Avaldsnes is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1965. The area is now divided between Karmøy Municipality and Tysvær Municipality in the traditional district of Haugaland. The administrative centre was the village of Avaldsnes on the island of Karmøy. The area was an ancient centre of power on the west coast of Norway and is the site of one of Norway's more important areas of cultural history. The municipality encompassed the area surrounding the Førresfjorden and the area surrounding the central part of the Karmsundet strait, plus the central part of the island of Karmøy.
Prior to its dissolution in 1965, the municipality was the 396th largest by area out of the 525 municipalities in Norway. Avaldsnes Municipality was the 191st most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about . The municipality's population density was and its population had increased by 16.6% over the previous 10-year period.
The parish of Avaldsnæs was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). On 16 August 1866, the local village of Kopervik was declared to be a town. Towns could not be part of another municipality, so the village of Kopervik (population: 737) was separated from Avaldsnes Municipality to become the new Kopervik Municipality. This division left Avaldsnes Municipality with 4,735 inhabitants.
On 1 January 1909, Avaldsnes Municipality was divided into two parts. The rural areas on the island of Karmøy surrounding the small town of Kopervik (population: 1,001) to form the new Kopervik herred (later called Stangaland Municipality). The rest of Avaldsnes (population: 3,213) remained as smaller Avaldsnes Municipality.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1965, Avaldsnes Municipality was dissolved and its lands were transferred to neighboring municipalities as follows:
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Avaldsnes farm () since the historic Avaldsnes Church was built there. The first element comes from the old male name or (or the more modern Faroese version ). The last element comes from the word which means "headland".
The Church of Norway had one parish () within Avaldsnes Municipality. At the time of the municipal dissolution, it was part of the Avaldsnes prestegjeld and the Karmsund prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Stavanger.
The municipality encompassed the area surrounding the Førresfjorden and the area surrounding the central part of the Karmsundet strait, plus the central part of the island of Karmøy. The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Krokavassnuten, located on the mainland just west of the village of Førre.
Haugesund Municipality was located to the north, Skjold Municipality was located to the northeast, Tysvær Municipality was located to the east, Bokn Municipality was located to the southeast, Stangaland Municipality and the town of Kopervik were located to the south, Utsira Municipality was located to the west, and Torvastad Municipality was located to the northwest.
While it existed, Avaldsnes 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 Karmsund District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.
The municipal council of Avaldsnes Municipality was made up of 21 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.
The mayor () of Avaldsnes Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position: