In 1997, the municipal council declared "town status" for the urban area of Sortland. Sortland is the largest town and commercial centre in Vesterålen. The town of Sortland is located close to the Sortland Bridge which crosses the Sortlandsundet strait and connects the two large islands of Langøya and Hinnøya by road. Since a lot of houses in the town are painted blue, Sortland is sometimes referred to as "the blue city".
The 722-square-kilometre (279 sq mi) municipality is the 159th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Sortland is the 109th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 10,561. The municipality's population density is 15.1 inhabitants per square kilometre (39/sq mi) and its population has increased by 4.8% over the previous 10-year period.[5][6] In January 2012, the number of citizens in Sortland reached 10,000 for the first time.[7]
General information
The "blue city" of Sortland.
The municipality of Sortland was established in 1841 when it was separated from the large Hadsel Municipality.[8]
During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1963, the Holm area (population: 65) along the Gavlfjorden was transferred from Langenes Municipality to Sortland. Also on that date, the area around the inner and western part of the Eidsfjorden (population: 1,360) was transferred from Hadsel Municipality to Sortland.[8]
On 1 January 2000, the area surrounding the Godfjorden was transferred from Kvæfjord Municipality (and Troms county) to Sortland (and Nordland county).[9]
Name
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Sortland farm (Old Norse: Svortuland) since the first Sortland Church was built there. The first element is Svort which is the genitive case of the local river name Svorta. The river name is derived from svartr which means "black" or "dark". The last element is land which means "land" or "farm".[10]
On 2 May 2017, the national government approved a resolution to add a co-equal, official Sami language name for the municipality: Suortá.[11] The spelling of the Sami language name changes depending on how it is used. It is called Suortá when it is spelled alone, but it is Suorttá suohkan when using the Sami language equivalent to "Sortland municipality".[12]
Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted on 15 March 1985. The official blazon is "Azure, a castle with three towers without crenelationOr" (Norwegian: I blått en gull borg med tre tårn uten krenelering). This means the arms have a blue field (background) and the charge is a castle with a gate and three towers without crenelation. The castle has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. The blue color in the field symbolizes the importance of sea and the castle is an updated version of an old coat of arms for Sortland. The castle gate symbolizes Sortland as the gateway to the Vesterålen region and that it is the commercial centre of the region as well. The arms were designed by Kurt Myrland.[13][14][15]
The old coat of arms was in use from the 1950s until 1985 when the new arms were granted. The arms showed a castle (very similar to the one in the current arms) in a stylized landscape, including waves and sun rays. The arms included a golden border with three black-white-black piles issuing from both flanks of the white castle. Also, there were four red sun rays issuing from behind the castle (four piles issuant from chief and flanks conjoined in heart), and in the base there were waves of red, black, and white. In the white chief inscribed the word "Sortland". A mural crown with four embattlements was on the top.[14][16]
Sortlandsbrua bridge with Strand at Hinnøya island, from Hurtigruten in Sortland
Midnight Sun and Aurora Borealis
The midnight sun occurs from 23 May to 23 July. Great places to observe the midnight sun includes the Sortland Bridge, Ramnflauget, Godfjorden, Holm, and Skytterhaugen in the Vestmarka residential area. Because of Sortland's high latitude, there is no real darkness between late April and mid-August.
Polar night occurs in Sortland from 30 November to 12 January when the sun remains below the horizon and is not visible at all. The return of the sun is an occasion for celebration in Northern Norway, known as "Soldagen" (lit. Day of the sun) which is commonly celebrated with children getting the day off from school. The polar night does not mean that it becomes totally dark, typically daylight is visible for a few hours around noon.
Sortland and the Vesterålen region are perfect for observing the spectacular Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) phenomenon. The aurora borealis trails its multi coloured banner across the sky and the moon lights the scene making it a breathtaking experience. Pictures taken here have been presented in National Geographic Magazine.
Climate
Sortland has a subpolar oceanic climate. The weather station (Sortland-Kleiva) has been recording since January 1956. The record high of 31 °C (88 °F) was set on 29 July 2018. The record low −13.5 °C (7.7 °F) was set in January 2016 (extremes available since 2004). The average date for the last overnight freeze (low below 0 °C (32.0 °F)) in spring is 7 May[17] and average date for first freeze in autumn is 14 October[18] giving a frost-free season of 159 days (1981-2010 average).
Climate data for Sortland - Kleiva 1991-2020 (14 m, extremes 2004-2022)
The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Sortland is made up of 27 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.
The market square in downtown Sortland a day in June 2013.
Sortland has been regarded as one of the best music communities in Norway, and the local band Madrugada has been one of the best ones in the nation. Sortland Jazz Festival is an event organized by Sortland Jazz and Music Club, which takes place every autumn. Some of the world's leading jazz musicians have been participating.
Shopping
Sortland is the largest commercial centre in Vesterålen with several indoors shopping centers and many small businesses. The retail turnover per inhabitant in Sortland is greater than in any other town in North Norway. Sortland is one of the few North Norwegian towns that have grown annually since the 1970s.
Notable residents
Ingrid Skjoldvær, 2016
Knut Hamsun (1859–1952) the Nobel Prize–winning author wrote his novel Den Sidste Glæde (The Last Joy) in Sortland Hotel in 1911/12
Petter Carl Reinsnes (1904 in Reinsnes – 1976) politician, long-time Mayor of Sortland
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