Vefsn Municipality

Vefsn Municipality Vefsn kommune
Municipality
Vefsen herred  (historic name)
Flag Coat of arms
Nordland within Norway
Vefsn within Nordland
Coordinates: 65°47′57″N 13°15′02″E / 65.79917°N 13.25056°E / 65.79917; 13.25056
Country	Norway
County	Nordland
District	Helgeland
Established	1 Jan 1838
• Created as	Formannskapsdistrikt
Administrative centre	Mosjøen
Government
• Mayor (2023)	Rune Krutå (Ap)
Area
• Total	1,929.40 km2 (744.95 sq mi)
• Land	1,838.13 km2 (709.71 sq mi)
• Water	91.27 km2 (35.24 sq mi)  4.7%
• Rank	#41 in Norway
Highest elevation [1]	1,556.55 m (5,106.79 ft)
Population  (2024)
• Total	13,469
• Rank	#91 in Norway
• Density	7/km2 (20/sq mi)
• Change (10 years)	+1.4%
Demonym	Vefsning[2]
Official language [3]
• Norwegian form	Neutral
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 code	NO-1824[4]
Website	Official website
Data from Statistics Norway

Vefsn (Southern Sami: Vaapste) is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Mosjøen (population: 9,843). Some of the notable villages in Vefsn include Drevvassbygda, Elsfjord, and Husvik.

The 1,929-square-kilometre (745 sq mi) municipality is the 41st largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Vefsn is the 91st most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 13,469. The municipality's population density is 7 inhabitants per square kilometre (18/sq mi) and its population has increased by 1.4% over the previous 10-year period.^[5][6]

The municipality of Vefsn was established on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). In 1862, the vast eastern district (population: 921) was separated from Vefsn Municipality to become the new Hattfjelldal Municipality. This left Vefsn Municipality with 5,051 residents. In 1876, the town of Mosjøen (population: 379) was separated from Vefsn Municipality to become a separate town-municipality. This left Vefsn Municipality with 4,672 residents.^[7]

In 1927, Vefsn Municipality was split into three: the small northern district (population: 964) became the new Drevja Municipality and the large southern district (population: 1,746) became the new Grane Municipality. After the split, Vefsn Municipality had 3,119 residents remaining. In 1939, a small area of Vefsn Municipality (population: 45) was transferred to neighboring town of Mosjøen.^[7]

During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1962, Vefsn Municipality (population: 5,358) was merged with the neighboring town of Mosjøen (population: 4,628) and the neighboring Drevja Municipality (population: 1,001) and Elsfjord Municipality (population: 920) to form a new, larger Vefsn Municipality. On 1 January 1995, the mainland areas of the neighboring Alstahaug Municipality (population: 70) were transferred to Vefsn Municipality.^[7]

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the river Vefsna (Old Norse: Vefsnar) which flows through the municipality into the Vefsnfjorden (Old Norse: Vefsnir). The meaning of the river name is unknown, but it possibly comes from the old word vefja which means "to wrap" or "to wind around".^[8] Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Vefsen. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Vefsn.^[9]

The coat of arms was granted on 13 September 1974. The official blazon is "Sable, a rooster argent armed gules" (Norwegian: På svart bunn en sølv hane). This means the arms have a black field (background) and the charge is a rooster. The rooster has a tincture of argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The rooster is also armed which means its claws, beak, and comb are colored red. The rooster is a symbol for watchfulness and alertness. The arms were designed by Arthur Gustavsson.^[10][11][12]

The coat of arms was originally adopted by the municipality of Mosjøen on 25 March 1960. In 1962, Mosjøen was merged with Vefsn Municipality, Drevja Municipality, and Elsfjord Municipality to form a new, larger Vefsn Municipality. After the merger, the old arms of Mosjøen were chosen for the new municipality. Since the arms officially became obsolete after the merger, they were re-granted in 1974.^[11]

The Church of Norway has three parishes (sokn) within Vefsn Municipality. It is part of the Indre Helgeland prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Sør-Hålogaland.

Vefsn Municipality is responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor is indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.^[13] The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Helgeland District Court and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Vefsn is made up of 29 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.

The mayor (Norwegian: ordfører) of Vefsn is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who have held this position:^[33]

The administrative centre of Vefsn is the town of Mosjøen which is situated along the innermost part of the Vefsnfjorden. Outside Mosjøen, the large municipality of Vefsn is dominated by spruce forests, mountains, lakes, agriculture, and the Vefsna river. The municipality is served by Mosjøen Airport, Kjærstad.

