Værøy is an island municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Lofoten. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Sørland on the main island of Værøya. The other village in Værøy is Nordland. Most of the residents live in the Sørland area surrounding the main harbor. The old Værøy Lighthouse sits at the end of that harbor.
Værøy kommune | |
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Municipality | |
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Coordinates: 67°40′23″N 12°40′09″E | |
Country | Norway |
County | Nordland |
District | Lofoten |
Established | 1 Jan 1838 |
Administrative centre | Sørland |
Government | |
• Mayor (2019) | Susann Berg Kristiansen (LL) |
Area | |
• Total | 18.64 km2 (7.20 sq mi) |
• Land | 18.60 km2 (7.18 sq mi) |
• Water | 0.04 km2 (0.02 sq mi) 0.2% |
• Rank | #351 in Norway |
Population (2022) | |
• Total | 678 |
• Rank | #347 in Norway |
• Density | 36.5/km2 (95/sq mi) |
• Change (10 years) | −9.7% |
Demonym | Værøyværing[1] |
Official language | |
• Norwegian form | Bokmål |
Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
ISO 3166 code | NO-1857 |
Website | Official website |
The 19-square-kilometre (7.3 sq mi) municipality is the 351st largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Værøy is the 347th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of only 678. The municipality's population density is 36.5 inhabitants per square kilometre (95/sq mi) and its population has decreased by 9.7% over the previous 10-year period.[3][4]
The municipality of Værøy was established on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). On 1 July 1928, the southern district of Værøy (population: 731) was separated to become the new Røst Municipality.[5]
The Old Norse form of the name was Veðrøy. The first element is veðr which means "weather" (here referring to harsh weather and the exposed and unsheltered position of the island). The last element is øy which means "island". Historically, the name has been spelled Værø.[6]
The coat of arms was granted on 10 July 1988. The arms show a puffin on a blue background. Puffins nest in large numbers in the area and used to be of great importance for the village, both for meat and down.[7]
The Church of Norway has one parish (sokn) within the municipality of Værøy. It is part of the Bodø domprosti (arch-deanery) in the Diocese of Sør-Hålogaland.
Parish (sokn) | Church name | Location of the church | Year built |
---|---|---|---|
Værøy | Værøy Church | Sørland | 1939 |
Old Værøy Church | Nordland | 1799 |
The island municipality is made up of many islands, the two largest islands being Værøya and Mosken. It is located at the end of the Lofoten archipelago. The Norwegian Sea lies to the northwest and the Vestfjorden lies to the southeast. The Moskenstraumen maelstrom lies to the north between Værøya and Moskenesøya.
The weather in Værøy can be very changeable. Sunshine, rain, wind, and mist may interchange rapidly. The winter climate is mild and the temperature seldom drops below 0 °C (32 °F). This makes conditions for stockfish exceptionally good.
Røst and Værøy are among the most northern locations in the world where there is no meteorological winter because the average temperature generally stays above freezing all year. The winter temperatures in southern Lofoten represent the highest temperature anomaly in the world relative to latitude. However, the winter weather is rather windy.[8] The polar night occurs from December 13–29 and the midnight sun occurs from May 28- July 15.
Værøy has a subpolar oceanic climate (Cfc) with short, cool summers and long winters.
Climate data for Værøy 1991-2020 (precipitation 61-90, extremes 2005-2020) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 8.9 (48.0) |
8.4 (47.1) |
7.9 (46.2) |
12.5 (54.5) |
19 (66) |
21.1 (70.0) |
22.7 (72.9) |
21.2 (70.2) |
17.4 (63.3) |
15.2 (59.4) |
11.4 (52.5) |
9.7 (49.5) |
22.7 (72.9) |
Daily mean °C (°F) | 2.3 (36.1) |
1.5 (34.7) |
1.8 (35.2) |
3.5 (38.3) |
6.2 (43.2) |
9.3 (48.7) |
12.2 (54.0) |
12.1 (53.8) |
10.1 (50.2) |
7.1 (44.8) |
5 (41) |
3.3 (37.9) |
6.2 (43.2) |
Record low °C (°F) | −8 (18) |
−9.5 (14.9) |
−6.8 (19.8) |
−4.3 (24.3) |
−2 (28) |
1.5 (34.7) |
6.5 (43.7) |
4.2 (39.6) |
2.5 (36.5) |
−3.4 (25.9) |
−4.3 (24.3) |
−6.5 (20.3) |
−9.5 (14.9) |
Average precipitation mm (inches) | 96 (3.8) |
75 (3.0) |
74 (2.9) |
59 (2.3) |
40 (1.6) |
43 (1.7) |
57 (2.2) |
64 (2.5) |
98 (3.9) |
130 (5.1) |
104 (4.1) |
110 (4.3) |
950 (37.4) |
Source: Norwegian Meteorological Institute[9] |
All municipalities in Norway, including Værøy, are responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), 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.[10] The municipality falls under the Salten District Court and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.
The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Værøy is made up of 13 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the council is as follows:
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 3 | |
Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 3 | |
Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 1 | |
Værøy List (Værøylista) | 4 | |
Common List for Værøy (Felleslista for Værøy) | 2 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 2 | |
Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 3 | |
Værøy List (Værøylista) | 3 | |
Common List for Værøy (Felleslista for Værøy) | 5 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 3 | |
Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 2 | |
Common List for Værøy (Felleslista for Værøy) | 8 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 5 | |
Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 2 | |
Common list for Værøy (Felleslista for Værøy) | 6 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 4 | |
Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 2 | |
Common list for Værøy (Felleslista for Værøy) | 7 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 7 | |
Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 1 | |
Common list for Værøy (Felleslista for Værøy) | 5 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 5 | |
Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 2 | |
Common list for Værøy (Felleslista for Værøy) | 6 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 5 | |
Conservative Party (Høyre) | 4 | |
Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 2 | |
Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) | 2 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 8 | |
Conservative Party (Høyre) | 3 | |
Joint list of the Centre Party (Senterpartiet) and the Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 2 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 8 | |
Conservative Party (Høyre) | 2 | |
Joint list of the Centre Party (Senterpartiet) and the Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 2 | |
Free voters' list (Frie Velgeres lista) | 1 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 7 | |
Joint list of the Conservative Party (Høyre), Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti), and Centre Party (Senterpartiet) | 6 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 7 | |
Cooperation List (Samarbeidsliste) | 6 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 8 | |
Conservative Party (Høyre) | 1 | |
Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 4 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 6 | |
Conservative Party (Høyre) | 2 | |
Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 5 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 5 | |
Conservative Party (Høyre) | 1 | |
Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) | 1 | |
Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) | 6 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 7 | |
Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) | 2 | |
Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 4 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 9 | |
Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 4 | |
Total number of members: | 13 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 9 | |
Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) | 3 | |
Total number of members: | 12 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) | 10 | |
Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister) | 2 | |
Total number of members: | 12 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 12 | |
Total number of members: | 12 |
Party Name (in Norwegian) | Number of representatives | |
---|---|---|
Local List(s) (Lokale lister) | 12 | |
Total number of members: | 12 | |
Note: Due to the German occupation of Norway during World War II, no elections were held for new municipal councils until after the war ended in 1945. |
The mayors of Værøy (incomplete list):
Helicopter transport is available from Bodø at the Værøy Heliport in Sørland. There was airplane service at Værøy Airport, but it was discontinued after the Værøy accident in 1990 in which five people died. The airport was determined to be in a bad position, due to the location next to a mountain and the frequent presence of strong and unpredictable winds, which made takeoffs and landings dangerous.[29] Ferry service is also available from Bodø, Moskenes, and Røst.
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