Hosanger Municipality

The parish of Hosanger was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). On 1 January 1885, the exclave of Seim was separated from Hosanger Municipality and merged into the new Alversund Municipality. This left Hosanger Municipality with 3,387 residents. On 1 January 1867, the Øksendalen farm (population: 28) in the Eksingedalen valley was transferred from Voss Municipality to Hosanger Municipality by royal resolution. On 1 January 1910, the eastern part of Hosanger Municipality (population: 821) which included the Modalen and Eksingedalen valleys was separated to form the new Modalen Municipality. The split left Hosanger Municipality with 2,524 inhabitants. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, Hosanger Municipality was dissolved and its lands were divided as follows amongst its neighbors: Churches The Church of Norway had one parish () within Hosanger Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Hosanger prestegjeld and the Nordhordland prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. ==Geography==

Hosanger Municipality originally included all the lands on both sides of the Osterfjorden-Romarheimsfjorden from the Lonevågen fjord all the way east to the county border at the end of the Modalen valley. Hosanger Municipality also included an exclave on the Lindås peninsula surrounding the village of Seim at the southern end of the Lurefjorden. Seim was separated from the rest of Hosanger by part of Lindås Municipality. Over time, the areas of Seim and Modalen were split off from Hosanger. The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Høgafjellet, on the island of Osterøy, on the border with Bruvik Municipality. Masfjorden Municipality was located to the north, Modalen Municipality was located to the northeast, Bruvik Municipality was located to the east, Haus Municipality was located to the south, Hamre Municipality was located to the southwest, and Lindås Municipality was located to the west. ==Government==

While it existed, Hosanger 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 Gulating Court of Appeal. Municipal council The municipal council of Hosanger Municipality was made up of 17 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party. {{Kommunestyre table {{Kommunestyre table {{Kommunestyre table {{Kommunestyre table {{Kommunestyre table {{Kommunestyre table Mayors The mayor () of Hosanger Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people held this position: • 1838–1843: Rev. Johan Ludvig Heyerdahl • 1844–1847: Nils Andersen Flataas • 1856–1863: Nils Amundsen Mjøs • 1864–1865: Nils Andersen Flataas • 1866–1869: Nils Jakobsen Mjøs • 1870–1871: Johannes Totland • 1880–1907: Ivar O. Heltvedt (MV) • 1908–1913: Nils A. Litland (V) • 1914–1919: Nils Mjøs • 1920–1922: Johannes A. Hanstvedt • 1923–1924: Martin Eide • 1924–1925: Ivar Bjørsvik • 1926–1928: Johannes A. Hanstvedt • 1929–1937: Ivar Bjørsvik • 1937–1941: Magne Haukøy (V) • 1941–1945: Nils Grinde (NS) • 1946–1955: Magne Haukøy (V) • 1955–1959: Alv Hagen (Ap) • 1959–1963: Bernhard Bysheim (Ap) ==Notable people==

• Nicolai Wergeland, (1780-1848), a priest and politician that wrote the Norwegian Constitution of May 1814 • Arne Bjørndal (1882-1965), a hardingfele fiddler, composer, and folklorist • Nils Andresson Lavik (1884-1966), a Norwegian politician from the Christian Democratic Party of Norway • Johannes Lavik (1856-1929), a journalist and newspaper editor ==See also==