Historically, there was another municipality of Kinn in Norway that existed from 1838 until 1964. The "old" Kinn roughly corresponded to the southern part of the "new" municipality of Kinn.
The 812-square-kilometre (314 sq mi) municipality is the 142nd largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Kinn is the 75th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 17,179. The municipality's population density is 22.5 inhabitants per square kilometre (58/sq mi) and its population has decreased by 3.6% over the previous 10-year period.[5][6]
The 2021 film Dune was partially filmed in Kinn, serving as House Atreides’ home world of Caladan.[7]
The municipality was created in 2020 and it resurrected the old municipality of Kinn which existed from 1838 to 1964. That municipality (originally the parish) was named after the old Kinn farm (Old Norse: Kinn) on the island of Kinn since the first Kinn Church was built there. The name is identical to the word kinn which means "cheek", referring to the steep slope of a mountain on the island. Historically, the island's name was spelled Kind.[9]
Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted in 2019 for use starting on 1 January 2020 when the municipality was established. The informal blazon is "Per chevron ployé divided per pale azure and argent above and azure below with four bendlets sinister argent enarched on the sinister half". This means the arms have a field (background) has a tincture of azure in parts and elsewhere it is argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The arms are an abstract design and the four "bendlets" give the illusion of the bow of a boat, an important symbol for the fishing community. The design can also be seen as a rock, waves, or the head of a spear.[10][11]
The municipal council(Kommunestyre) of Kinn is made up of 39 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.
The northern portion of Kinn Municipality includes the island of Vågsøy and a small portion of the mainland east of the island on northern and outer shore of the Nordfjorden. Other populated islands in this part of the municipality include Silda, Moldøen, and Husevågøy. The lake Degnepollvatnet is located between the villages of Degnepoll and Tennebø.
The southern portion of Kinn Municipality is located on the coast at the entrances to the Norddalsfjorden and Førdefjorden. It includes many islands, including Reksta, Askrova, Svanøya, Skorpa, Fanøya, Hovden, and Kinn. The municipality also includes the large lakes of Endestadvatnet, Lykkjebøvatnet, and Vassetevatnet. The Norddalsfjorden is crossed by the Norddalsfjord Bridge.
Ytterøyane lighthouse in Kinn has been recording temperature since 1984, showing a temperate oceanic climate (marine west coast, Köppen: Cfb). The temperature range from the coldest month to the warmest month is only 11.2C. The coldest monthly mean is 3.4C, making this among the mildest winters in Scandinavia. The all-time high 30 °C (86 °F) was recorded July 2019, and the all-time low −8.7 °C (16.3 °F) was recorded February 2001. On 7 November 2018 Ytterøyane recorded 19.4 °C (66.9 °F)) which was new record high for Vestland. The average date for the first overnight freeze (below 0 °C (32 °F)) in autumn is December 6 at Ytterøyane (1981-2010 average).[16] However, in 2015 there were no freezing lows at all.
Climate data for Ytterøyane, Kinn 1991-2020 (26 m, extremes 1984-2020)
−3.6%
