Sandefjord

This article is about the municipality in Norway. For the city within Sandefjord Municipality, see Sandefjord (town). For other uses, see Sandefjord (disambiguation).
Sandefjord Municipality
Sandefjord kommune
Municipality
Sandefjord town centre during winter, 2019
Sandefjord town centre during winter, 2019
Flag of Sandefjord Municipality
Flag
Coat of arms of Sandefjord Municipality
Coat of arms
Vestfold within Norway
Vestfold within Norway
Sandefjord within Vestfold
Sandefjord within Vestfold
Coordinates: 59°7′50″N 10°13′00″E / 59.13056°N 10.21667°E / 59.13056; 10.21667
CountryNorway
CountyVestfold
Established1 Jan 1838
 • Created asFormannskapsdistrikt
Administrative centreSandefjord
Government
 • Mayor (2003)Bjørn Ole Gleditsch (H)
Area
 • Total
422.28 km2 (163.04 sq mi)
 • Land414.26 km2 (159.95 sq mi)
 • Water8.0 km2 (3.1 sq mi)  1.9%
 • Rank#233 in Norway
Population
 (2023)
 • Total
65,574
 • Rank#14 in Norway
 • Density158.3/km2 (410/sq mi)
 • Change (10 years)
Increase +6.5%
DemonymSandefjording[1]
Official language
[2]
 • Norwegian formBokmål
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeNO-3907[3]
WebsiteOfficial website
Data from Statistics Norway

Sandefjord (Norwegian pronunciation: [ˈsɑ̂nːəfjuːr] ⓘ) is a municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Vestfold. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Sandefjord. Other population centres in Sandefjord include Andebu, Fevang, Fokserød, Fossnes, Freberg, Hafallen, Helgerød, Himberg, Høyjord, Kodal, Lahelle, Melsomvik, Råstad, Solløkka, Stokke, Storevar, Strand, and Unneberg.

The 422-square-kilometre (163 sq mi) municipality is the 233rd largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Sandefjord is the most populous municipality in Vestfold and the 14th most populous municipality in Norway, with a population of 65,574. The municipality's population density is 158.3 inhabitants per square kilometre (410/sq mi) and its population has increased by 6.5% over the previous 10-year period.[4][5]

Sandefjord is known for its rich Viking history and the prosperous whaling industry, which made Sandefjord the richest city in Norway.[6] Today, it has built up the third-largest merchant fleet in Norway.[7] Sandefjord Museum is the only museum in Europe dedicated to whaling, and is home to Gokstad Mound where the 9th-century Gokstad Ship was discovered.

Sandefjord has numerous nicknames, including the whaling "capital" of Norway or as the undisputed summer city of Norway.[8][9] Sandefjord is also known as the "whaling capital of the world."[10][11][12]: F-7 [13]: 81  It has also been dubbed the "Bathing City" (Badebyen), due to its many beaches and former resort spas.[12]: 73  It is still considered a resort town, due to high numbers of visitors during summer months.[14]

Sandefjord has become a transportation hub, home of Torp Airport, one of Norway's largest airports. Daily ferry connections to Sweden are provided by Color Line from the city harbor. European Route E18, one of Norway's main north–south highways, traverses the municipality.

Sandefjord is a stronghold for the Conservative Party;[15][16][17] the Conservative coalition received over 70 percent of votes cast in 2011. Current mayor is Bjørn Ole Gleditsch from the Conservative Party, who has been mayor since 2004.

  1. ^ "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet.
  2. ^ "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no.
  3. ^ Bolstad, Erik; Thorsnæs, Geir, eds. (26 January 2023). "Kommunenummer". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget.
  4. ^ Statistisk sentralbyrå. "Table: 06913: Population 1 January and population changes during the calendar year (M)" (in Norwegian).
  5. ^ Statistisk sentralbyrå. "09280: Area of land and fresh water (km²) (M)" (in Norwegian).
  6. ^ Porter, Darwin; Prince, Danforth (2003). Frommer's Norway. Wiley. p. 158. ISBN 9780764524677.
  7. ^ "Things to Do in Sandefjord – Frommer's". Frommers.com. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
  8. ^ "Three shot in Sandefjord". Newsinenglish.no. 14 January 2011. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
  9. ^ "The Viking trail through Vestfold, Norway" (PDF). Destinationviking.no. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
  10. ^ Engel, Lyle Kenyon (1963). Scandinavia: A Simon & Schuster Travel Guide. Cornerstone Library. p. 145.
  11. ^ Ryder, Simon; Duffy, Cameron (2018). Insight Guides Norway. Insight Guides. p. 163. ISBN 9781786717580.
  12. ^ a b Alspaugh, Emmanuelle (2006). Fodor's Norway. Fodor's Travel Publications. ISBN 9781400016143.
  13. ^ Bertelsen, Hans Kristian (1985). Sandefjord: A modern city with vast potential. Grafisk Studio. ISBN 8290636008.
  14. ^ Berman, Martha (1995). Fielding's Scandinavia. Fielding Worldwide. p. 240. ISBN 9781569520499.
  15. ^ "Høyre vant valget i Sandefjord". Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (in Norwegian). 15 September 2015. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
  16. ^ "Mørkeblått flertall i 61 kommuner". Kommunal-rapport.no (in Norwegian). 11 May 2011. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
  17. ^ "Karakterer". Klassekampen (in Norwegian). Retrieved 28 December 2017.