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Målselv Municipality Målselv kommune Málatvuomi suohkan (Northern Sami)
Municipality
Maalselven herred  (historic name)
View of the mountain Istind on the Bardu-Målselv border
FlagCoat of arms
Troms within Norway
Målselv within Troms
Coordinates: 68°58′30″N 19°03′52″E / 68.97500°N 19.06444°E / 68.97500; 19.06444
Country	Norway
County	Troms
District	Midt-Troms
Established	1848
• Preceded by	Lenviken Municipality
Administrative centre	Moen
Government
• Mayor (2023)	Martin Nymo (H)
Area
• Total	3,324.45 km (1,283.58 sq mi)
• Land	3,202.57 km (1,236.52 sq mi)
• Water	121.88 km (47.06 sq mi)  3.7%
• Rank	#11 in Norway
Highest elevation	1,720.86 m (5,645.87 ft)
Population
• Total	6,714
• Rank	#149 in Norway
• Density	2/km (5/sq mi)
• Change (10 years)	+1.2%
Demonym	Målselvdøl
Official language
• Norwegian form	Neutral
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 code	NO-5524
Website	Official website
Data from Statistics Norway

Målselv (Northern Sami: Málatvuomi suohkan) is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Moen. The main commercial centre of the municipality is the town of Bardufoss (which includes the neighborhoods of Andselv, Andslimoen, and Heggelia). Other villages in the municipality include Alapmoen, Fossmoen, Holmen, and Skjold.

The 3,324-square-kilometre (1,283 sq mi) municipality is the 11th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Målselv is the 149th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 6,714. The municipality's population density is 2 inhabitants per square kilometre (5.2/sq mi) and its population has increased by 1.2% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

The municipality of Maalselven was established in 1848 when it was separated from the large Lenviken Municipality. The initial population of Maalselven was 2,616. In 1891, some parts of the Maalsnes area (population: 30) were transferred to neighboring Malangen Municipality. On 1 January 1904, an area with 5 inhabitants was transferred from Balsfjord Municipality to Maalselven. The spelling of the name was changed to Målselv in 1918. On 1 July 1925, the eastern district of the municipality was separated from Målselv to form the new Øverbygd Municipality. This left Målselv with 3,531 residents.

During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, Øverbygd Municipality (population: 1,232), Målselv Municipality (population: 5,584), the Naveren and Målsnes areas of Malangen Municipality (population: 118), and the "Skogli ved Heia" farm in Balsfjord Municipality (population: 2) were all merged to form a new, larger municipality of Målselv with a new population of 6,936. On 1 January 1966, the Sørelvmo/Aursfjordbotn area (population: 131) was transferred from Balsfjord Municipality to Målselv Municipality. Then on 1 January 1972, the "Blomli i Fagerfjell" area of Målselv Municipality (population: 63) was transferred to Lenvik Municipality.

On 1 January 2020, the municipality became part of the newly formed Troms og Finnmark county. Previously, it had been part of the old Troms county. On 1 January 2024, the Troms og Finnmark county was divided and the municipality once again became part of Troms county.

Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the river Målselva which flows through the area. The first element is the genitive case of the old uncompounded name of the Malangen fjord (malr) which means "bag" or "sack" (referring to the shape of the fjord). The last element is the finite form of elv which means "river". Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Maalselven. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Maalselv, removing the definite form ending -en. On 21 December 1917, a royal resolution enacted the 1917 Norwegian language reforms. Prior to this change, the name was spelled Maalselv with the digraph "aa", and after this reform, the name was spelled Målselv, using the letter å instead.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 1 February 1985. The official blazon is "Vert, a pile wavy argent issuant from base dexter" (Norwegian: I grønt en sølv spiss, skråstilt venstre høyre, dannet ved bølgesnitt). This means the arms have a green field (background) and the charge is a wavy line rising from the bottom left to the top right. The wavy line 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 a canting that represent the Målselva river which runs on serpentine-like loops through a fertile valley as it passes through the municipality. The green color symbolizes the fertile valley and the wavy white or silver line represents the river. The arms were designed by Ottar Jarl Myrvang.

Churches

The Church of Norway has two parishes (sokn) within Målselv Municipality. It is part of the Indre Troms prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland.

Geography

Målselv was settled by farmers from southern Norway, especially Østerdalen from 1788 and onwards. They were attracted by the vast forests and areas of fertile land in the broad Målselvdalen. The valley and municipality take their name from the river Målselva. The river is well known for its salmon, and forms the Målselv waterfall (Norwegian: Målselvfossen), which has been selected as Norway's national waterfall. The Målselva empties into the Malangen fjord north of Olsborg.

