Alvdal is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of ÃÂsterdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Alvdal. Other villages include Barkald, Plassmoen, and Strømmen. The municipality is located to the south of Tynset Municipality, north and west of Rendalen Municipality, north of Stor-Elvdal Municipality, and east of Folldal Municipality. The Rørosbane railway and the Norwegian National Road 3 both pass through Alvdal.
The municipality is the 124th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Alvdal Municipality is the 254th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 2,509. The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 3.9% over the previous 10-year period.
In 1864, the parish of Lille-Elvdalen (later renamed "Alvdal") was separated from the large Tynset Municipality to become the new Lille-Elvdalen Municipality. Initially, the new municipality had a population of 3,216. On 1 January 1914, the western part of Alvdal Municipality (population: 2,284) was separated to become the new Folldal Municipality. This left Alvdal Municipality with 2,135 residents.
Historically, the municipality was part of Hedmark county. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became a part of the newly-formed Innlandet county (after Hedmark and Oppland counties were merged).
The area was historically known as Elvdalen or ÃÂvre Elvdalen (). The first element is meaning "upper", the next part is the genitive case of which means "river", and the last element is which means "valley" or "dale". Thus the name means "(upper) river valley", referring to the upper part of the GlÃÂ¥ma river valley. When the municipality was established in 1864, it was named Lille-Elvdalen Municipality, which meant "Little" Elvdalen in order to distinguish it from the nearby Store Elvedalen Municipality ("the large Elvedalen"). On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Alvdal, to better represent the local pronunciation of the name.
The coat of arms was granted on 25 November 1988. The official blazon is "Azure, two skis in bend issuant from base sinister" (). This means the arms have a blue field (background) and the charge is a set of two diagonal skis. The charge has a tincture of argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The design symbolizes the history and importance of skiing in the area. One of the oldest pairs of skis discovered by archeologists in Norway was found in Alvdal. The skis were dated to about 500 AD. The arms were designed by Helge Ness from Alvdal. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.
The Church of Norway has one parish () within Alvdal Municipality. It is part of the Nord-ÃÂsterdal prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Hamar.
Alvdal is bordered by Tynset Municipality to the north, Rendalen Municipality to the east and south, Stor-Elvdal Municipality to the south, and Folldal Municipality to the west. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Storsølnkletten. Another notable mountain in the municipality is Tronfjell. The lake Savalen is partially located in Alvdal. The rivers Sivilla and GlÃÂ¥ma both flow through the municipality. The Jutulhogget canyon is located in this municipality as well.
Agriculture and forestry are the most important industries in Alvdal Municipality. The municipality rented public land to a bitcoin mining operation. In 2022, the municipality decided not to continue renting land to this company since no jobs were created from that enterprise, although one local company did some service work on occasion at the site. In 2023, the municipality was sued for by the operator of the former bitcoin mining facility (on municipal property).
Alvdal Municipality is 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 is governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor is indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Hedmarken og ÃÂsterdal District Court and the Eidsivating Court of Appeal.
The municipal council of Alvdal Municipality is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.
The mayor () of Alvdal Municipality is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who have held this position: