Sveio is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Sveio. Other villages in the municipality include Auklandshamn, Førde, VÃÂ¥ga, and ValevÃÂ¥g. Sveio Municipality is a border district that is sometimes considered to be located in the traditional district of Haugalandet since it is located on the Haugalandet peninsula, but it is also considered to be in the traditional district of Sunnhordland since it is located in southern Vestland county.
The municipality is the 291st largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Sveio Municipality is the 167th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of . The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 5.1% over the previous 10-year period.
Sveio Municipality is the site of the Ryvarden Lighthouse which marks the western entrance to the Hardangerfjorden. The lighthouse is automated and the old keepers' house and building have now been converted into art galleries, the Flókemuseum, and a cafe. The composer Fartein Valen lived much of his life in ValevÃÂ¥g in northern Sveio. Valenheimen, the house he lived in is open to the public and the Fartein Valen Festival is held annually in Sveio.
The Triangle Link bridge-tunnel network is based in northern Sveio, connecting the islands to the north to the mainland. The southern entrance to the Bømlafjord Tunnel is located along the European route E39 highway, just south of the village of ValevÃÂ¥g.
The municipality of Sveio was established in 1865 by merging the following areas to create the new Sveen Municipality (the name was later changed to Sveio Municipality).
On 1 January 1902, the eastern area of Sveen Municipality (population: 1,092) was separated to form the new Vikebygd Municipality.
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, the following areas were merged to form a new, larger Sveio Municipality:
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Sveio farm () since the medieval Sveio Church was built there. The name is identical with the word which means "to singe" or "to burn", referring to an area that was cleared by burning. Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Sveen. On 1 December 1911, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Sveio.
The coat of arms was granted on 19 February 1982. The official blazon is "Gules, a fleur-de-lis cleft argent." (). This means the arms have a red field (background) and the charge is a split fleur-de-lis. 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 arms are derived from the historic arms of Jon Gauteson from Sveio, who lived around the year 1500. His family became Norwegian nobility in 1591, and he was the first in his family to use this symbol as part of his arms. The municipal arms were designed by Kolbjørn Ekkje. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.
The Church of Norway has two parishes () within Sveio Municipality. It is part of the Sunnhordland prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.
The municipality is located on the mainland of Norway on the western coast of the county on the Haugalandet peninsula, facing the North Sea to the west. The entrance to the Hardangerfjorden lies along the northern side of the municipality, and the smaller àlfjorden lies along the eastern border of the municipality. Sveio Municipality's southern border is also the Rogaland county border, bordering Haugesund Municipality and Tysvær Municipality to the south, Vindafjord Municipality to the east (across the àlfjorden), and the islands of Bømlo Municipality and Stord Municipality to the north (across the Hardangerfjorden). The lakes Vigdarvatnet and Stakkastadvatnet lie in the southern part of the municipality, crossing into the neighboring municipalities. The Ryvarden Lighthouse is located on a small point, along the Hardangerfjorden. The highest point in the municipality is the tall mountain Trollevassnibba.
Sveio 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 Haugaland og Sunnhordland District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.
The municipal council () of Sveio Municipality is made up of 25 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 Sveio Municipality is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people have held this position: