Brattvær is a former municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1915 until its dissolution in 1960. It was located on the northwestern part of the island of Smøla in the present-day Smøla Municipality. It included the area surrounding the villages of Råket and Dyrnes as well Brattværet and the surrounding islets. The Brattvær Church was the main church of the municipality.
Prior to its dissolution in 1960, the municipality was the 582nd largest by area out of the 743 municipalities in Norway. Brattvær Municipality was the 582nd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 1,371. The municipality's population density was and its population had decreased by 5.3% over the previous 5-year period.
General information
The municipality of Brattvær was established on 1 January 1915 when the large Edøy Municipality was split into three to form: Edøy Municipality (population: 973) in the south, Hopen Municipality (population: 1,050) in the northeast, and Brattvær Municipality (population: 1,452) in the northwest.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1960, the 1915 partition was reversed, merging Brattvær Municipality (population: 1,361), Edøy Municipality (population: 1,135), and Hopen Municipality (population: 1,550), creating the new Smøla Municipality.
Name The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Brattvær farm () since the first Brattvær Church was built there. The first element comes from the word which means "steep". The last element is which means "fishing village". Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Bratvær. On 22 April 1938, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Brattvær effective 1 July 1938.
Churches The Church of Norway had one parish () within Brattvær Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Edøy prestegjeld and the Nordmøre prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nidaros.
Churches in Brattvær MunicipalityParish ()Church nameLocation of the churchYear builtBrattværBrattvær Churchsouth of Råket1917
Geography The municipality was located on the northwestern part of the large island of Smøla, along with the surrounding smaller islets and skerries including Brattværet. Edøy Municipality was located to the south and Hopen Municipality was located to the east. The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Haukarhaugan.
Government While it existed, Brattvær 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 Frostating Court of Appeal.
Municipal council The municipal council of Brattvær 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.
Mayors The mayor () of Brattvær Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position:
1915–1919: Per M. Skartnes 1920–1922: L. Taknæs 1922–1931: A. Talleraas 1931–1941: Hermann Frost Meese 1945–1945: Hermann Frost Meese 1946–1946: Ivar Hestnes 1946–1951: John Grimsmo 1952–1959: Harald Dønheim (Ap)
See also List of former municipalities of Norway
References