1.
Norway
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The Antarctic Peter I Island and the sub-Antarctic Bouvet Island are dependent territories and thus not considered part of the Kingdom. Norway also lays claim to a section of Antarctica known as Queen Maud Land, until 1814, the kingdom included the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Iceland. It also included Isle of Man until 1266, Shetland and Orkney until 1468, Norway has a total area of 385,252 square kilometres and a population of 5,258,317. The country shares a long border with Sweden. Norway is bordered by Finland and Russia to the north-east, Norway has an extensive coastline, facing the North Atlantic Ocean and the Barents Sea. King Harald V of the Dano-German House of Glücksburg is the current King of Norway, erna Solberg became Prime Minister in 2013, replacing Jens Stoltenberg. A constitutional monarchy, Norway divides state power between the Parliament, the Cabinet and the Supreme Court, as determined by the 1814 Constitution, the kingdom is established as a merger of several petty kingdoms. By the traditional count from the year 872, the kingdom has existed continuously for 1,144 years, Norway has both administrative and political subdivisions on two levels, counties and municipalities. The Sámi people have an amount of self-determination and influence over traditional territories through the Sámi Parliament. Norway maintains close ties with the European Union and the United States, the country maintains a combination of market economy and a Nordic welfare model with universal health care and a comprehensive social security system. Norway has extensive reserves of petroleum, natural gas, minerals, lumber, seafood, the petroleum industry accounts for around a quarter of the countrys gross domestic product. On a per-capita basis, Norway is the worlds largest producer of oil, the country has the fourth-highest per capita income in the world on the World Bank and IMF lists. On the CIAs GDP per capita list which includes territories and some regions, from 2001 to 2006, and then again from 2009 to 2017, Norway had the highest Human Development Index ranking in the world. It also has the highest inequality-adjusted ranking, Norway ranks first on the World Happiness Report, the OECD Better Life Index, the Index of Public Integrity and the Democracy Index. Norway has two names, Noreg in Nynorsk and Norge in Bokmål. The name Norway comes from the Old English word Norðrveg mentioned in 880, meaning way or way leading to the north. In contrasting with suðrvegar southern way for Germany, and austrvegr eastern way for the Baltic, the Anglo-Saxon of Britain also referred to the kingdom of Norway in 880 as Norðmanna land. This was the area of Harald Fairhair, the first king of Norway, and because of him
2.
Hordaland
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Hordaland is a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark, and Rogaland counties. Hordaland is the third largest county after Akershus and Oslo by population, the county government is the Hordaland County Municipality which is located in Bergen. Before 1972, the city of Bergen was its own separate county apart from Hordaland, Hordaland is the old name of the region which was revived in 1919. The first element is the genitive case of hǫrðar, the name of an old Germanic tribe. The last element is land which means land or region in the Norwegian language, until 1919 the name of the county was Søndre Bergenhus amt which meant southern Bergenhus amt. The flag of Hordaland shows two golden axes and a crown in red, the flag is a banner of the coat of arms derived from the old seal of the guild of St. Olav from Onarheim in Tysnes municipality. This seal was used by the delegates of Sunnhordland in 1344 on the document to install king Haakon V of Norway and it was thus the oldest symbol used for the region and adapted as the arms and flag in 1961. The symbols refer to the saint of the guild, Saint Olav, King of Norway. The coat-of-arms were officially granted on 1 December 1961 and they were designed by Magnus Hardeland, but the general design had been originally used in the Sunnhordland region during the 14th century. In the early 20th century, leaders of the county using the old arms as a symbol for the county once again. The arms are on a red background and consist of two golden axes that are crossed with a crown above them. Hordaland county has been around for more than one thousand years, since the 7th century, the area was made up of many petty kingdoms under the Gulating and was known as Hordafylke since around the year 900. In the early 16th century, Norway was divided into four len, the Bergenhus len was headquartered in Bergen and encompassed much of western and northern Norway. In 1662, the lens were replaced by amts, Bergenhus amt originally consisted of the present-day areas of Hordaland, Sogn og Fjordane, and Sunnmøre and the far northern Nordlandene amt was subordinate to Bergenhus. In the 1680s, Nordlandene and Sunnmøre were split from Bergenhus, in 1763, the amt was divided into northern and southern parts, Nordre Bergenhus amt and Søndre Bergenhus amt. When the amt was split, the present day municipality of Gulen was split with the southern part ending up in Søndre Bergenhus amt, in 1773, the border was re-drawn so that all of Gulen was located in the northern part. Søndre Bergenhus amt was renamed Hordaland fylke in 1919, the city of Bergen was classified as a city-county from 1831–1972. During that time in 1915, the municipality of Årstad was annexed into Bergen, in 1972, the neighboring municipalities of Arna, Fana, Laksevåg and Åsane were annexed into the city of Bergen
3.