The highest point in the municipality is the 1,556.55-metre (5,106.8 ft) tall mountain Geittinden.^[1] The mountain Lukttinden is located in the northern part of the municipality. There are many large lakes in Vefsn including Drevvatnet, Finnknevatnet, Fustvatnet, Hundålvatnet, Luktvatnet, Mjåvatnet, and Ømmervatnet. The Lomsdal–Visten National Park is partially located in Vefsn.

The bird watcher that visits Vefsn soon realizes that it will take more than a day to cover all the interesting habitats and birding areas. Here you will find areas of virtually untouched coniferous woodlands, both inland and along the coast. The Skjørlegda nature reserve is a good example of woodland protection. Here you will find a virtually untouched coniferous forest covering the Eiterå valley. The valley stretches inland to a higher mountainous habitat that is also worth checking.

• 
  Luktinden (mountain) in autumn
• 
  The road along Vefsnfjord
• 
  Drevje valley (Drevjedalen), Vefsn

Historically, the land of Vefsn was divided up into named farms. These farms were used in census and tax records and are useful for genealogical research.

Note that each map has a maximum number of listings it can display, so the map has been divided into parts consistent with the enumeration districts (Norwegian: tellingskrets) in the 1920 census. This map will include one farm name per farm number; other farm names or subdivision numbers may exist.

The municipalities of Mosjøen, Elsfjord, and Drevja were incorporated into Vefsn in 1962, and are not included in these maps. Tellingskrets 5, Granli; 6 Øvre Svenningdal, and 7 Austervefsen og Feplingdal, are now part of other municipalities, primarily Grane.

Vefsn municipality, tellingskrets 1-4, 8, 10 from 1920 census

4km
2.5miles

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Tellingskrets (enumeration districts): 1, Hunnaala (lime); 2, Vikdalen (black); 3, Nes og Mo Skolekrinsar (blue); 4, Forsjord (purple); 8, Bjørnådalen (green); 10, Hals (red). List of farms:

1

1: Juvik

2

2: Grønvik

3

3: Søttaren

4

4: Øien

5

5: Vundals-Keiven

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6: Sørgården

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7: Hunnåla

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8: Høyneset

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9: Digermulo

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10: Dimmeldal

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11: Hundaalvatn

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14: Vikdalen

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15: Øyen

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17: Tverå

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18: Kjærstad

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19: Rosvoll

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20: Auflis

18

21: Griva

19

101: Skog Øvre

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102: Skog Nedre

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103: Olderskog

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22: Kralfars

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23: Farsjord

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24: Øksendal

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25: Steinlid

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26: Eitraalid

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27: Paaljord

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29: Granheim

29

33: Ravnaa

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93: Ravatås

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94: Fokstad

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95: Alsgård

33

96: Bjørnå øvre

34

97: Bjørnåli

35

98: Grannes

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99: Bjørnå nedre

37

104: Dolstad

38

105: Halsøy

39

117: Kulstasjøen

40

118: Rynes

41

119: Aaremmen

42

120: Hauberg

Vefsn municipality, tellingskrets 9, 11

2km
1.2miles

55: Dolstad kirke

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Tellingskrets (enumeration districts): 9, Austerbygden og Marka (teal); 11, Helfjell og Herringen (blue). List of farms:

1

86: Sjåmo

2

87: Kjønåsen

3

88: Kjemsås

4

89: Tuven

5

90: Reinfjell

6

91: Nordås

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92: Langvatnet

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93: Otervær

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103: Froststad

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105: Halsskogen

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106: Andås

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107: Lundestad

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108: Hagfors

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109: Moldremma

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110: Heimigarden

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111: Gamarken

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112: Røsdal

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113: Honggard

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114: Jakobgard

20

115: Bortigard

21

116: Aabotsjord

28

84: Herringbotnet

29

85: Kalvmones

30

122: Forsmo

31

123: Jomfrurem

32

124: Gløsen

33

125: Brubakken

34

126: Bjørknes

35

127: Risnes

36

128: Oseng

37

129: Aanes

38

130: Høgrem

39

131: Heimstad

40

133: Nilsmo

41

134: Almdal

42

135: Sæteren

43

136: Hallingard

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137: Stigen

45

145: Labakken

46

146: Langmo

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147: Langmo ytre

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148: Engås

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149: Rokås

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151: Utgården

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152: Helfjellhaug

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153: Opgård

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154: Gulljord

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155: Høglid

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Dolstad kirke (church), built 1735

Vefsn municipality, tellingskrets 12-15

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1.2miles

55: Drevja kirke

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Tellingskrets (enumeration districts): 12, Ømmervatnet og Fustvatnet (lime); 13, Øvre Drevjen (red); 14, Ner Drevjen (blue); 15, Skaland (green). List of farms:

