Grimstad
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| Grimstad kommune | |||
| — Municipality — | |||
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| Coordinates: 58°21′7″N 8°32′40″E / 58.35194°N 8.54444°E | |||
| Country | Norway | ||
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| County | Aust-Agder | ||
| District | Sørlandet | ||
| Municipality ID | NO-0904 | ||
| Administrative centre | Grimstad | ||
| Government | |||
| - Mayor (2007) | Hans Antonsen (V) | ||
| Area (Nr. 275 in Norway) | |||
| - Total | 303 km2 (117 sq mi) | ||
| - Land | 272 km2 (105 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2008) | |||
| - Total | 19,809 | ||
| - Density | 64.4/km2 (166.8/sq mi) | ||
| - Change (10 years) | 14.4 % | ||
| - Rank in Norway | 50 | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| Official language form | Bokmål | ||
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| Website | www.grimstad.kommune.no | ||
Grimstad (help·info) is a town and municipality in Aust-Agder county, Norway. It belongs to the geographical region of Sørlandet. The administrative center of the municipality is the town of Grimstad.
It is a little maritime town set among many small islands (Skjærgård). There is a harbor, a long pedestrian shopping street, a small market square, a church, and a museum dedicated to the early life of Henrik Ibsen, who served as an apprentice to Grimstad’s local pharmacist Reimann, from 1844 to 1847, before leaving Grimstad in 1850. Ibsen's intimate knowledge of the local people and surroundings can be seen in his poem Terje Vigen.[1]
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[edit] General information
The town of Grimstad was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). On 1 January 1878, part of the neighboring municipality of Fjære (population: 948) was transferred to Grimstad. Again, on 1 January 1960, another part of Fjære (pop: 344) was transferred to Grimstad. Finally, on 1 January 1971, the rural municipalities of Fjære (pop: 6,189) and Landvik (pop: 2,781) were merged into the town of Grimstad (pop: 2,794) to form a significantly larger municipality with a total population of 11,764 at the time of the merger.[2]
[edit] Name
The site of the town was originally the port (Old Norse: stoð) of the old Grøm farm. The exact meaning of the name Grøm is uncertain, but it is derived from a river name Gró or Gróa which means "the growing one".
[edit] Coat-of-arms
The coat-of-arms were granted in 1899 and were based upon a seal of the city dating back to 1847. The arms show a brig as a symbol for the importance of fisheries to the city.[3]
[edit] History
Grimstad lies within the boundaries of the ancient parish of Fjære. It is reportedly first mentioned as a harbor in the 1500s. Eight years after he was deposed, Christian II of Denmark–Norway (1513–1523)attempted to recover his kingdoms. A tempest scattered his fleet off the Norwegian coast, and on 24 October 1531, they took refuge at Grimstad. On 1 July 1532, he surrendered to his rival, King Frederick I of Denmark, in exchange for a promise of safe conduct. King Frederick failed to honor his promise and imprisoned Christian until he died. [4]
An inn is recorded at Grimstad as early as 1607. In 1622, Grimstad became a recognized harbor. By 1747, Grimstad was identified as a sailing community and a recognized haunt of smugglers.
During the Napoleonic Wars, England blockaded Norway. In 1811, an English brig entered the harbor to capture blockade runners, but was vigorously repulsed and did not return.
John Frederik Classen, who owned the Frolands Værk (an ironworks), obtained concessions to export and import through Grimstad and bypass Arendal with its customs dues. Grimstad was awarded market town status in 1816.
[edit] Education
Grimstad is home to Drottningborg, a private Lutheran boarding preparatory school. It is also the location of the Bibelskolen in Grimstad (BiG), a private Lutheran bible school. The University of Agder has its faculty of engineering seated here. A student dorm called "Grøm" is also in Grimstad.
[edit] Geography
Grimstad is a coastal municipality in Aust-Agder county bordering on the Skagerrak. The municipality is bordered by Arendal in the east, Froland and Birkenes in the north, and Lillesand in the west. The lake Syndle is found in the municipality.
[edit] Attractions
The Maritime Museum (accessible by boat trip), the comprehensive City Museum and the Norwegian Horticultural Museum, are all popular among tourists, as are the wealth of exhibitions and concerts that the town hosts. The town is also a popular destination for summer vacationers, and supports a robust shopping milieu during the Christmas season.
During summer, Grimstad plays host to the Norwegian Short Film Festival, which attracts film enthusiasts from far and near. Another popular attraction is the Agder Theatre at Fjæreheia, an open-air stage located in a disused stone quarry.[5] Shopping is also available at the world famous Oddensenteret along the harbour. (The view from Oddensenteret is seen in the panorama photo above.)
The Homborsund lighthouse station is located within the municipality. Grimstad is also home to the Nøgne Ø brewery.
[edit] Famous residents
- Roald Dahl (1916-1990), Author. He visited his grandparents and summered at the Strand hotel in Fevik in Grimstad.
- Tryggve Gran (1889-1980), polar explorer and flight pioneer.
- Knut Hamsun (1859–1952), Author.
- Sverre Hassel (1876-1928), polar explorer who accompanied Roald Amundsen to the South Pole.
- Thor Hushovd (born 1978), road bicycle racer - the first Norwegian to wear the yellow jersey and win the green jersey in the Tour de France, and the second Norwegian to win a stage.
- Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906), Playwright who wrote his first drama, Catalina in Grimstad.
- Dag Otto Lauritzen (born 1956), road bicycle racer, first Norwegian to win a stage in the Tour de France.
- Svein Eirik Danielsen (born 1958), First Norwegian to touch the moon surface. This happened on 21 February 2009.
- Marcus Andreas Sellevold Bøe (born 1990), Won the national quiz show "Kvitt eller dobbelt" on NRK with the subject "Iron Maiden" in 2008.
[edit] Sister cities
The following cities are twinned with Grimstad:[6]
Billund, Region Syddanmark, Denmark
Köping, Västmanland County, Sweden
Asikkala, Southern Finland, Finland
[edit] References
- ^ Welle-Strand, Erling (1996). Adventure Roads in Norway. Nortrabooks. ISBN 82-90103-71-9.
- ^ Jukvam, Dag (1999). "Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen" (in Norwegian) (PDF). Statistisk sentralbyrå. http://www.ssb.no/emner/00/90/rapp_9913/rapp_9913.pdf.
- ^ Norske Kommunevåpen (1990). "Nye kommunevåbener i Norden". http://www.ngw.nl/int/nor/g/grimstad.htm. Retrieved on 3 October 2008.
- ^ Taylor-Wilkie, Doreen, ed (1996). Norway. Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0-395-81912-1.
- ^ Stagg, Frank Noel (1958). South Norway. George Allen & Unwin, Ltd..
- ^ "Vennskapskommuner" (in Norwegian). Foreningen Norden. http://www.norden.no/oversikt2.html. Retrieved on 2009-03-05.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Grimstad |
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Look up Grimstad in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
- Municipal fact sheet from Statistics Norway
- Aust-Agder travel guide from Wikitravel
- Grimstad - Norway (Tourist Information)
- Map of Aust-Agder including Grimstad municipality (German)
- Agder Theatre at Fjæreheia (Norwegian)
- Norway's Short Film Festival (Norwegian)
- Grimstad Sjømannsforening (Norwegian)
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