Åseral

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Åseral kommune
—  Municipality  —
Coat of arms of Åseral kommune
Coat of arms
Official logo of Åseral kommune
Vest-Agder within
Norway
Åseral within Vest-Agder
Åseral within Vest-Agder
Coordinates: 58°42′7″N 7°23′37″E / 58.70194, 7.39361
Country Norway
County Vest-Agder
Municipality ID NO-1026
Administrative centre Kyrkjebygda
Government
 - Mayor (2003) Jørgen Åsland (Tverrpolitisk bygdeliste)
Area (Nr. 126 in Norway)
 - Total 887 km² (342.5 sq mi)
 - Land 798 km² (308.1 sq mi)
Population (2008)
 - Total 905
 - Density 1/km² (2.6/sq mi)
 - Change (10 years) 10.0 %
 - Rank in Norway 412
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 - Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Official language form Nynorsk
Data from Statistics Norway
Website: www.aseral.kommune.no

Åseral is a municipality in Vest-Agder county, Norway.

The parish of Bjelland had to be divided into two formannskapsdistrikt on January 1, 1838. This is because the main part of Bjelland belonged to the county of Vest-Agder, while the annex Åseral belonged to the county of Aust-Agder. Åseral was transferred from the county of Aust-Agder to the county of Vest-Agder on September 1, 1880.

It is an inland municipality, bordering on the county of Aust-Agder in the east and north. In the south, it borders on the municipality of Audnedal, in the south-east on Hægebostad, and in the west on Kvinesdal.

[edit] Name

The Norse form of the name was Ásaráll. The first part of the word is probably the genitive case of áss (m.), meaning "mountain ridge". The last part, áll (m.) means "long strip", probably referring to the long and narrow lake Øre.

[edit] Coat-of-Arms

The coat-of-arms is from modern times (1989). It shows a horseshoe (to represent agriculture, forestry, and good luck).

[edit] Attractions

Åseral is a popular tourist destination with three ski resorts: Bortelid, Ljosland and Eikerapen. Eikerapen is also the site of the annual Eikerapen Roots Festival, an international music festival attracting thousands of people from all over Europe.