Åkra is a former municipality in the traditional district of Haugaland in Rogaland county, Norway. The 33-square-kilometre (13 sq mi) municipality existed from 1892 until 1965 and it encompassed the central part of the western coast of the island of Karmøy. The administrative centre was the village of Åkrehamn.

History

The municipality of Aakra was established on 1 January 1892 when it was split off from the municipality of Skudenes. Initially, the new municipality had a population of 1,962. On 1 January 1965, the municipality of Åkra was dissolved due to recommendations by the Schei Committee. Åkra was merged with the neighboring municipalities of Avaldsnes, Skudenes, Stangaland, and Torvastad and with the towns of Kopervik and Skudeneshavn to form the new, larger municipality of Karmøy. Before the merger Åkra had a population of 6,008.

Name

The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Aakre farm (Old Norse: Akrar) since the first Åkra Church was built there. The name comes from the plural form of akr which means "field" or "acre". Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Aakre. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Aakra. On 21 December 1917, a royal resolution enacted the 1917 Norwegian language reforms. Prior to this change, the name was spelled Aakra with the digraph "Aa", and after this reform, the name was spelled Åkra, using the letter Å instead.

Government

While it existed, this municipality was responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, unemployment, social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads. During its existence, this municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.

Municipal council

The municipal council (Herredsstyre) of Åkra was made up of representatives that were elected to four year terms. The party breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows:

Attractions

The Old Åkra Church (Åkra gamle kyrkje) dates back to 1821. It was built of wood and has 320 seats. The church was restored in 1852 and 1899. Rogaland Fishery Museum (Rogaland Fiskerimuseum) is situated on the harbor in Åkrahamn. It contains a restored herring works with a collection of artifacts and equipment associated with the local fishing and shipping industries.

See also

• List of former municipalities of Norway