The highest point in the municipality is the 1,720.86-metre (5,645.9 ft) tall mountain Njunis. There are several other mountains in the municipality such as Istind, which is popular among hikers. There are many lakes such as Andsvatnet, Finnfjordvatnet, Rostojávri, Lille Rostavatn, and Takvatnet. One of the rarest orchids in Europe, Lysiella oligantha (Norwegian: Sibirnattfiol), is found in Målselv. Øvre Dividal National Park (740 km or 290 sq mi) is located in the easternmost part of Målselv, near the border with Sweden.

Besides bordering Sweden to the east and the ocean (Malangen fjord) to the northwest, it borders Balsfjord Municipality and Storfjord Municipality to the north, Bardu Municipality to the south, and Sørreisa Municipality and Senja Municipality to the west.

Climate

Målselv has a boreal climate (Köppen climate classification: Dfc) with cold winters, and with spring and early summer as the driest season.

Målselv is fairly sheltered from the coastal weather, and has a somewhat inland climate. The all-time high 33.5 °C (92.3 °F) is from July 2018, while the warmest month on record at Bardufoss Airport is July 2014 with average daily high 23.4 °C (74.1 °F) and mean 17.7 °C (63.9 °F). The all-time low −38.1 °C (−36.6 °F) was recorded December 1978. The coldest month recorded is February 1966 with mean −18.1 °C (−0.6 °F) and average daily low −23 °C (−9 °F). Mean annual precipitation is 703 millimetres (27.7 in) at Bardufoss and only 282 millimetres (11.1 in) in the Divi valley, which sits at 282 m (925 ft) above sea level.

There is on average 93 days each winter with daily low −10 °C (14 °F) or colder, and 28 days with low −20 °C (−4 °F) or colder. The winter season sees on average 68 days with at least 50 centimetres (20 in) snow cover on the ground, 126 days with at least 25 centimetres (9.8 in) snow cover, and 179 days with at least 5 centimetres (2.0 in) snow cover. In the warm season there is on average 116 days each year when the daily average high reaches 10 °C (50 °F) or warmer and 22 days with daily average high above 20 °C (68 °F). Precipitation is fairly moderate, there is on average 75 days per year with at least 3 millimetres (0.12 in) precipitation and 15 days per year with at least 10 millimetres (0.39 in) precipitation. This is based on data from Met.no with 1971–2000 as base period. The average date for first overnight freeze (below 0 °C (32 °F)) in autumn is 4 September (1981-2010 average).

Media gallery

• Målselv kirke
• Målselv river and valley
• The Norwegian Armed Forces has a long history in Målselv
• Heggelia in Målselv
• Memorial for those killed during WW2 in Målselv
• Øvre Dividal national park
• Blåtindan mountain

Government

Målselv 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 Nord-Troms og Senja District Court and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Målselv is made up of 23 representatives that are elected to four-year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.

Mayors

The mayor (Norwegian: ordfører) of Målselv is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who have held this position (incomplete list):

• 1849-1852: Ole Krogseng
• 1852-1856: E.A. Sandeggen
• 1857-1859: Ole Krogseng
• 1859-1860: Tollef Olsen Fagerlidal
• 1861-1871: E.A. Sandeggen
• 1871-1872: M. Hay
• 1873-1876: Lars I. Fagerlidal
• 1877-1877: Martens
• 1877-1882: Tollef Olsen
• 1883-1890: Ole Tollefsen Fagerlidal
• 1891-1894: Monrad Hay
• 1895-1910: Erik Myre
• 1911-1913: Rønning Tollefsen
• 1913-1915: Erik Myre
• 1915-1916: P. Steingrimsen
• 1917-1919: Rønning Tollefsen
• 1920-1922: D.E. Jachwitz
• 1923-1925: J. Traasdahl
• 1926-1928: M. Foshaug
• 1988-1990: Kristian Eldnes (Ap)
• 1990-1993: Vidkunn Haugli (V)
• 1993-1995: Helge Paulsen (Ap)
• 1995-2003: Lars Nymo (Sp)
• 2003-2011: Viggo Fossum (Ap)
• 2011-2015: Helene Rognli (H)
• 2015-2019: Nils Foshaug (Ap)
• 2019–2023: Bengt-Magne Luneng (Sp)
• 2023-present: Martin Nymo (H)

Economy

A local newspaper, Nye Troms, covering Målselv, Bardu, and Balsfjord, has its main office in the Olsborg/Moen area. The municipality administration is located at Moen, about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) east of Olsborg.

