| Snåsa | |
| Native Name: | Southern Sami: Snåasen tjïelte |
| Former Name: | Snaasen herred |
| Idnumber: | 5041 |
| County: | Trøndelag |
| District: | Innherad |
| Capital: | Snåsa |
| Established: | 1 Jan 1838 |
| Preceded: | none |
| Demonym: | Snåsning |
| Language: | Neutral |
| Sami Language: | Southern Sami |
| Webpage: | www.snasa.kommune.no |
| Mayor: | Arnt Einar Bardal |
| Mayor Party: | Sp |
| Mayor As Of: | 2019 |
| Area Rank: | 23 |
| Area Total Km2: | 2342.66 |
| Area Land Km2: | 2145.71 |
| Area Water Km2: | 196.95 |
| Area Water Percent: | 8.4 |
| Population As Of: | 2023 |
| Population Rank: | 277 |
| Population Total: | 2021 |
| Population Density Km2: | 0.9 |
| Population Increase: | -6.2 |
| Coordinates: | 64.2244°N 12.6253°W |
| Utm Zone: | 33W |
| Utm Northing: | 7124200 |
| Utm Easting: | 0384808 |
| Geo Cat: | adm2nd |
Snåsa (pronounced as /no-NO-03/; Southern Sami: Snåase) is a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Innherred region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Snåsa. Other villages include Agle and Jørstad.
Snåsa is one of the last strongholds for the seriously endangered Southern Sami language.
The 2343km2 municipality is the 23rd largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Snåsa is the 277th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 2,021 inhabitants. The municipality's population density is and its population has decreased by 6.2% over the previous 10-year period.[1] [2]
The parish of Snåsa was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838. On 1 January 1874, the eastern district of Snåsa (population: 1,015) was separated to form a new, separate municipality of Lierne. This left Snåsa with 2,235 residents. Snåsa's boundaries have not changed since then.[3]
On 1 January 2018, the municipality switched from the old Nord-Trøndelag county to the new Trøndelag county.
The municipality (originally the parish) was named Snåsa (Norse, Old: Snǫs). The name is derived from the word which means "prominent mountain" or "overhanging rock" (possibly referring to the mountain of Bergsåsen, at the inner end of the lake Snåsavatnet).[4] Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Snaasen. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Snaasa.[5] On 21 December 1917, a royal resolution enacted the 1917 Norwegian language reforms. Prior to this change, the name was spelled Snaasa with the digraph "aa", and after this reform, the name was spelled Snåsa, using the letter å instead.[6] [7]
On 24 September 2010, the national government approved a resolution to add a co-equal, official Southern Sami language name for the municipality: Southern Sami: Snåase.[8] The spelling of the Sami language name changes depending on how it is used. It is called Southern Sami: Snåase when it is spelled alone, but it is Southern Sami: Snåasen tjïelte when using the Sami language equivalent to "Snåsa municipality".[9]
The coat of arms was granted on 17 March 1994. The official blazon is "Azure, a lady's-slipper orchid Or." (Norwegian: I blått en gull marisko). This means the arms have a blue field (background) and the charge is a lady's-slipper orchid (Cypripedium calceolus). The lady's-slipper orchid has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. The design was chosen to symbolize the prevalence of orchids growing in the municipality. This particular flower is one of at least 15 species of orchids that grow in Snåsa. The arms were designed by Even Jarl Skoglund. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.[10] [11] [12] [13]
The Church of Norway has one parish (Norwegian: sokn) within the municipality of Snåsa. It is part of the Nord-Innherad prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nidaros.
| Snåsa | Snåsa Church | Snåsa | 1200 |
Snåsa is located about northeast of the city of Trondheim, and it borders Sweden to the southeast. Snåsa borders the municipalities of Overhalla, Grong, and Lierne in the north and east, and Steinkjer and Verdal in the west and south. The 6th largest lake in the country, Snåsavatnet, is partly located in the municipality. Other lakes include Andorsjøen, Bangsjøene, Grøningen, Holderen, and Store Øyingen. The Blåfjella–Skjækerfjella National Park covers a lot of the eastern part of the municipality.
Snåsa Municipality is responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor is indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.[14] The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Trøndelag District Court and the Frostating Court of Appeal.
The municipal council (Norwegian: Kommunestyre) of Snåsa is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.
The mayors (Norwegian: ordfører) of Snåsa:[15] [16]
The European route E6 highway runs through the municipality on the north side of the Snåsavatnet lake and the Nordland Line runs along the south side of the lake. The train stops at Jørstad Station and Snåsa Station.
. Norske gaardnavne: Nordre Trondhjems amt . 1903 . W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri . 15 . Kristiania, Norge . 273 . no . Oluf Rygh.