Tolga, Norway

Tolga Municipality Tolga kommune
Municipality
Tolgen herred  (historic name)
Flag Coat of arms Innlandet within Norway
Tolga within Innlandet
Coordinates: 62°24′5″N11°1′20″E / 62.40139°N 11.02222°E / 62.40139; 11.02222
Country	Norway
County	Innlandet
District	Østerdalen
Established	1 Jan 1838
• Created as	Formannskapsdistrikt
Disestablished	1 Jan 1966
• Succeeded by	Tolga-Os Municipality
Re-established	1 Jan 1976
• Preceded by	Tolga-Os Municipality
Administrative centre	Tolga
Government
• Mayor (2019)	Bjørnar Tollan Jordet (SV)
Area
• Total	1,122.61 km2 (433.44 sq mi)
• Land	1,097.27 km2 (423.66 sq mi)
• Water	25.34 km2 (9.78 sq mi)  2.3%
• Rank	#99 in Norway
Population  (2022)
• Total	1,551
• Rank	#300 in Norway
• Density	1.4/km2 (4/sq mi)
• Change (10 years)	−7.7%
Demonym	Tolging [1]
Official language [2]
•  Norwegian form	Neutral
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 code	NO-3426 [3]
Website	Official website
Data from Statistics Norway

Tolga is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Østerdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Tolga. The municipality is bordered in the east by the municipality of Tynset, in the south by Rendalen, and in the east by Engerdal and Os, all in Innlandet county.

The 1,123-square-kilometre (434 sq mi) municipality is the 99th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Tolga is the 300th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 1,551. The municipality's population density is 1.4 inhabitants per square kilometre (3.6/sq mi) and its population has decreased by 7.7% over the previous 10-year period. ^{[4] [5]}

General information

View of the mountain farms of Tolga

View of an old farm in Tolga

Tolga Church

The parish of Tolgen was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). On 1 January 1911, the new municipality of Engerdal was established. The southeastern portion of Tolga (population: 201) was separated from Tolga and merged with portions of neighboring Øvre Rendal, Ytre Rendal, and Trysil to create this new municipality. On 1 July 1926, the northern parish of Os (population: 1,936) was separated to become the new municipality of Os. This left Tolga with 1,917 residents. In 1927, a small part of Tolga (population: 18) was transferred to the neighboring municipality of Os. ^[6]

During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1966, the neighboring municipalities of Tolga (population: 1,944) and Os (population: 2,015) were merged to form the new municipality of Tolga-Os. This merger was not well received by the residents and soon after the merger, they began working towards separating once again. On 1 January 1976, the municipality of Tolga-Os was divided into the municipalities of Tolga (population: 1,865) and Os (population: 1,859), using their historic borders from before 1966. ^[6]

Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Tolga farm since the first Tolga Church was built there (in 1688). The name comes from the small river which flows through the area (now known as the river Tolja). The name of the river may come from the word toll (Old Norse : þǫll which means "young pine tree". ^[7] Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Tolgen. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Tolga. ^[8]

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 14 July 1989. The official blazon is "Gules, a bell Or" (Norwegian : I rødt ei gull klokke). This means the arms have a red field (background) and the charge is a bell. The bell has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. Tolga was home to the smeltehytte (a smelting hut) from 1666 to 1871. The bell represents the old bell from Amsterdam that was in a building in the village square since 1708. The smeltery was important because of the prevalence of mining in the area. The arms were designed by Jarle Skuseth. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms. ^{[9] [10] [11] [12]}

Churches

The Church of Norway has four parishes (sokn) within the municipality of Tolga. It is part of the Nord-Østerdal prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Hamar.

Churches in Tolga

Parish (sokn)	Church name	Location of the church	Year built
Hodalen	Hodalen Church	Hodalen	1934
Holøydalen	Holøydalen Church	Øversjødalen	1908
Tolga	Tolga Church	Tolga	1840
Vingelen	Vingelen Church	Vingelen	1880

Government

All municipalities in Norway are 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 falls under the Østre Innlandet District Court and the Eidsivating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Tolga is made up of 15 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the council is as follows:

Tolga kommunestyre 2020–2023 ^[14]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	3
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	6
	Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti)	5
	Liberal Party (Venstre)	1
Total number of members:		15

Tolga kommunestyre 2016–2019 ^{[15] [16]}   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	3
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	7
	Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti)	4
	Liberal Party (Venstre)	1
Total number of members:		15

Tolga kommunestyre 2012–2015 ^[17]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	3
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	6
	Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti)	4
	Liberal Party (Venstre)	2
Total number of members:		15