Further south along European route E6 is the Bardufoss region, which encompasses the local communities Andselv, Andslimoen, and Heggelia, the latter including the Norwegian army's 6th division. Near Andselv is the Bardufoss Airport and the Bardufoss Air Station of the Royal Norwegian Air Force, including the 337th and 339th Air Force helicopter squadrons. Målselv municipality, together with neighbouring Bardu, has the largest concentration of army bases in the country.

Moving further up the valley, another local community is Rundhaug, and moving eastwards, closer to Øvre Dividal National Park, is the community of Øverbygd, housing two more sub-communities Skjold and Holt. The former also houses the Skjold base for mechanized infantry and combat engineers.

Tourism is a growing industry in Målselv, with the opening of Målselv Fjellandsby, an alpine ski destination. Målselv is also home to Målselvfossen, Norway's national waterfall and a mecca for salmon fishermen. Bardufoss concentration camp was located here during World War II.

Arne Berggren established a film production hub, Shuuto Arctic, at FilmCamp Nord, a former military base in Målselv. Shuuto Arctic's first production was The River (2017) and was followed by Outlier (2020).

Notable people

• Meyer Foshaug (1868 in Foshaug – 1955), a farmer and politician
• Johannes Martens (1870 in Målselv – 1938), a newspaper editor
• Erling Mossige (1907 in Målselv – 1997), a jurist and banker
• Aase Nordmo Løvberg (1923 in Målselv – 2013), an opera soprano
• William Engseth (born 1933 in Målselv), a Norwegian politician and President of the Norwegian Olympic Committee
• Viggo Fossum (1949–2019), a Norwegian politician who was Mayor of Målselv from 2003 to 2011
• Svein Nymo (1953 in Målselv – 2014), a violinist and composer
• Geir Pollen (born 1953 in Målselv), a poet, novelist, and translator
• Karen Anette Anti (born 1972), a Norwegian Sami politician
• Ragnhild Furebotten (born 1979), a fiddler, folk musician, and composer who lives in Målselv
• Ingerid Stenvold (born 1977), a television presenter and former cross-country skier

Sport

• Jostein Nordmoe (1895 in Målselv – 1965), a Canadian skier who competed at the 1932 Winter Olympics
• Sverre Stenersen (1926 in Målselv – 2005), a Norwegian Nordic combined skier who was a bronze medallist at the 1952 Winter Olympics and gold medallist at the 1956 Winter Olympics
• Odd Brandsegg (born 1948 in Målselv), a Swedish former ski jumper
• Erik Valnes (born 1996), a cross-country skier

