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Similar Tonsen Church, Bakkehaugen Church, Vestre Aker Church, Maridalsvannet, Skar leir | ||
Salting i maridalen 5 11 16 dette f ret er trafikkfarlig
Maridalen is a valley situated just north of Oslo, Norway, just above the suburb of Kjelsås. Most of the valley is made up of a lake known as Maridalsvannet, that serves as the primary source of drinking water for 90% of Oslo's population. The valley is a popular recreational area with many hiking trails and cycle tracks for summer usage, and groomed cross country trails in winter. Both the lake and valley are protected.
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Tog maridalen
The name
The Norse form of the name was Margrétardalr. The first element is the genitive of Margrét, the last element is dalr m 'dale, valley'. The old church (now in ruins) just north of the lake was dedicated to Margaret the Virgin.
The name of the valley cannot be older than the Christian movement of Norway (around 1000 AD), and it probably replaced an older name that has since been forgotten. This is one of rare examples in Norway where an old name of a large valley has been replaced.