Tolga kommunestyre 2008–2011 ^[16]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	3
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	8
	Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti)	3
	Free Voters (Frie Velgere)	1
Total number of members:		15

Tolga kommunestyre 2004–2007 ^[16]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	6
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	6
	Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti)	2
	Free Voters (Frie Velgere)	1
Total number of members:		15

Tolga kommunestyre 2000–2003 ^[16]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	7
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	8
	Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti)	2 FFFF
Total number of members:		19

Tolga kommunestyre 1996–1999 ^[18]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	4
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	10
	Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti)	2
	Free Voters (Frie Velgere)	3
Total number of members:		19

Tolga kommunestyre 1992–1995 ^[19]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	5
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	10
	Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti)	2
	Free Voters (Frie Velgere)	2
Total number of members:		19

Tolga kommunestyre 1988–1991 ^[20]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	6
	Conservative Party (Høyre)	1
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	10
	Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti)	2
Total number of members:		19

Tolga kommunestyre 1984–1987 ^[21]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	5
	Conservative Party (Høyre)	1
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	9
	Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti)	2
Total number of members:		19

Tolga kommunestyre 1980–1983 ^[22]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	4
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	9
	Free Voters (Frie Velgere)	6
Total number of members:		19

Tolga kommunestyre 1976–1979* ^[23]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	3
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	11
	Free Voters (Frie Velgere)	5
Total number of members:		19
Note: On 1 January 1976, the municipality of Tolga-Os was divided into the two municipalities of Tolga and Os.

Tolga kommunestyre 1964–1966* ^[24]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	5
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	10
	Local List(s) (Lokale lister)	2
Total number of members:		17
Note: On 1 January 1966, the neighboring municipalities of Tolga and Os were merged to form the new municipality of Tolga-Os.

Tolga herredsstyre 1960–1963 ^[25]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	5
	Centre Party (Senterpartiet)	10
	Local List(s) (Lokale lister)	2
Total number of members:		17

Tolga herredsstyre 1956–1959 ^[26]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	3
	Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet)	10
	Local List(s) (Lokale lister)	4
Total number of members:		17

Tolga herredsstyre 1952–1955 ^[27]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	5
	Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet)	11
Total number of members:		16

Tolga herredsstyre 1948–1951 ^[28]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	5
	Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister)	11
Total number of members:		16

Tolga herredsstyre 1945–1947 ^[29]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	5
	Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet)	4
	Joint List(s) of Non-Socialist Parties (Borgerlige Felleslister)	6
	Local List(s) (Lokale lister)	1
Total number of members:		16

Tolga herredsstyre 1938–1941* ^[30]   

Party Name (in Norwegian)		Number of representatives
	Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet)	5
	Farmers' Party (Bondepartiet)	9
	Liberal Party (Venstre)	1
	Local List(s) (Lokale lister)	1
Total number of members:		16
Note: Due to the German occupation of Norway during World War II, no elections were held for new municipal councils until after the war ended in 1945.

Mayors

The mayors of Tolga: ^[31]

• 1838-1839: Svend Stenersen
• 1840-1843: John Simensen Grue
• 1843-1847: Thore N. Røe
• 1847-1855: John Simensen Grue
• 1855-1859: Thore N. Røe
• 1859-1863: John Simensen Grue
• 1863-1867: Thore N. Røe
• 1867-1879: J. Estensen
• 1879-1893: O.I. Strand
• 1893-1896: Elias Gjelten
• 1896-1899: Martinus Gjelten
• 1899-1902: Iver O. Sagbakken
• 1902-1908: Anders Urset
• 1908-1914: Iver O. Sagbakken
• 1914-1926: Tore Hummelvoll
• 1926-1931: Per Aaseng
• 1932-1934: O.I. Sagbakken
• 1935-1937: Embret Nygård
• 1938-1941: Nils Bakken
• 1941-1944: Lars Eide (NS)
• 1945-1945: Esten P. Moen ^[32]
• 1946-1948: Erling Aas-Eng, Sr. (Bp) ^[33]
• 1949-1951: Jon Hulbækdal
• 1952-1965: Erling Aas-Eng, Sr. (Bp)
• (1966-1975: Part of Tolga-Os Municipality)
• 1976–1985: Anders Johnsgård (Sp)
• 1985–1986: Jon Vingelen (Sp)
• 1986–1999: Lars Buttingsrud (Sp)
• 1999–2007: Marit Gilleberg (Ap)
• 2007–2011: Erling Aas-Eng (Sp)
• 2011–2019: Ragnhild Aashaug (Sp)
• 2019–present: Bjørnar Tollan Jordet (SV)

Geography

Tolga lies in the northeastern part of Innlandet county. The river Glåma runs through the municipality. The mountains Håmmålsfjellet and Elgspiggen both lie on the municipal boundaries. The lake Langsjøen is located just south of the village of Øversjødalen in the southeastern part of the municipality.

