Averøy

The municipality includes the main island of Averøya and the many small islands surrounding it. The Kornstadfjorden, Kvernesfjorden, and Bremsnesfjorden surround the municipality on three sides and the open ocean on the fourth side. The Hestskjær Lighthouse and Stavnes Lighthouse are located in the northern part of the municipality.

General information

View of northwestern Averøy

The municipality of Averøy was established on 1 January 1964 when the former municipality of Kvernes and most of the municipalities of Kornstad and Bremsnes were merged into one big municipality. On 1 January 1983, the small island of Eldhusøya (and the small surrounding islands) was transferred from Eide Municipality to Averøy Municipality.^[2]

Name

The municipality is named after the island Averøya (or Averøy) (Old Norse: Afrøy). The meaning of the first element is unknown (maybe afr which means "great" or "big") and the ending -øya or -øy means "island".

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 4 April 1986. The arms show three Stone Age arrowheads in gold on a red background. The arrowheads refer to actual arrowheads, made of slate, which have been found in the municipality. The arrowheads thus symbolize the long time that the area has been inhabited.^[3]

Churches

The Church of Norway has three parishes (sokn) within the municipality of Averøy. It is part of the Ytre Nordmøre deanery in the Diocese of Møre.

**Churches in Averøy**
Parish (Sokn)	Church Name	Location of the Church	Year Built
Kvernes	Kvernes Church	Kvernes	1893
Kvernes	Kvernes Stave Church	Kvernes	14th century
Kornstad	Kornstad Church	Kornstad	1871
Bremsnes	Bremsnes Church	Bremsnes	1771
Bremsnes	Langøy Chapel	Langøy	1935

History

The municipality of Averøy has many historic landmarks, like the Bremsnes cave with Mesolithic findings from the Fosna culture. Langøysund, now a remote fishing community, was once a bustling port along the main coastal route, and the site of the Compromise of 1040 between King Magnus I and the farmers along the coast. Also, the Medieval Kvernes Stave Church (built around 1300-1350).

Transportation

Atlantic Ocean Road

The tourist attraction Atlanterhavsveien (Atlantic Road) connects the island and municipality of Averøy to the neighboring Eide Municipality, which is on the mainland to the west. The Storseisundet Bridge crosses the municipal boundary. In 2005, it was awarded the "Building of the Century" prize by the Norwegian Construction Industry. On the other side of the island near Sveggen, Averøy is connected to Kristiansund Municipality via the undersea tunnel. This tunnel, known as Atlanterhavstunnelen (Atlantic Tunnel), was completed in December 2009, replacing the ferry from Bremsnes on Averøya to the city of Kristiansund.

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.
↑ Norske Kommunevåpen (1990). "Nye kommunevåbener i Norden". Retrieved 18 October 2008.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Averøy.

External links

Møre og Romsdal travel guide from Wikivoyage

Municipalities of Møre og Romsdal

Nordmøre	Aure Averøy Eide Gjemnes Halsa Kristiansund Rindal Smøla Sunndal Surnadal Tingvoll

Romsdal	Aukra Fræna Midsund Molde Nesset Rauma Sandøy Vestnes

Sunnmøre	Haram Hareid Herøy Giske Norddal Sande Skodje Stordal Stranda Sula Sykkylven Ulstein Vanylven Volda Ørskog Ørsta Ålesund

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