Lillehammer

Lillehammer kommune
—  Municipality  —

Coat of arms
Oppland within
Norway
Lillehammer within Oppland
Coordinates:
Country Norway
County Oppland
District Gudbrandsdal
Administrative centre Lillehammer
Government
 - Mayor (2005) Synnøve Brenden Klemetrud (Ap)
Area
 - Total 477 km2 (184.2 sq mi)
 - Land 450 km2 (173.7 sq mi)
Area rank 211 in Norway
Population (2009)
 - Total 26,124
 - Rank 33 in Norway
 - Density 56/km2 (145/sq mi)
 - Change (10 years) 5.0 %
Demonym Lillehamring[1]
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 - Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
ISO 3166 code NO-0501
Official language form Bokmål
Website lillehammer.kommune.no
Data from Statistics Norway

Lillehammer is a town and municipality in Oppland county, Norway, globally known for hosting the 1994 Winter Olympics. It is part of the traditional region of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillehammer. As of 2009, the population of the town of Lillehammer was 20,097.[2] The city centre is a late 19th century concentration of wooden houses, which enjoys a picturesque location overlooking the northern part of lake Mjøsa and the river Lågen, surrounded by mountains.

Contents

Name

The municipality is named after the old Hamar farm (Old Norse: Hamarr), since the first church was built there. The word hamar means a "steep rock". In order to distinguish it from the nearby town and the bishopric of Hamar, it was often called Lilþlæ Hamar or Litlihamarr meaning "the small Hamar". It is also mentioned in the Old Norse sagas as Litlikaupangr meaning "the small trading place".[3][4]

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms was granted in 1898. The arms show a birkebeiner, carrying a spear and a shield, who is skiing down a mountainside. It symbolizes the historical importance of when the Birkebeiners carried the to-be-King Haakon from Lillehammer to Rena on skis.[5]

History

The area has been settled since the Norwegian Iron Age. It is also mentioned as a site for council in 1390. It had a lively market by the 1800s, and obtained rights as a merchant city on 7 August 1827, at which point there were 50 registered residents within its boundaries.

The town of Lillehammer was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838.

The rural municipality of Fåberg was merged into the municipality of Lillehammer on 1 January 1964.

Olympic ski jump

Lillehammer was the site of the Lillehammer affair in 1973 where operatives of the Israeli Mossad shot and killed a Moroccan waiter they mistakenly thought was involved in the Munich Massacre.

Lillehammer was host city of the 1994 Winter Olympics. It is known for being a typical venue for winter sporting events. It bid for the 2012 Winter Youth Olympics, but was passed over.

In 2005, the popular British automotive show Top Gear aired its "Winter Olympics special", an episode of various Olympic event-themed challenges involving cars, set in the surrounding area of Lillehammer.

Education

A number of schools are located in Lillehammer including the Hammartun Lower Secondary School Lillehammer High School, Mesna High School, Vargstad High School are the three high schools in Lillehammer.

Geography

Vista of Lillehammer from the west

Lillehammer is located to the south of the municipality of Øyer, to the southeast of Gausdal, northeast of Nordre Land, and to the north of Gjøvik, all in Oppland county. To the southeast, it is bordered by Ringsaker municipality in Hedmark county. Lillehammer has a relatively dry inland climate. To the northwest is the mountain Spåtind.

Climate

Climate data for Lillehammer
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) -6
(21)		 -4
(25)		 1
(34)		 6
(43)		 13
(55)		 18
(64)		 19
(66)		 17
(63)		 12
(54)		 7
(45)		 0
(32)		 -4
(25)		 7
(45)
Daily mean °C (°F) -9
(16)		 -7.5
(18.5)		 -3.5
(25.7)		 1.5
(34.7)		 8
(46)		 13
(55)		 14
(57)		 12.5
(54.5)		 8
(46)		 4
(39)		 -3
(27)		 -7
(19)		 4.3
(39.7)
Average low °C (°F) -12
(10)		 -11
(12)		 -8
(18)		 -3
(27)		 3
(37)		 8
(46)		 9
(48)		 8
(46)		 4
(39)		 1
(34)		 -6
(21)		 -10
(14)		 -1.5
(29.3)
Precipitation mm (inches) 46
(1.81)		 35
(1.38)		 40
(1.57)		 37
(1.46)		 58
(2.28)		 77
(3.03)		 89
(3.5)		 90
(3.54)		 86
(3.39)		 85
(3.35)		 68
(2.68)		 50
(1.97)		 761
(29.96)
Avg. precipitation days 16 13 13 11 14 16 18 17 16 16 16 16 182
Source: World Weather Information Service[6]

Economy

The basis for the city's commerce is its position as the northernmost point of the lake Mjøsa and as the gateway for the Gudbrandsdal region, through which the historical highway to Trondheim passes. The Mesna river has provided the basis for several small industries through the years, but Lillehammer is now all but industry-less.

