Vats is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1891 until its dissolution in 1965. The area is now part of Vindafjord Municipality in the traditional district of Haugaland. The administrative centre was the village of Vats.
Prior to its dissolution in 1965, the municipality was the 397th largest by area out of the 525 municipalities in Norway. Vats Municipality was the 477th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about . The municipality's population density was and its population had decreased by 7.3% over the previous 10-year period.
General information The municipality of Vats was established on 1 January 1891 when Skjold Municipality was divided: the eastern part (population: 1,095) became the new Vats Municipality and the western part (population: 1,961) remained as a smaller Skjold Municipality.
On 1 January 1965, the municipality was dissolved due to recommendations of the Schei Committee and its lands were divided as follows: the Breidal and Stølsvik farms on the south side of the Yrkefjorden (population: 16) was merged with Nedstrand Municipality, Tysvær Municipality, and parts of Avaldsnes Municipality, Skjold Municipality, and Vikedal Municipality to form a larger Tysvær Municipality the rest of Vats Municipality (population: 1,128) was merged with parts of Imsland Municipality, Skjold Municipality, and Vikedal Municipality, as well as all of Sandeid Municipality to form the new Vindafjord Municipality
Name The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Vatne farm () since the first Vats Church was built there. The name comes from the dative case of the word which means "water", likely referring to the lake know known as Vatsvatnet.
Churches The Church of Norway had one parish () within Vats Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Skjold prestegjeld and the Karmsund prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Stavanger.
Churches in Vats MunicipalityParish ()Church nameLocation of the churchYear builtVatsVats ChurchVats1855
Geography The municipality encompassed the land to the east and west surrounding the Vatsfjorden and the lake Vatsvatnet. Vats was typically divided into two parts Øvre Vats (around the lake in the north) and Nedre Vats (around the fjord in the south). The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Døldarheia, located along the border with Sandeid Municipality. Ølen Municipality (in Hordaland county) was located to the north, Sandeid Municipality was located to the northeast, Vikedal Municipality was located to the east, Nedstrand Municipality was located to the south, and Skjold Municipality was located to the west.
Government While it existed, Vats Municipality was 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 was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Karmsund District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.
Municipal council The municipal council of Vats Municipality was made up of 15 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.
Mayors The mayor () of Vats Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:
1891–1901: Erik Eriksen Koltveit 1901–1907: Carl C. Hatteland 1908–1910: Hans Frøland 1911–1913: Nils Eidhammer 1913–1914: Hans Frøland 1914–1917: Erik Eriksen Koltveit 1917–1919: Martin E. Eide 1920–1922: Tor Alvseike 1923–1925: Nils Eidhammer 1926–1928: Olav Eide 1929–1935: Jakob Hatteland 1935–1937: Olav Eide 1938–1941: S.M. Eide 1941–1944: Anders R. Hervig (NS) 1945–1945: Jakob Hatteland 1946–1947: Olav Koltveit 1948–1951: Thor Alvseike 1951–1964: Olav Koltveit
See also List of former municipalities of Norway
References