Sortland Municipality

Sortland Municipality
Sortland kommune
Suorttá suohkan
View of Sortland from Strandheia mountain
View of Sortland from Strandheia mountain
Flag of Sortland Municipality
Coat of arms of Sortland Municipality
Nordland within Norway
Nordland within Norway
Sortland within Nordland
Sortland within Nordland
Coordinates: 68°42′31″N 15°16′51″E / 68.70861°N 15.28083°E / 68.70861; 15.28083
CountryNorway
CountyNordland
DistrictVesterålen
Established1841
 • Preceded byHadsel Municipality
Administrative centreSortland
Government
 • Mayor (2023)Grete Ellingsen (H)
Area
 • Total721.94 km2 (278.74 sq mi)
 • Land697.34 km2 (269.24 sq mi)
 • Water24.60 km2 (9.50 sq mi)  3.4%
 • Rank#159 in Norway
Highest elevation1,261.76 m (4,139.63 ft)
Population
 (2024)
 • Total10,618
 • Rank#109 in Norway
 • Density14.7/km2 (38/sq mi)
 • Change (10 years)
Increase +4.8%
DemonymSortlending[2]
Official language
 • Norwegian formNeutral
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeNO-1870[4]
WebsiteOfficial website

Sortland (Norwegian) or Suortá (Northern Sami)[5] is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sortland. Other population centres in Sortland include the villages of , Holand, Holmstad, Liland, Sigerfjord, Strand, and Vik. The Norwegian Coast Guard has its northern base in Sortland, called Kystvaktskvadron Nord.

In 1997, the municipal council declared "town status" for the urban area of Sortland. Sortland is the largest town and commercial centre in Vesterålen. The town of Sortland is located close to the Sortland Bridge which crosses the Sortlandsundet strait and connects the two large islands of Langøya and Hinnøya by road. Since a lot of houses in the town are painted blue, Sortland is sometimes referred to as "the blue city".

The 722-square-kilometre (279 sq mi) municipality is the 159th largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Sortland is the 109th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 10,618. The municipality's population density is 14.7 inhabitants per square kilometre (38/sq mi) and its population has increased by 4.8% over the previous 10-year period.[6][7] In January 2012, the number of citizens in Sortland reached 10,000 for the first time.[8]

  1. ^ "Høgaste fjelltopp i kvar kommune" (in Norwegian). Kartverket. 16 January 2024.
  2. ^ "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet.
  3. ^ "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no.
  4. ^ Bolstad, Erik; Thorsnæs, Geir, eds. (26 January 2023). "Kommunenummer". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget.
  5. ^ "Stadnamn og rettskriving" (in Norwegian). Kartverket. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
  6. ^ Statistisk sentralbyrå. "Table: 06913: Population 1 January and population changes during the calendar year (M)" (in Norwegian).
  7. ^ Statistisk sentralbyrå. "09280: Area of land and fresh water (km²) (M)" (in Norwegian).
  8. ^ "Nyttårs-sortlending blir nr. 10.000" (in Norwegian). Bladet Vesterålen. 23 December 2011.