1

138: Brekken

2

139: Smedseng

3

140: Lynghaug

4

141: Nerhaug

5

142: Sletten

6

143: Storvik

7

144: Aspnes

8

156: Grøftrem

9

157: Skjetvik

10

158: Sovarneset

11

159: Goffahaug

12

160: Mjaavatnet

13

161: Straumen

14

162: Tuvneset

15

163: Uren

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164: Kækvik

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165: Nævervei

18

166: Hatten

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167: Angermo

20

168: Stordal

21

169: Bjørkrem

22

170: Sandbugt

23

171: Toftneset

24

172: Ømmervatsbukt

25

173: Perjord

26

174: Blaafjell

27

175: Dalmo

28

176: Steinhaug

29

177: Jonseng

30

178: Rognryggmo

31

179: Vatshøve

32

180: Enge

33

181: Gullmo

34

182: Bratlid

35

183: Kummernes

36

184: Kummermo

37

185: Nilsskog

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186: Trømoen

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187: Almaasen

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188: Lamoen

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189: Granmoen

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190: Myren

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191: Forsmoen

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192: Bratbakken

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193: Bergsmo

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194: Nyland

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195: Stuvland

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196: Jonsrud

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197: Utnes

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198: Nermoen

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199: Lindseth

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200: Søfting

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201: Skaland

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121: Veseth

55

Drevja kirke (church), built 1883

Following are the farms in the Vefsn Municipality, as they are listed in O. Rygh's series Norske_Gaardnavne (lit. 'Norwegian farm names'), the Nordland volume of which was published in 1905.

See also: Digital version of Norske Gaardnavne - Nordland (in Norwegian)

The farm numbers are used in some census records, and numbers that are near each other indicate that those farms are geographically proximate. Handwritten Norwegian sources, particularly those prior to 1800, may use variants on these names. For recorded variants before 1723, see the digital version of O. Rygh. Note that the 1920 census records mapped above may not match O. Rygh.

Farm names were often used as part of Norwegian names, in addition to the person's given name and patronymic or inherited surname. Some families retained the farm name, or toponymic, as a surname when they emigrated, so in those cases tracing a surname may tell you specifically where in Norway the family was from. This tradition began to change in the mid to late 19th century, and inherited surnames were codified into law in 1923.

Notable people that were born or lived in Vefsn include:

• Thorolf Holmboe (1866 in Vefsn –1935), a painter, illustrator, and designer
• Nils Mjaavatn (1883 in Vefsn – 1951), a farmer, teacher, and politician
• David Monrad Johansen (1888 in Vefsn – 1974), a composer
• Aage Grundstad (1923 in Vefsn – 2012), an award-winning accordion player^[34]
• Erling Bauck (1924 in Mosjøen – 2004), a Norwegian resistance member and writer
• Kjell Eliassen (born 1929 in Vefsn), a diplomat
• Trond Øyen (1929 in Mosjøen – 1999), a Norwegian violinist
• Baard Owe (1936 in Mosjøen – 2017), an actor, moved to Denmark in 1956^[35]
• Inga Juuso (1945 in Mosjøen – 2014), a yoiker, Sami singer and actress^[36]
• Odd Eriksen (born 1955; worked in Mosjøen), a politician also known for stopping an Algerian hijacker from crashing a Kato Air-flight in 2004.
• Frode Fjellheim (born 1959 in Mussere), a yoiker and musician on piano and synthesizer
• Finn Guttormsen (born 1968 in Mosjøen), a Jazz musician on upright bass
• Aleksander L. Nordaas (born 1982 in Mosjøen), a screenwriter and film director^[37]
• Silje Reinåmo (born 1982 in Mosjøen), an actress, dancer, and musical performer^[38]
• Sandra Lyng (born 1987 in Mosjøen), a Norwegian singer

• Johan Lind (born 1942 in Mosjøen), a speed skater who competed at the 1968 and 1972 Winter Olympics
• Bent Inge Johnsen (born 1972 in Mosjøen), a former footballer with 284 club caps and assistant manager
• Anette Sagen (born 1985 in Mosjøen), a Norwegian former ski jumper
• Thomas Drage (born 1992 in Mosjøen), a football player with over 220 club caps

• Nazi concentration camps in Norway

• Municipal fact sheet from Statistics Norway (in Norwegian)
• mosjoen.com - local portal for Mosjøen and Vefsn (in Norwegian)
• Local history and genealogy (in Norwegian)
• Andås nature reserve with mixed forest (in Norwegian)
• Skjørlægda nature reserve preserving an intact valley ecosystem (in Norwegian)