Transport

One of the major Norwegian rail lines, the Dovrebanen, runs from Hamar to the north through Lillehammer on its way up the Gudbrandsdal, to terminate in Trondheim.

European route E6 passes through Lillehammer.

Attractions

Lillehammer Church

In addition to the Olympic site, Lillehammer offers a number of other tourist attractions:

Sport

Sportclubs in Lillehammer

Notable residents

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

The following cities are twinned with Lillehammer:[7]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Personnemningar til stadnamn i Noreg" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet. http://www.sprakrad.no/Sprakhjelp/Rettskriving_Ordboeker/Innbyggjarnamn. 
  2. ↑ "Urban settlements. Population and area, by municipality. 1 January 2009". Statistics Norway. http://www.ssb.no/beftett_en/tab-2009-06-16-01-en.html. Retrieved 2010-02-20. 
  3. ↑ Rygh, Oluf (1900). Norske gaardnavne: Kristians amt (4 ed.). Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. pp. 219. http://books.google.com/books?id=DohBAAAAIAAJ.  (Norwegian)
  4. ↑ "Lillehammers historie". Lillehammer kommune. http://www.lillehammer.kommune.no/omkommunen/34585/27077:. Retrieved 2009-01-04.  (Norwegian)
  5. ↑ "Historiske Linjer". National Archives of Norway. http://www.arkivverket.no/webfelles/kommunevaapen/h_linjer.html. Retrieved 2009-01-04.  (Norwegian)
  6. ↑ "Weather Information for Lillehammer". World Weather Information Service. http://www.weather2travel.com/climate-guides/index.php?destination=lillehammer. Retrieved 19 September 2009. 
  7. ↑ "Lillehammers vennskapsbyer" (Microsoft Word). Lillehammer kommune. http://www.lillehammer.kommune.no/files/71639/. Retrieved 2009-01-04.  (Norwegian)

External links

Municipalities of Oppland
Dovre · Etnedal · Gausdal · Gjøvik · Gran · Jevnaker · Lesja · Lillehammer · Lom · Lunner · Nord-Aurdal · Nord-Fron · Nordre Land · Østre Toten · Øyer · Øystre Slidre · Ringebu · Sel · Skjåk · Søndre Land · Sør-Aurdal · Sør-Fron · Vågå · Vang · Vestre Slidre · Vestre Toten
Winter Olympic Games host cities

1924: Chamonix • 1928: St. Moritz • 1932: Lake Placid • 1936: Garmisch-Partenkirchen • 1940 & 1944: No games due to World War II • 1948: St. Moritz • 1952: Oslo • 1956: Cortina d'Ampezzo • 1960: Squaw Valley • 1964: Innsbruck • 1968: Grenoble • 1972: Sapporo • 1976: Innsbruck • 1980: Lake Placid • 1984: Sarajevo • 1988: Calgary • 1992: Albertville • 1994: Lillehammer • 1998: Nagano • 2002: Salt Lake City • 2006: Turin • 2010: Vancouver • 2014: Sochi • 2018: TBA
Winter Paralympic Games host cities

1976: Örnsköldsvik • 1980: Geilo • 1984: Innsbruck • 1988: Innsbruck • 1992: Albertville • 1994: Lillehammer • 1998: Nagano • 2002: Salt Lake City • 2006: Turin • 2010: Vancouver • 2014: Sochi
40 most populous urban settlements (cities) of Norway
as of 2009, according to Statistics Norway [1]
1. Oslo 876,400
2. Bergen 227,800
3. Stavanger / Sandnes 189,800
4. Trondheim 157,100
5. Fredrikstad / S'borg1 101,700
6. Drammen 96,600
7. Skien / Porsgrunn 86,900
8. Kristiansand 67,500
9. Tromsø 55,100
10. Tønsberg 47,500
11. Ålesund 46,500
12. Haugesund 42,900
13. Moss 41,700
14. Sandefjord 40,800
15. Bodø 36,500
16. Arendal 32,400
17. Hamar 30,000
18. Larvik 23,900
19. Halden 23,000
20. Lillehammer 20,100
21. Harstad 19,500
22. Molde 19,400
23. Kongsberg 18,800
24. Gjøvik 18,700
25. Askøy 18,300
26. Horten 18,200
27. Mo i Rana 17,900
28. Kristiansund 17,000
29. Jessheim 15,300
30. Hønefoss 14,300
31. Narvik 13,900
32. Alta 13,600
33. Elverum 13,500
34. Askim 13,100
35. Ski 12,900
36. Drøbak 12,400
37. Nesoddtangen 11,600
38. Steinkjer 11,500
39. Leirvik 11,400
40. Vennesla 11,400
41. Kongsvinger 11,400
42. Stjørdalshalsen 10,800
1 Sarpsborg.