Notable people

Tone Hulbækmo, 2008

• Kaleb Nytrøen (1905 in Tolga – 1994), a police officer, helped develop the Norwegian Police Security Service
• Egil Storbekken (1911 in Tolga – 2002), a folk musician and composer
• Arnljot Eggen (1923 in Tolga – 2009), a journalist and teacher; wrote poetry, plays and children's books
• Olav Jordet (born 1939 in Tolga), a former Norwegian biathlete, bronze medallist at the 1964 Summer Olympics and team silver medallist in the 1968 Summer Olympics
• Hans Fredrik Jacobsen (born 1954), a Norwegian musician and composer, based in Tolga
• Tone Hulbækmo (born 1957 in Tolga), a Norwegian singer and musician
• Olav Viksmo-Slettan (born 1965 in Tolga), a Norwegian radio and TV reporter for the NBC
• Hans Hulbækmo (born 1989 in Tolga), a composer and musician on drums and percussion
• Alf Hulbækmo (born 1992 in Tolga), a composer, singer and musician on piano, keyboards, harmonica and saxophone

References

1. "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet.
2. "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no.
3. Bolstad, Erik; Thorsnæs, Geir, eds. (26 January 2023). "Kommunenummer". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget.
4. Statistisk sentralbyrå. "Table: 06913: Population 1 January and population changes during the calendar year (M)" (in Norwegian).
5. Statistisk sentralbyrå. "09280: Area of land and fresh water (km²) (M)" (in Norwegian).
6. Jukvam, Dag (1999). "Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Statistisk sentralbyrå. ISBN   9788253746845.
7. Rygh, Oluf (1900). Norske gaardnavne: Hedmarkens amt (in Norwegian) (3 ed.). Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. p. 412.
8. "Norsk Lovtidende. 2den Afdeling. 1917. Samling af Love, Resolutioner m.m". Norsk Lovtidend (in Norwegian). Kristiania, Norge: Grøndahl og Søns Boktrykkeri: 1057–1065. 1917.
9. "Civic heraldry of Norway - Norske Kommunevåpen". Heraldry of the World. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
10. "Tolga, Hedmark (Norway)". Flags of the World. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
11. "Godkjenning av våpen og flagg". Lovdata.no (in Norwegian). Norges kommunal- og arbeidsdepartementet. 9 September 1989. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
12. "Fakta om kommunen" (in Norwegian). Tolga kommune. Retrieved 30 December 2008.
13. Hansen, Tore; Vabo, Signy Irene, eds. (20 September 2022). "kommunestyre". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget . Retrieved 14 October 2022.
14. "Tall for Norge: Kommunestyrevalg 2019 - Innlandet". Valg Direktoratet. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
15. "Tall for Norge: Kommunestyrevalg 2015 - Hedmark". Valg Direktoratet.
16. "Table: 04813: Members of the local councils, by party/electoral list at the Municipal Council election (M)" (in Norwegian). Statistics Norway.
17. "Tall for Norge: Kommunestyrevalg 2011 - Innlandet". Valg Direktoratet.
18. "Kommunestyrevalget 1995" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1996.
19. "Kommunestyrevalget 1991" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1993.
20. "Kommunestyrevalget 1987" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1988.
21. "Kommunestyrevalget 1983" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1984.
22. "Kommunestyrevalget 1979" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1979.
23. "Kommunevalgene 1975" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1977.
24. "Kommunevalgene 1963" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1964.
25. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1959" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1960.
26. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1955" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1957.
27. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1951" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1952.
28. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1947" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1948.
29. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1945" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1947.
30. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1937" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1938.
31. Bakken, Nils; Nordvang, Per, eds. (1937). Kommunejubileet 1837-1937 for Tolga og Os herreder (in Norwegian). Røros: Ødegårds Trykkeri. p. 82.
32. "Nye ordførere". Glåmdalen (in Norwegian). 18 December 1944. p. 2.
33. "Erling Aas-Eng ordfører i Tolga". Østlendingen (in Norwegian). 28 December 1945. p. 2.

External links

• The dictionary definition of Tolga at Wiktionary
• Municipal fact sheet from Statistics Norway (in Norwegian)
• Weather forecast for Haugan in Tolga