Prior to its dissolution in 2020, the 670-square-kilometre (260 sq mi) municipality is the 168th largest by area out of the 422 municipalities in Norway. Hemne Municipality was the 225th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 4,228. The municipality's population density was 6.3 inhabitants per square kilometre (16/sq mi) and its population has increased by 0.07% over the previous 10-year period.[6][7]
General information
The parish of Hemne was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). On 1 January 1911, the northern district of the municipality (population: 1,533) was separated from Hemne to form the new Heim Municipality. This left Hemne Municipality with 3,425 residents. On 1 July 1924, Hemne Municipality was further divided into three: with the eastern district (population: 776) became Snillfjord Municipality, the southern district (population: 716) became Vinje Municipality, and the rest remained as a much smaller Hemne Municipality (population: 2,030).[8]
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, Hemne Municipality was enlarged when all of Vinje Municipality (population: 576) and the parts of Heim Municipality located west of the Hemnfjorden (population: 711) were both merged into Hemne Municipality.[8]
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the Hemnfjorden (Old Norse: Hefn) since flowed through the area. The name is derived from the word hǫfn which means "port" or "haven" (referring to the good port of Hemnskjel).[11] Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Hevne. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Hemne.[12]
Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted on 14 June 1991 and it was in use until 1 January 2020 when the municipality was dissolved. The official blazon is "Gules, five hazelnuts in annulo stems to center conjoined Or" (Norwegian: I rødt fem gull hasselnøtter forent i rosett). This means the arms have a red field (background) and the charge is five hazelnuts in a circular arrangement with their stems connected in the centre. The hazelnet design has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. The design symbolizes the relatively large hazel forests in the municipality, which was historically important to the local economy. The arms were designed by Einar H. Skjervold.[13][14][15][16]
The Hemnfjorden formed the border between Hemne Municipality and Snillfjord Municipality. The Vinjefjorden was located on the southwestern side of the municipality and the lake Vasslivatnet was in the southeast. In the south near the village of Vinjeøra, there are several hiking trails to mountain lodges such as Sollia. The highest point in the municipality was the 1,039.96-metre (3,411.9 ft) tall mountain Ruten.[1]
The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Hemne is made up of 23 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.
The mayor (Norwegian: ordfører) of Hemne was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who held this position:[36][37]
^"Godkjenning av våpen og flagg". Lovdata.no (in Norwegian). Norges kommunal- og arbeidsdepartementet. 14 June 1991. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
^"Hemne kommune, våpen". Digitalarkivet (in Norwegian). Arkivverket. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
^"Grønkjølen". Mijlø-direktoratet. Retrieved 7 August 2017.
^Hansen, Tore; Vabo, Signy Irene, eds. (25 November 2024). "kommunestyre". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Foreningen Store norske leksikon. Retrieved 31 December 2024.