Western Norway
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Western Norway is the region along the Atlantic coast of southern Norway. It consists of the counties Rogaland, Hordaland, Sogn og Fjordane, the region has a population of approximately 1.3 million people. The largest city is Bergen and the second-largest is Stavanger, historically the regions of Agder, Vest-Telemark, Hallingdal, Valdres and northern parts of Gudbrandsdal have been included in Western Norway. Western Norway, as well as parts of historical regions of Norway, shares a common history with Denmark. For example, the Icelandic horse is a relative of the Fjord horse. In early Norse times, people from Western Norway became settlers at the Western Isles in the Northern Atlantic, so that the Orkneys, Shetland, during the Viking age settlements were made at the Hebrides, Man and Ireland proper. In early modern time, Western Norway has had much emigration to the United States, Canada and this applies particularly to the US states of Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin, Montana, and South Dakota. The Icelandic and Faroese people, and many people in the British Isles, are descendants of Norsemen, on the other hand, thousands of Western Norwegians are descendants of Dutch and German traders who arrived in the 16th and the 17th centuries, especially in Bergen. Western Norway has the lowest unemployment rates, lowest crime rates, smallest public sector, fewest people on welfare and it is generally regarded as Norways most functional region. Vestlandet is also the chosen for a future administrative region consisting of two of the four counties, viz. Hordaland and Sogn og Fjordane. The two counties will be re-merged after having split in 1763. Norways history begins on the west coast, particularly in Rogaland, excavations and rock art tells us that it was in Rogaland that the first humans settled in Norway, when the ice retreated after the last ice age ca.10,000 years ago. There are many artifacts from the Stone Age in Rogaland, the preliminary oldest traces of humans are found in a settlement on Galta, Rennesøy, near the ferry terminal Mortavika and Vista on Randaberg. In the beginning there has been sure short visits by people from the south who hunted along the coast and it is thought that people came from Doggerland, the North Sea land area between Denmark and England, which disappeared when the ice retreated and sea levels rose. The people who lived there must now find a new land, some retreated south again, while a few passed the Norwegian Trench in its hunt for deer and the new country. The region includes most of the scope of the old Gulating and these were Sunnmørafylke, Firda County, Sygna County, Hordafylke, Rygjafylke and Egdafylke. Before the millennium, iron was introduced and used in agriculture, in the same period, the kings’ power increased, and large tax claims caused many to seek freedom and fortune abroad. Many emigrated, and looting became a source of income
4.
Odda (town)
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Odda is a town in Odda municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. The town is the centre of the municipality and the largest urban area in the whole Hardanger district. The town is located at the end of the Sørfjorden. The large Folgefonna glacier lies just west of Odda, high up in the mountains, the village of Odda was declared a town in 2004. The majority of the residents live in the town of Odda. The 2. 85-square-kilometre town has a population of 5,022, the town also includes the Eitrheim area, just northwest of the town centre. Odda Church is located in the town centre, Norwegian National Road 13 is the main road going through the town. Odda has been populated for centuries, but in the 19th century, visits ranged from English pioneers around 1830 to German Emperor Kaiser Wilhelm II, who visited Odda every year between 1891 and 1914. This led to the construction of hotels in the town. Some of the main tourist attractions around Odda include the Buarbreen glacier, the nearby Folgefonna glacier, the carbide production and the subsequent production of cyanamide was started in 1908 after the hydroelectric power plant was built in nearby Tyssedal. The power plant provided the electricity for the arc furnaces. The plant was the largest in the world and remained operational until 2003 when the plant was closed, the Norwegian government tried to get the site recognized together with other industrial plants as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The town of Odda grew up around this smelter in the early-twentieth century, as a result, there developed a new dialect, a mixture of that spoken in the home regions of the migrants—a phenomenon termed by linguists a Koiné language. Odda and the village of Tyssedal provided valuable insights to linguists studying this phenomenon. In Tyssedal only about one third came from western Norway, one came from eastern Norway. The dialects that evolved in two communities were radically different from each other, though spoken at a short geographical distance from each other
5.
