Erfjord is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1914 until its dissolution in 1965. The area is now part of Suldal Municipality in the traditional district of Ryfylke. The administrative centre was the village of Hålandsosen, where the Erfjord Church is located.
Prior to its dissolution in 1965, the municipality was the 391st largest by area out of the 525 municipalities in Norway. Erfjord Municipality was the 517th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about . The municipality's population density was and its population had decreased by 3.4% over the previous 10-year period.
General information The municipality of Erfjord was established on 1 January 1914, when Jelsa Municipality was divided in two: the eastern district (population: 617) became the new Erfjord Municipality and the western district (population: 1,539) remained as a smaller Jelsa Municipality.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1965, Erfjord Municipality was dissolved. The following areas were merged to form a new, larger Suldal Municipality: all of Suldal Municipality (population: 1,412) all of Sand Municipality (population: 1,135) all of Erfjord Municipality (population: 610) most of Jelsa Municipality (population: 928), except for the areas of Jelsa located on the island of Ombo which became part of Finnøy Municipality and Hjelmeland Municipality the part of Imsland Municipality that was located south of the Vindafjorden (population: 61)
Name The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Erfjord farm ( or ) since the first Erfjord Church was built there. The meaning of the first element of the name is uncertain, but there are two strong possibilities. The first possibility is that it comes from the word which means "alder", a type of common tree in the area (the more modern local name is ør which sounds a lot like Er-). The other main possibility is that it comes from the word which means "eider", a local type of waterfowl. The last element is which means "fjord".
Churches The Church of Norway had one parish () within Erfjord Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Jelsa prestegjeld and the Ryfylke prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Stavanger.
Churches in Erfjord MunicipalityParish ()Church nameLocation of the churchYear builtErfjordErfjord ChurchHålandsosen1877
Geography The municipality was centered around the Erfjorden. The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Nattlandsnuten. Sand Municipality was located to the north, Suldal Municipality was located to the east, Hjelmeland Municipality was located to the south, and Jelsa Municipality was located to the west.
Government While it existed, Erfjord 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 Ryfylke District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.
Municipal council The municipal council of Erfjord Municipality was made up of 13 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 Erfjord Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:
1914–1916: Malenius Lovre 1917–1919: Gudmund D. Sørhus 1920–1925: Gudmund Håland 1926–1928: Malenius Lovre 1929–1931: Gudmund Håland 1932–1941: Paul P. Bog 1942–1943: Magnus Lovre 1943–1945: Gudmund Håland 1946–1947: Lars Vaage 1947–1951: Paul P. Bog 1951–1955: Lars Vaage 1955–1963: Karl Helgeland 1963–1964: Ola Natland
See also List of former municipalities of Norway
References