Gol, Norway

Updated on Nov 22, 2024

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Country Norway District Hallingdal Area rank 200 in Norway Area 533 km² Local time Thursday 6:06 AM		County Buskerud Administrative centre Gol Demonym(s) Goling Population 4,372 (2004) Official language form Nynorsk

Weather -6°C, Wind E at 5 km/h, 71% Humidity

Gol is a municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Hallingdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Gol. Gol was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The area of Hemsedal was separated from Gol in 1897 to become a separate municipality.

Map of Gol, 3550, Norway

The municipality of Gol is bordered to the north by the municipality of Nord-Aurdal (in Oppland county), to the east by Sør-Aurdal (in Oppland county), to the south by Nes, and to the west by Ål and Hemsedal.

Name

The Old Norse form of the name was Gǫrð. This is probably an old river name (for the lower part of Hemsil river). The name of the river is maybe derived from the word garðr m 'fence; border' - and the meaning is then 'the border river'.

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 13 September 1985. The arms are gold with three black keys in the center. The keys are derived from the key for the oldest stave church in Gol Gol stave church, which is now in the Norwegian Museum of Cultural History.

Transport

The Bergen Line from Bergen to Oslo runs through Gol Station, opened in 1907.

History

The mediaeval Gol stave church (built 1216) was due for demolition after the construction of a larger new church around 1880. It was saved from destruction by the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Norwegian Monuments, which bought the materials with the intention of re-erecting the church elsewhere. Financial problems were solved when King Oscar II decided to pay for its relocation and restoration as the central building of his private open-air museum near Oslo, where it was completed in 1885.

In 1907, the royal museum was merged with the Norsk Folkemuseum, which now manages the stave church, still nominally belonging to the reigning monarch. A modern replica has been built as a tourist attraction in a theme park in downtown Gol; the replica is far from the original site of the mediaeval church.

Attractions

Gol Bygdetun, is an open-air museum built around the old Skaga farm, located in the village of Gol. It is dedicated to the cultural history of Gol, and contains farm buildings of nearly all types. The oldest building dates back to 17th century.

Notable residents

Bjørn Tolleivson Frøysåk (1634 in Gol – 1709) was a Norwegian farmer and merchant. He was born into one of the major farming families in Hallingdal. He is particularly known for a painted epitaph from 1699, showing him and his large family. The epitaph, originally in Gol Stave Church, was relocated to the Norwegian Museum of Cultural History in 1906.

Johan Willoch Erichsen (1842 – 1916 in Gol) was a Norwegian bishop and theologian in the Church of Norway. He was Bishop of the Diocese of Bjørgvin from 1899 until shortly before his death in in Gol 1916.

Hans Johan Jensen (1882 – ?) was a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. In 1909 he settled in Gol as a farmer and carpenter and was first elected to Gol municipal council in 1913, and was re-elected nine times. In 1928 he was also elected to the Norwegian Parliament for his constituency Buskerud.

Sigrun Eng (born 1951 in Sør-Fron) is a Norwegian politician who belongs to the Labour Party. She was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Buskerud in 1993, and has been re-elected on three occasions. She was a member of Gol municipal council from 1983 to 1991

Pål Golberg (born 1990 in Gol) is a Norwegian cross country skier. His best World Cup finish so far is first in an individual sprint event in Lahti, and in an individual-start 15k classic in Oslo.