Hopen is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1915 until its dissolution in 1960 when it became part of Smøla Municipality. It included the northeastern part of the island of Smøla, plus the small islands to the north such as Veiholmen, Hammarøya, and Haugøya. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Hopen where the Hopen Church is located.
Prior to its dissolution in 1960, the municipality was the 625th largest by area out of the 743 municipalities in Norway. Hopen Municipality was the 555th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 1,535. The municipality's population density was and its population had decreased by 0.4% over the previous 5-year period.
General information The municipality of Hopen was established on 1 January 1915 when the large Edøy Municipality was split into three to form: Edøy Municipality (population: 973) in the south, Hopen Municipality (population: 1,050) in the northeast, and Brattvær Municipality (population: 1,452) in the northwest.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1960, the 1915 partition was reversed, merging Brattvær Municipality (population: 1,361), Edøy Municipality (population: 1,135), and Hopen Municipality (population: 1,550), creating the new Smøla Municipality.
Name The municipality is named after the old Hopen farm () since the first Hopen Church was built there. The name comes from the word which means "a small mostly enclosed bay", likely referring to a bay between two the main island of Smøla and the small island of Hopaøya.
Churches The Church of Norway had one parish () within Hopen Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Edøy prestegjeld and the Nordmøre prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nidaros.
Churches in Hopen MunicipalityParish ()Church nameLocation of the churchYear builtHopenHopen ChurchHopen1892
Geography The municipality was located on the northeastern part of the large island of Smøla, along with the surrounding smaller islets and skerries. Brattvær Municipality was located to the south and Edøy Municipality was located to the south. The highest point in the municipality was the tall Moldstadhøgda.
Government While it existed, Hopen 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 Frostating Court of Appeal.
Municipal council The municipal council of Hopen Municipality was made up of 17 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 Hopen Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:
1915–1919: Bastian Width 1920–1922: John Wullum 1923–1927: Bastian Width 1928–1931: John Wullum 1931–1934: Johan Rokstad 1934–1941: Johannes Kristian Bjøringsøy 1945–1945: Isak Isaksen 1946–1946: Bastian Width 1946–1947: Arthur Rosvoll 1948–1958: Jakob Rokstad (Ap) 1958–1959: Harald Berg (Ap)
See also List of former municipalities of Norway
References