks), "ships", diamonds, and other embroidery techniques. It is worked on Hardanger or linen fabric which has a "count" of 22 to 29 threads per inch. Traditionally it is worked on white fabric with white cotton thread but in recent years other colors and threads are popular. Norwegian bunad

Bunad

Bunad is an umbrella term encompassing, in its broadest sense, a range of both traditional rural garments as well modern 20th century folk costumes. In its narrow sense the word Bunad does only refer to garments constructed in the early 20th century very loosely based on tradition...

s (native costumes) from that region often feature this embroidery on the bottom of the white apron.