Storfjord

Storfjord (Northern Sami: Omasvuotna; Kven: Omasvuono) is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Hatteng. Other villages in Storfjord include Elvevoll, Oteren, and Skibotn.

General information

Map of Storfjord; valleys in green.

The municipality of Storfjord was established in 1929 when it was separated from the municipality of Lyngen. The initial population was 1,499. On 1 January 1964, the Elvebakken farm of Balsfjord was transferred to Storfjord. Then on 1 January 1992, one uninhabited farm in the Nordnes area of Lyngen was transferred to Storfjord.^[2]

Name

The municipality is named after the Storfjorden. The first element is stor which means "great" or "big".

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 9 February 1990. The arms show three poppies of the very rare species Papaver laestadianum (a subspecies of Papaver radicatum). The meeting of the three poppies also represents the meeting point (Treriksrøysa) of the three countries Norway, Sweden, and Finland, that lies on the edge of the municipality.^[3]

Churches

The Church of Norway has one parish (sokn) within the municipality of Storfjord. It is part of the Nord-Troms deanery in the Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland.

**Churches in Storfjord**
Parish (Sokn)	Church Name	Location of the Church	Year Built
Storfjord	Storfjord Church	Hatteng	1952
Storfjord	Skibotn Chapel	Skibotn	1895

History

View of the Signaldalen valley

The Sami culture is the original culture; however, in the 19th century, settlers came from Finland and from the valleys of Southern Norway to establish themselves. Sami culture, though, has survived in parts of Storfjord to the present. In the 19th century, Laestadianism, a puritan religious movement, obtained a strong position. Skibotn is even today a stronghold for this movement.

The market of Skibotn was traditionally a meeting point between ethnic groups, where Sami, Finns, and Norwegians met to trade. This market still takes place today. The ethnic mix is interesting, with both Sami and Finnish cultures represented. In the valley of Signaldalen, a Norwegian dialect of southern origin is spoken, a relic of the valley's settlement from the south in the early 19th century.

World War Two

There were several prison camps there during World War Two.^[4] A 2014 NRK article estimated that a total of around 7000 or 8000 Soviet prisoners, were interred in these prison camps.^[4] Furthermore, the Mallnitz Camp was the worst.^[4]

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Storfjord, are responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, unemployment and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of elected representatives, which in turn elect a mayor.

Municipal council

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Storfjord is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to every four years. Currently, the party breakdown is as follows:^[5]

*Storfjord Kommunestyre 2015–2019*
Party Name		Name in Norwegian	Number of representatives
	Labour Party	Arbeiderpartiet	3
	Progress Party	Fremskrittspartiet	1
	Conservative Party	Høyre	4
	Green Party	Miljøpartiet De Grønne	1
	Centre Party	Senterpartiet	2
	Local Lists	Lokale lister	6
Total number of members:			17

Geography

The municipality is situated around the inner parts of the Lyngen fjord. Storfjord borders both Finland and Sweden, and the borders of the three countries meet at the beacon of Treriksröset, the northernmost point of Sweden. Treriksrøysa is a popular hiking destination; there are no fences, so at this location one step forward is all that is needed to get from one country to another. Pine and birch forests are common in the valleys in Storfjord, and the more rare calcareous pine forests, with several orchids, are also present. The lake Rihpojávri is located near the eastern border of Storfjord.

Climate

The Skibotn valley has a microclimate with very little clouds by Norwegian standards, and annual precipitation down to 300 to 450 millimetres (12 to 18 in). The monthly 24-hr average temperature varies from −6.5 °C (20.3 °F) in January to 13.5 °C (56.3 °F) in July.^[6]

Climate data for Skibotn
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Daily mean °C (°F)	−6.5 (20.3)	−6.1 (21)	−3.5 (25.7)	1.1 (34)	6.4 (43.5)	10.9 (51.6)	13.5 (56.3)	11.9 (53.4)	7.1 (44.8)	2.6 (36.7)	−2.3 (27.9)	−5.4 (22.3)	2.5 (36.5)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	43 (1.69)	42 (1.65)	30 (1.18)	24 (0.94)	20 (0.79)	34 (1.34)	46 (1.81)	48 (1.89)	41 (1.61)	54 (2.13)	47 (1.85)	46 (1.81)	475 (18.7)
Source: Norwegian Meteorological Institute^[7]

References

↑ "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet. Retrieved 2015-12-01.
↑ Jukvam, Dag (1999). "Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Statistisk sentralbyrå.
↑ "Storfjord kommunes våpen" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 2008-12-07.
1 2 3 Bare 35 av 272 krigsfanger overlevde dødsleiren [Only 35 of 272 war prisoners survived the death camp]
↑ "Table: 04813: Members of the local councils, by party/electoral list at the Municipal Council election (M)" (in Norwegian). Statistics Norway. 2015.
↑ Skibotn in Storfjord 1961-90 climate averages
↑ "eKlima Web Portal". Norwegian Meteorological Institute.

External links

Media related to Storfjord at Wikimedia Commons
The dictionary definition of storfjord at Wiktionary
Troms travel guide from Wikivoyage

Municipalities of Troms

Balsfjord Bardu Berg Dyrøy Gratangen Harstad Ibestad Gáivuotna–Kåfjord Karlsøy Kvæfjord Kvænangen Lavangen

Lenvik Lyngen Målselv Nordreisa Salangen Skjervøy Skånland Sørreisa Storfjord Torsken Tranøy Tromsø

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