Ullensvang
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Ullensvang is a municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. It is located in the district of Hardanger. The administrative centre is the village of Kinsarvik, other villages in the municipality include Lofthus, Utne, Vikebygd, and Alsåker. There are 3,369 inhabitants as of 1 January 2014, the number of inhabitants has shown a decrease of almost 700 people since 1980. This development can be seen in light of the depopulation of rural Norway. The main inhabited part of Ullensvang municipality lies just to the west of Hardangervidda National Park, most inhabitants live in the narrow coastal mountainsides and valleys along the Hardangerfjorden and Sørfjorden. The largest urban areas in Ullensvang are Kinsarvik and Lofthus, the Norwegian National Road 13 is one of the main roads through the municipality, and it crosses the Hardangerfjorden via the Hardanger Bridge in the far northern part of the municipality. In 2016 the chief of police formally suggested that the station in Ullensvang og Eidsfjord be closed down. The municipality is named after the old Ullensvang farm, since Ullensvang Church was built there, the first element is the genitive case of the name of the Norse god Ullin. The last element is vangr which means field or meadow, the coat-of-arms was granted on 8 November 1979. The arms are red with a gold stripe across the middle. The municipal arms are derived from the arms of nobleman from the area, Sigurd Brynjulvsson Galte, as it is the oldest gravestone in the church, the arms were well known in the village, hence the choice for the arms of this knight as municipal arms. The Church of Norway has three parishes within the municipality of Ullensvang and it is part of the Hardanger og Voss deanery in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. On 1 January 1838, the parish of Kinsarvik was established as a municipality. The large parish was made up of the parish and the annex of Ullensvang. On 1 January 1869, Ullensvang became the parish and Kinsarvik became an annex to Ullensvang. At this time the municipality changed its name to Ullensvang, on 1 January 1882, a small area of Ullensvang was transferred to the neighboring municipality of Vikør. This left Ullensvang with 1,941 residents, on 1 January 1964, a major municipal merger took place as a result of the recommendations by the Schei Committee
6.
Eidfjord
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Eidfjord is a municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. The municipality is located in the district of Hardanger. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Eidfjord, the other major population centre in the municipality is the village of Øvre Eidfjord. Eidfjord is situated at the end of the Eidfjorden, a branch of the large Hardangerfjorden. The village of Eidfjord is a cruise ship port of call. Eidfjord has several tourist sites, like the Sima Power Plant which is built into the mountain itself, the Måbødalen valley, large parts of the Hardangervidda are located in Eidfjord. The Hardangervidda Natursenter, a centre and museum for Hardangervidda National Park, is located in Øvre Eidfjord. In 2016 the chief of police formally suggested that the police station Ullensvang og Eidfjord, the parish of Graven was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838. This large municipality/parish included two annexes, Ulvik and Eidfjord, on 1 January 1859, Ulvik became the main parish, making Granvin and Eidfjord annexes to Ulvik, and the name of the large municipality was changed from Granvin to Ulvik. On 1 May 1891, the annex of Graven and the southeastern annex of Eidfjord were separated from Ulvik to become separate municipalities. In 1895, a part of Eidfjord was transferred to Ulvik. Eidfjord existed as a municipality from 1891 until 1964 when a municipal merger took place as a result of municipal reform in Norway due to the Schei Committee. The municipality of Eidfjord, most of the municipality of Kinsarvik, the municipality is named after the Eidfjorden. The first element is the case of the name of the old Eiðar farm which has been the site of the Old Eidfjord Church since the 1300s. The name of the farm is the form of eið which means land between two waters. The coat-of-arms is from modern times, they were granted on 13 July 1984, the arms are blue with a silver reindeer antler on the center. The reindeer antler was chosen because the first known settlers of the area were reindeer hunters, the reindeer has been of importance for the population in the Hardangervidda area for many centuries. The antler also symbolizes the rivers run from the mountain into the fjord
7.
