Vaksdal

The municipality of Vaksdal was created on 1 January 1964 after a major municipal restructuring after the Schei Committee's recommendations. Vaksdal was formed from the following places:^[7]

• All of Bruvik municipality, except for the Bruvikbygda area on Osterøy island (population: 5,264)
• The Bergsdalen and Eksingedalen valleys from the municipality of Evanger (population: 251)
• The rest of the Eksingedalen valley that was located in the municipality of Modalen (population: 151)

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the village of Vaksdal (Old Norse: Vágsdalr), one of the main villages in the municipality. The first element is the genitive case of the word vágr which means "bay" or "inlet". The last element is dalr which means "valley" or "dale". Alternately, the first part of the name could be derived from a local river name spelled Vaxa or Veksa which would mean the valley of the river Vaxa/Veksa.^[8]

On 1 January 1964, the new municipality of Vaksdal was established upon the merger of Bruvik municipality with some neighboring areas. The old coat of arms for Bruvik Municipality was carried over to the new municipality. Bruvik's arms were granted on 14 December 1960, just a few years earlier, and they were in use until 16 November 1990 when a new design was approved. The blazon for the old arms was "Azure, a chevron over a cogwheel argent". This means the arms have a blue field (background) and the charge is a cogwheel with a chevron shape above it. 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 was chosen to symbolize the importance of industry in the municipality. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.^[9]

A new coat of arms was granted on 16 November 1990 to replace the old arms. The official blazon is "Or, three shuttles sable palewise two and one" (Norwegian: På gul grunn tre opprette svarte skytlar). This means the arms have a field (background) 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 charge is a set of three shuttles for weaving that are lined up vertically. The shuttles were chosen to represent the past and present textile industry of the municipality. The Dale of Norway company is based here and it is an international company renowned for its wool sweaters. The arms were designed by Charles Lunde, a graphic designer who based the design on an idea by the local artist E. Eriksen. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.^[10][11][12]

The Church of Norway has six parishes (sokn) within the municipality of Vaksdal. It is part of the Hardanger og Voss prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.

The municipality is mountainous, and stretches along both sides of the Veafjorden with adjacent valleys. It includes part of the island Osterøy. The Kallestadsundet Bridge connects the mainland of Vaksdal to the island of Osterøy. In the north, it includes the valleys of Eksingedalen and Bergsdalen, with its borders extending into the mountains. Major lakes in the municipality include Askjelldalsvatnet and Skjerjavatnet.

The main centers of population are Dale (pop. 1174), Vaksdal (pop. 957), and Stanghelle (pop. 767).^[13] Dale and Vaksdal are industrial villages that arose around factories utilising the hydro-electric power resources provided by the mountainous terrain and rainy climate. The Bergensbanen railway line between Norway's two largest cities Oslo and Bergen, and the main road between the same two cities, European route E16, run through Vaksdal municipality. The Bergensbanen railway line has the following stations in Vaksdal: Bogegrend Station, Dale Station, Stanghelle Station, and Vaksdal Station

Vaksdal was created as a new municipality on 1 January 1964 after the merger of parts of Bruvik, Evanger, and Modalen municipalities.

During the German invasion of Norway during World War II, from 19 April to 24 April, there was heavy fighting within the borders of the present municipality, with German forces advancing along the railway line from Bergen towards Voss. The heaviest fighting was for the village of Vaksdal itself, from 19 to 23 April. Further fighting took place at Stanghelle and Dalseid on 23 and 24 April. Three Norwegian soldiers and one civilian, and a larger, but unknown, number of German soldiers fell in Vaksdal.^[14]

Vaksdal 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.^[15] The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Hordaland District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Vaksdal is made up of 21 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.

The mayors (Nynorsk: ordførar) of Vaksdal (incomplete list):

• 1999–2007: Øivind Olsnes (H)
• 2007–2019: Eirik Haga (Ap)
• 2019–present: Hege Eide Vik (Sp)

• Harald Langhelle (1890 in Dale – executed 1942), a newspaper editor, politician, and Norwegian resistance member
• Bjørn Wiik (1937 in Bruvik - 1999), a Norwegian elementary particle physicist
• Sjur Olsnes (1939–2014), a Norwegian biochemist and academic who grew up in Vaksdal
• Helén Eriksen (born 1971 in Dale), a jazz musician (saxophone and vocals), songwriter, and music arranger
• Trond Egil Soltvedt(Born 1967 in Stanghelle), a former professional football player for English Premier League clubs
• Frida Amundsen (born 1992 in Vaksdal), a Norwegian singer and songwriter