Klepp

General information

The old parish of Klep was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The boundaries of the municipality have not changed since that time.

Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Klepp farm (Old Norse: Kleppr), since the first Klepp Church was built there. The inscription on the Klepp I Runestone indicates that the name has been in use since the late 10th or early 11th century. The name is identical with the word kleppr which means "rocky hill". Before 1912, the name was written "Klep".

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms were granted on 18 February 1972. The arms features a gold cross on a blue background. The cross on the arms symbolizes the large stone cross at Krosshaug in Klepp. Krosshaug is a grave hill located near the site where the local thing met for centuries. The Old Norse word haugr means mound or barrow, hence the name "kross"-haug. The cross was considered a representative historic symbol for the municipality.

Churches

The Church of Norway has four parishes (sokn) within the municipality of Klepp. It is part of the Jæren deanery in the Diocese of Stavanger.

History

The earliest traces of population in the municipality have been dated to around 6000 BC. At that time, the land was covered by large oak woods. The large stone cross standing on the grave hill Krosshaug dates from around 1000 AD and is possibly the oldest in Norway. It is adjacent to Tinghaug, the site for a local Thing for many centuries during the Iron Age. Tinghaug probably acted as a site for the local court and assembly for many centuries.

Geography

The municipality is located 25 kilometres (16 mi) south of the city of Stavanger. Neighbouring municipalities are Hå to the south, Time to the south and east, Sola and Sandnes to the north. The coastline is agricultural and consists of, from south to north, the areas Orre, Reve, Bore and Sele.

The long Orrestranda beach, one of the longest sandy beaches in Norway, is in Klepp. The river Figgjoelva empties into the North Sea in Klepp. The small island of Feistein lies off shore and is the site of the Feistein Lighthouse. There are two large lakes in Klepp: Orrevatnet and Frøylandsvatnet.

Transportation

The Sørlandet railway line, historically called the Jæren Line, runs through Klepp along lake Frøylandsvatnet. The village of Klepp stasjon, 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) east of Kleppe, is built around the train station Klepp Station. The nearby Oksnevadporten Station is the other railway station in Klepp.

Economy

Klepp is the second largest agricultural municipality in Rogaland, with a total of around 600 farms. Kverneland Group, located in Kvernaland, is the largest manufacturer of agricultural equipment in the world.

Sports

The local sports club Klepp IL most notably has a women's football team in the Norwegian top league. Famous players include Dagny Mellgren and the national team captain Ane Stangeland Horpestad. Gymnast Åge Storhaug also represented the club.

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Klepp, are responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, unemployment and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of elected representatives, which in turn elect a mayor.

Municipal council

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Klepp is made up of 31 representatives that are elected to every four years. Currently, the party breakdown is as follows:

Mayor

Since 2011, Ane Mari Braut Nese of the Conservative Party has been the mayor. She succeeded Elfin Lea of the same party, who served from 1999 to 2011.

Parliament

There have been many members of the Parliament of Norway from Klepp. Thore Larsen Braut and Karl K. Kleppe were members of Parliament prior to the Second World War. After the war Lars Storhaug, Oddbjørg Ausdal Starrfelt, and Knut Haus have been members of Parliament.