References

1. ^ "Høgaste fjelltopp i kvar kommune" (in Norwegian). Kartverket. 16 January 2024.
2. "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet.
3. "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no.
4. Bolstad, Erik; Thorsnæs, Geir, eds. (26 January 2023). "Kommunenummer". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget.
5. Statistisk sentralbyrå. "Table: 06913: Population 1 January and population changes during the calendar year (M)" (in Norwegian).
6. Statistisk sentralbyrå. "09280: Area of land and fresh water (km²) (M)" (in Norwegian).
7. ^ Jukvam, Dag (1999). "Historisk oversikt over endringer i kommune- og fylkesinndelingen" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Statistisk sentralbyrå.
8. Mæhlum, Lars, ed. (24 December 2019). "Troms og Finnmark". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 26 December 2019.
9. "Fylkesinndelingen fra 2024" (in Norwegian). Regjeringen.no. 5 July 2022.
10. Rygh, Oluf (1911). Norske gaardnavne: Tromsø amt (in Norwegian) (17 ed.). Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. pp. 103 and 120.
11. "Norsk Lovtidende. 2den Afdeling. 1917. Samling af Love, Resolutioner m.m". Norsk Lovtidend (in Norwegian). Kristiania, Norge: Grøndahl og Søns Boktrykkeri: 1057–1065. 1917.
12. "Norsk Lovtidende. 2den Afdeling. 1917. Samling af Love, Resolutioner m.m". Norsk Lovtidend (in Norwegian). Oslo, Norway: Grøndahl og Søns Boktrykkeri: 1000. 1917.
13. Den Nye rettskrivning : regler og ordlister (in Norwegian). Kristiania, Norge: Den Mallingske Boktrykkeri. 1918.
14. "Civic heraldry of Norway - Norske Kommunevåpen". Heraldry of the World. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
15. "Målselv, Troms (Norway)". Flags of the World. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
16. "Godkjenning av våpen og flagg". Lovdata.no (in Norwegian). Norges kommunal- og arbeidsdepartementet. 1 February 1985. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
17. "Climate statistics Målselv" (in Norwegian). met.no. Archived from the original on 13 July 2012.
18. "Vanlig Vær Bardufoss" (in Norwegian). met.no. Archived from the original on 30 December 2013. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
19. "Første frostnatt". 25 September 2013.
20. "weatheronline climate robot avg high and low for 1996-2020". Weatheronline.
21. "yr.no". NRK.
22. "eKlima Web Portal". Norwegian Meteorological Institute. Archived from the original on 14 June 2004.
23. Hansen, Tore; Vabo, Signy Irene, eds. (20 September 2022). "kommunestyre". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
24. "Kommunestyrevalg 2023 - Troms Romsa". Valgdirektoratet. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
25. "Tall for Norge: Kommunestyrevalg 2019 – Troms og Finnmark". Valg Direktoratet. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
26. ^ "Table: 04813: Members of the local councils, by party/electoral list at the Municipal Council election (M)" (in Norwegian). Statistics Norway.
27. "Tall for Norge: Kommunestyrevalg 2011 – Troms Romsa". Valg Direktoratet. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
28. "Kommunestyrevalget 1995" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1996. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
29. "Kommunestyrevalget 1991" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1993. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
30. "Kommunestyrevalget 1987" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1988. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
31. "Kommunestyrevalget 1983" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo-Kongsvinger: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1984. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
32. "Kommunestyrevalget 1979" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1979. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
33. "Kommunevalgene 1975" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1977. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
34. "Kommunevalgene 1972" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1973. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
35. "Kommunevalgene 1967" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1967. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
36. "Kommunevalgene 1963" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1964. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
37. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1959" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1960. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
38. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1955" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1957. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
39. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1951" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1952. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
40. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1947" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1948. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
41. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1945" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1947. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
42. "Kommunevalgene og Ordførervalgene 1937" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Oslo: Statistisk sentralbyrå. 1938. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
43. Sæter, Ivar (1926). Maalselvdalen - Maalselv og Øverbygd herreder (in Norwegian). Oslo: Grøndahl & Søn. pp. 197–199.
44. "Martin Nymo blir ordfører i Målselv". NRK Troms og Finnmark (in Norwegian). 19 September 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
45. ^ Gunleik (26 November 2020). "Shuuto Arctic: Outlier - 'Here's to the crazy ones...'". Quine. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
46. Keslassy, Elsa (15 June 2020). "Reinvent Kicks Off Pre-Sales on Hot New Scandi Drama Outlier". Variety. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
47. Aase Nordmo Løvberg at IMDb. Retrieved 18 August 2020.

External links

• Municipal fact sheet from Statistics Norway (in Norwegian)
• Picture and information regarding Bardufoss Airport from Avinor

• Definitions from Wiktionary
• Media from Commons
• Travel guides from Wikivoyage
• Data from Wikidata

v t e Troms county, Norway
Main article: Troms Capital: Tromsø County government: Troms County Municipality County lists: County Governors Villages Churches
	Towns and cities	Tromsø (1794) Harstad (1904) Finnsnes (2000) Bardufoss (2021)
	Municipalities	Nord-Troms Balsfjord Gáivuotna-Kåfjord-Kaivuono Karlsøy Kvænangen Lyngen Nordreisa-Ráisa-Raisi Skjervøy Storfjord-Omasvuotna-Omasvuono Tromsø Midt-Troms Bardu Dyrøy Loabák-Lavangen Målselv Salangen Senja Sørreisa Sør-Troms Dielddanuorri-Tjeldsund Gratangen Harstad-Hárstták Ibestad Kvæfjord
	Former Municipalities in Troms Andørja (1926-1964) Astafjord (1926-1964) Berg (1838-2020) Bjarkøy (1838-2013) Helgøy (1886-1964) Hillesøy (1855-1964) Lenvik (1838-2020) Malangen (1871-1964) Sandtorg (1926-1964) Skånland (1926-2020) Torsken (1902-2020) Tranøy (1838-2020) Tromsøysund (1838-1964) Trondenes (1838-1964) Ullsfjord (1902-1964) Øverbygd (1925-1964)

• Målselv
• Municipalities of Troms
• Populated places of Arctic Norway
• 1848 establishments in Norway
• Populated places established in 1848