Ulvik
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Ulvik is a municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. The municipality stretches from the Hardangerfjord to the mountains that reach 1,800 metres above sea level, the administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Ulvik. The villages of Osa and Finse are also located in Ulvik municipality, of the municipalitys total population of 1,094,646 residents live in the village of Ulvik at the end of the Ulvikafjorden. The vast majority of those who do not live in the village of Ulvik live on the surrounding the village or at the end of the Osafjorden in the village of Osa. In 2016 the chief of police formally suggested that the station be closed down. The parish of Graven was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 and this large municipality/parish included two annexes, Ulvik and Eidfjord. On 1 January 1859, Ulvik became the parish, making Granvin and Eidfjord annexes to Ulvik. On 1 May 1891, the annex of Graven and the southeastern annex of Eidfjord were separated from Ulvik to become separate municipalities. This left Ulvik with a smaller size and 1,410 residents. In 1895, an area of Eidfjord was transferred to Ulvik. The municipality is named after the old Ulvik farm, since the first Ulvik Church was built there, the first element is ulfr means wolf, the last element is vík which means cove or wick. The coat of arms is modern, having been granted on 19 December 1986 and they are red with a yellow figure shown in the center of the arms. The figure is a traditional design seen in the local folk-art, the pattern can be traced in local arts as far back as the 16th century, and is similar to the selburose. This figure is used in the bunad of Ulvik. The Church of Norway has one parish within the municipality of Ulvik and it is part of the Hardanger og Voss deanery in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The municipality is situated around the Hardangerfjords northeastern arms, Osafjorden and Ulvikafjorden, the northernmost part of the Hardangerjøkulen glacier is in Ulvik. The Finse and Hallingskeid areas lie just south of the Hallingskarvet National Park which partially sits inside Ulvik, the municipality of Ulvik borders the municipalities of Granvin, Eidfjord, Ullensvang, Voss, Aurland, and Hol. Lakes in the region include Finsevatnet and Flakavatnet, the headwaters of the Flåmselvi river also lie in Ulvik
8.
Granvin
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Granvin is a municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. The municipality is located in the district of Hardanger. The administrative centre of Granvin is the village of Eide, which is also called Granvin, about half of the residents of the municipality live in the municipal centre. The rest live in the valley areas surrounding the Granvinsfjorden or the lake Granvinsvatnet in the central part of the municipality. The parish of Graven was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 and this new municipality was very large and it included two annexes to the parish, Ulvik and Eidfjord. On 1 January 1859, Ulvik became the parish, so that Granvin and Eidfjord became annexes to Ulvik. On 1 May 1891, the annex of Granvin and the southeastern annex of Eidfjord were both separated from Ulvik to become separate municipalities. On 1 January 1964, the Lussand-Kvanndal area of Kinsarvik municipality were transferred to Granvin, the municipality is named after the old Granvin farm, since the first Granvin Church was built there. The first element is grǫn which means spruce and the last element is vin which means meadow or pasture, Granvin is one of few parishes in Western Norway with spruce forests. The name of the parish was spelled as Graven before 1858 and it was then spelled as Granvin from 1858 until 1891. Then the old spelling of Graven was used briefly from 1892 to 1898. Since 1898 the spelling of Granvin has been used, the coat-of-arms is from modern times, they were granted on 13 May 1988. The arms show a hardanger-fiddle, which is a Norwegian folk instrument, Granvin is situated in the Hardanger region, and has an active folk-music tradition. The Church of Norway has one parish within the municipality of Granvin and it is part of the Hardanger og Voss deanery in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. The municipality is situated along both sides of the Granvinsfjorden and the valley extending inland from the end of the fjord, the large lake Granvinsvatnet lies right in the center of the valley, just north of the village of Eide. On both sides of the fjord and valley, there are high mountains, espeland Falls is located in the Espelandsdalen valley near the border with Ulvik. The Skjervefossen waterfall is located in Granvin. Norwegian National Road 13 enters Granvin via the Tunsberg Tunnel which runs through the mountains to the northwest
9.
