Sør-Audnedal (historic: Søndre Undal) is a former municipality in the old Vest-Agder county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1845 until its dissolution in 1964. The area is now part of Lindesnes Municipality in Agder county. The administrative centre was the village of Vigeland where Valle Church is located.
Prior to its dissolution in 1964, the municipality was the 408th largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Sør-Audnedal Municipality was the 384th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about . The municipality's population density was and its population had decreased by 4.7% over the previous 10-year period.
General information The municipality of Søndre Undal (later spelled Sør-Audnedal) was established in 1845 when the old Undal Municipality was divided into two: the southern district (population: ) became the new Søndre Undal Municipality and the northern district (population: ) became the new Nordre Undal Municipality.
On 1 January 1899, Søndre Undal Municipality was divided as follows: the western district (population: ) became the new Spangereid Municipality and the eastern district (population: ) continued as a smaller Søndre Undal Municipality.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, Sør-Audnedal Municipality was dissolved and the following areas were merged to form the new Lindesnes Municipality: all of Sør-Audnedal Municipality (population: ) all of Spangereid Municipality (population: ) all of Vigmostad Municipality (population: )
Name The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the Audnedalen valley (). The prefix means "southern" since it is the southern part of the valley. The first element of the name is the genitive case of the river name Auðna (now Audna). The river name is derived from the word which means "destruction" or "wasteland" (because of the flooding that often happens along the river). The last element is which means "valley" or "dale".
Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Søndre Undal (an older version of the valley name that was a shortened and corrupted version of the original Old Norse name). On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Sør-Audnedal. This more modern name was introduced to bring back the historical spelling of the name.
Churches The Church of Norway had one parish () within Sør-Audnedal Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Sør-Audnedal prestegjeld and the Mandal prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Agder.
Churches in Sør-Audnedal MunicipalityParish ()Church nameLocation of the churchYear builtValleValle ChurchVigeland1793
Geography The municipality was located in the lower Audnedalen valley, through which the river Audna flows. The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Eikeråsheia, located along the border with Lyngdal Municipality. Vigmostad Municipality was located to the north, Øyslebø Municipality was located to the northeast, Holum Municipality was located to the east, Halse og Harkmark Municipality was located to the southeast, the Skagerrak strait was located to the south, Spangereid Municipality was located to the southwest, and Lyngdal Municipality was located to the west.
Government While it existed, Sør-Audnedal 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 Mandal District Court and the Agder Court of Appeal.
Municipal council The municipal council of Sør-Audnedal Municipality was made up of representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.
Mayors The mayor () of Sør-Audnedal Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:
1845–1846: Hans Thronsen Roland 1846–1847: Thomas Christensen Sletten 1848–1851: Hans Thronsen Roland 1852–1855: Aanen Gjetsen Udland 1856–1859: Hans Thronsen Roland 1860–1871: Aanen Gjetsen Udland 1872–1897: Hans Braadland 1897–1898: P.E. Tjersland 1899–1904: Jens Smith 1905–1913: P.E. Tjersland 1914–1916: Jens Smith 1917–1919: Rev. N.T. Tønnessen 1920–1922: T.G. Tørresen 1923–1923: G.O. Roland 1924–1925: Hans Foss 1926–1928: W.O. Skyllingstad 1929–1931: Andreas Hoven 1932–1934: W.O. Skyllingstad 1935–1940: G.O. Roland 1940–1945: Arne Opsal 1945–1955: Karl Norum 1956–1956: Bjarne Finstad 1956–1959: Alf Udland 1960–1963: August Hoven
See also List of former municipalities of Norway
References
External links 1960 census and map of the municipality