Grindheim is a former municipality in the old Vest-Agder county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1902 until its dissolution in 1964. The area is now part of Lyngdal Municipality in the traditional district of Lister in Agder county. The administrative centre was the village of Byremo where Grindheim Church is located.
Prior to its dissolution in 1963, the municipality was the 463th largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Grindheim Municipality was the 654th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about . The municipality's population density was and its population had increased by 2.3% over the previous 10-year period.
General information The municipality of Grindum (later spelled Grindheim) was established on 1 January 1902 when the old Bjelland og Grindum Municipality was divided into two separate municipalities: the western district (population: 909) became Grindum Municipality and the eastern district (population: 907) became Bjelland Municipality.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, Grindheim Municipality was dissolved and the following areas were merged to form the new Audnedal Municipality: all of Grindheim Municipality (population: 701) all of Konsmo Municipality (population: 712) the Ågedal and Midtbø areas of Bjelland Municipality (population: 96)
Name The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Grindem farm () since the first Grindheim Church was built there. The first element is which means "gate" or "fence". The last element is which means "home" or "abode".
Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Grindem. In 1889, the spelling was changed to Grindum. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Grindheim.
Churches The Church of Norway had one parish () within Grindheim Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Bjelland prestegjeld and the Mandal prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Agder.
Churches in Grindheim MunicipalityParish ()Church nameLocation of the churchYear builtGrindheimGrindheim ChurchByremo1783
Geography The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Ørnemyrfjellet. Åseral Municipality was located to the north, Hornnes Municipality was located to the northeast, Bjelland Municipality was located to the east, Konsmo Municipality was located to the south, Hægebostad Municipality was located to the southwest, and Eiken Municipality was located to the west.
Government While it existed, Grindheim 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 Mandal District Court and the Agder Court of Appeal.
Municipal council The municipal council of Grindheim 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 Grindheim Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:
1902–1903: Søren Seland 1904–1913: Abreham Iversen 1914–1916: O. Butveit 1917–1919: G.S. Øydna 1920–1922: E. Refsnes 1923–1934: John Seland 1935–1937: John Ubostad 1938–1944: Søren Seland 1945–1945: Lars O. Hårtveit 1946–1947: Andrias Øydna 1948–1951: John Ubotad 1952–1955: Andrias Øydna 1956–1963: Nils Øydna
See also List of former municipalities of Norway
References
External links 1960 census and map of the municipality