Kvam
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Kvam is a municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. The municipality is located along the Hardangerfjorden in the district of Hardanger. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Norheimsund, other larger settlements in the municipality include Øystese, Bru, Ålvik, Tørvikbygd, Omastranda, and Mundheim. The largest settlement in the municipality is the Norheimsund/Øystese urban area which has a population of 4,291, historically, the municipality was named Vikør. The Old Norse form of the name was Hvammr, identical with the word hvammr which means valley, before 1912, the municipality was named Vikør, which comes from the Old Norse word Vikøyar. It was the name of the farm on which the old Vikøy Church was located, the coat-of-arms is from modern times, they were granted on 27 November 1981. The blue and silver arms are designed to look like the Fyksesund, the shape of the fjord is that it is narrower in the middle and this is symbolized in the design of the coat-of-arms. The Church of Norway has four parishes within the municipality of Kvam and it is part of the Hardanger og Voss deanery in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. Kvam municipality borders the municipality of Voss to the north, Vaksdal, Samnanger, and Fusa to the west, Granvin to the east, the Fyksesund fjord branches off the main fjord and heads north into the municipality. The Fyksesund Landscape Park surrounds the inner part of the Fyksesund, the largest lakes are Bjølsegrøvvatnet and Holmavatnet. In addition a portion of Hamlagrøvatnet is located in Kvam, the Kvamskogen plateau lies west of Norheimsund and is home to hundreds of holiday cabins. The Steinsdalsfossen waterfall, located in Steine is one of the most visited tourist attractions in Norway, the old parish of Vikør was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838. According to the 1835 census, the parish had a population of 2,321, on 1 January 1882, a small area of Ullensvang municipality was transferred to Vikør. In 1912, the municipality changed its name from Vikør to Kvam, on 1 January 1965, there were many major municipal changes in Norway due to the decisions of the Schei Committee. The Åsgrenda area on the Folgefonna peninsula was moved from Kvam to neighboring Ullensvang municipality, on the same date, Kvam also gained a considerable amount of territory, making it a much larger municipality. The following places were merged, giving the new Kvam municipality a population of 9,119, the municipality is governed by a municipal council of elected representatives, which in turn elect a mayor. In 2007, Kvam participated in a trial where the mayor was directly elected, the sitting mayor, Astrid Selsvold, won the election with 26. 7% of the votes. The municipal council of Kvam is made up of 27 representatives that are elected to four years
10.
Jondal
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Jondal is a municipality in Hordaland county, Norway. It is located on the Folgefonna peninsula in the Hardanger district, the administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Jondal. Other villages in Jondal include Herand, Kysnesstranda, and Torsnes, the municipality of Jondal was established on 1 January 1863 when it was separated from the large municipality of Strandebarm. Initially, Jondal had a population of 1,663, on 1 January 1965, there were many municipal mergers in Norway due to the Schei Committees work. Then on 1 January 2013, the part of the Folgefonna peninsula was transferred to Jondal from Kvinnherad municipality. This added forty new residents and 37.1 square kilometres of area to the municipality. In 2016 the chief of police formally suggested that the station be closed down. The municipality is named after the Jondalen valley in which the village of Jondal sits, the Old Norse form of the name was Jónardalr. The first element is an old rivername Jón and the last element is dalr which means valley or dale, the meaning of the rivername is unknown. The coat-of-arms is from modern times, they were granted in 1987, the arms are red with three gold-colored boat hooks. This design was chosen to symbolise the importance of sailing and shipping along the Hardangerfjord, historically, Jondal has been known for its shipyards and sailing college. See also, Coats of arms of Åsnes, Fet, Marker and it is part of the Hardanger og Voss deanery in the Diocese of Bjørgvin. Jondal is located on the southeast side of the Hardangerfjorden on the Folgefonna peninsula and it is bounded by the large Folgefonna glacier to the southeast. The lake Juklavatnet is located on the border with Kvinnherad. The 10-kilometre long tunnel runs under the glacier from Jondal to Mauranger in Kvinnherad, the municipality is governed by a municipal council of elected representatives, which in turn elect a mayor. The municipal council of Jondal is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to four years. For 2011–2015, the party breakdown is as follows, Herborg Kråkevik, a singer and actress Bjørg Hope Galtung, the mayor of Jondal from 1979 to 1993
11.
Viking Age
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The Viking Age is the period from the late 8th century to the mid-11th century in European history, especially Northern European and Scandinavian history, following the Germanic Iron Age. It is the period of history when Scandinavian Norsemen explored Europe by its seas and rivers for trade, raids, colonisation and conquest. Three Viking ships had beached in Weymouth Bay four years earlier, the Viking devastation of Northumbrias Holy Island was reported by the Northumbrian scholar Alcuin of York, who wrote, Never before in Britain has such a terror appeared. Vikings were portrayed as violent and bloodthirsty by their enemies. The chronicles of medieval England portrayed them as rapacious wolves among sheep, the first challenges to the many anti-Viking images in Britain emerged in the 17th century. Pioneering scholarly works on the Viking Age reached a readership in Britain. Archaeologists began to dig up Britains Viking past, linguistics traced the Viking-Age origins of rural idioms and proverbs. New dictionaries of the Old Norse language enabled more Victorians to read the Icelandic Sagas, the Vikings who invaded western and eastern Europe were chiefly pagans from Denmark, Norway and Sweden. They also settled in the Faroe Islands, Ireland, Iceland, peripheral Scotland, Greenland and their North Germanic language, Old Norse, became the mother-tongue of present-day Scandinavian languages. By 801, a central authority appears to have been established in Jutland. In Norway, mountainous terrain and fjords formed strong natural boundaries, communities there remained independent of each other, unlike the situation in Denmark which is lowland. By 800, some 30 small kingdoms existed in Norway, the sea was the easiest way of communication between the Norwegian kingdoms and the outside world. It was in the 8th century that Scandinavians began to build ships of war, the North Sea rovers were traders, colonisers and explorers as well as plunderers. There are various theories concerning the causes of the Viking invasions, for people living along the coast, it would seem natural to seek new land by the sea. Another reason was that during this period England, Wales and Ireland, the Franks, however, had well-defended coasts and heavily fortified ports and harbours. Pure thirst for adventure may also have been a factor, a reason for the raids is believed by some to be over-population caused by technological advances, such as the use of iron, or a shortage of women due to selective female infanticide. Although another cause could well have been caused by the Frankish expansion to the south of Scandinavia. Consequently, these Vikings became raiders, in search of subsistence, There is ongoing debate among scholars as to why the Scandinavians began to expand during the 8th through 11th centuries
12.
Kinsarvik
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Kinsarvik is the administrative centre of the municipality of Ullensvang in Hordaland county, Norway. The village is located at the end of a bay at the confluence of the Sørfjorden and Eidfjorden where they join to form the main branch of the Hardangerfjorden. The village lies along the Norwegian National Road 13 and it has a port with regular routes that connect it to Utne. The 0. 58-square-kilometre village has a population of 519, giving the village a population density of 895 inhabitants per square kilometre, due to its important location along the Hardangerfjorden, Kinsarvik has been an important location since the Viking age. Kinsarvik has been the site of Kinsarvik Church since the 12th century, the parish of Kinsarvik was made into a municipality in 1838. Kinsarvik Municipality existed as a municipality off and on from 1838 until 1964 when it was merged into Ullensvang, Kinsarvik sits at the end of the Husedalen valley. The wild Kinso river runs through the village, and the rivers is what gives name to Kinsarvik and its name stems from kinn which means steep mountainside and so Kinsarvik simply means The Bay of Kinso. The Kinso River drops 3,600 feet from the vast Hardangervidda plateau through the Husedalen valley before emptying into the sea level fjord at Kinsarvik, along the way there are 4 spectacular waterfalls. The waterfalls can be viewed after 4–6 hours of hiking, Kinsarvik is also a major access point many longer treks into the Hardangervidda National Park. The Hardanger Bestikk factory has been producing cutlery in Kinsarvik since 1958, the factory employs about 50 people. The history of Kinsarvik tourism has been one of dramatic changes, up until the 1970s, the village was the busiest ferry port in Norway and a crucial junction on the only all-year road connecting the main cities of Bergen and Oslo. The bridge was completed in 2013 and since then Kinsarvik is no part of the dominant route. Kinsarvik functions as a camp for tourists visiting the surrounding areas and has several camping grounds. Kinsarvik Båthavn is a marina located in the village. The shores of the fjords in this area are thick with trees, primarily cherry. There are spikes in tourism for the flowering and harvest of these trees, in the time of Julius Caesar, a clan known as Charudes was reported to live in the Jutland region of Denmark. The people were reported to be involved in battles and thereby had a tradition of warfare. About the time of the fall of Rome and the arrival of the Huns, the Charudes were squeezed between the Angles, Saxons, and the Jutes
Hardanger travel guide from Wikivoyage