| Talvik | |
| Herred: | yes |
| Former: | yes |
| Former Name: | Talvig herred |
| Idnumber: | 2013 |
| County: | Finnmark |
| District: | Vest-Finnmark |
| Capital: | Talvik |
| Established: | 1863 |
| Preceded: | Alten-Talvig Municipality |
| Disestablished: | 1 Jan 1964 |
| Demonym: | Talvikværing Taviking |
| Language: | Neutral[1] |
| Mayor: | Thorleif Johansen |
| Mayor Party: | Ap |
| Mayor As Of: | 1959-1963 |
| Elevation Max M: | 1149 |
| Highest Point Ref: | [2] |
| Area Rank: | 36 |
| Area Total Km2: | 1650 |
| Population As Of: | 1963 |
| Population Rank: | 268 |
| Population Total: | 3378 |
| Population Density Km2: | 2 |
| Coordinates: | 70.0422°N 22.9497°W |
Talvik or Talvig is a former municipality in Finnmark county, Norway. The 1650km2 municipality existed for 101 years, from 1863 until its dissolution in 1964. The municipality included all the coastal areas in the outer Altafjorden in the northern part of what is now Alta Municipality. The administrative centre was the village of Talvik where the Talvik Church is located. Other notable villages in the municipality included Komagfjord, Langenes, Langfjordbotn, and Leirbotn.[3]
Prior to its dissolution in 1964, the 1650km2 municipality was the 36th largest by area out of the 689 municipalities in Norway. Talvik Municipality was the 268th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 3,378 (in 1963). The municipality's population density was .[4] [5]
The municipality was established in 1863, when the large Alten-Talvig Municipality was dissolved and it was divided into two separate municipalities: Talvik Municipality (population: 1,938) in the north and Alta Municipality (population: 2,442) in the south. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, the neighboring municipalities of Talvik (population: 3,266) and Alta (population: 6,629) were merged to form a new, larger Alta Municipality.[6]
The municipality is named after the old Talvik farm since the first Talvik Church was built there. The first element of the name is rather uncertain. If the first element was of Old Norse origin then it is derived from the word Norse, Old: Þelli which means "pine" (due to the large number of pine trees in the area). The other explanation is that it is a corruption of the Northern Sami word Northern Sami: Dálbme or the longer name Northern Sami: Dálbmeluokta which translates as "fog" or "fog bay". The early Norwegian settlers would have translated that as Norwegian: tåkebukta (meaning "fog bay") and this could have been corrupted from to . The last element of the name is which means "inlet" or "cove". Historically, the name was spelled Talvig using the old Danish spelling, and later it was "Norwegianized" to Talvik.[7]
The Church of Norway had one parish (Norwegian: sokn) within the municipality of Talvik. It was part of the Talvik prestegjeld and the Alta prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nord-Hålogaland.
| Talvik | Talvik Church | Talvik | 1883 | |
| Komagfjord Chapel | Komagfjord | 1960 | ||
| Langfjord Chapel | Langfjordbotn | 1891 | ||
| Leirbotn Chapel | Leirbotn | 1935* | ||
The municipality was located along the outer Altafjorden. The municipality also included the southern parts of the islands of Seiland and Stjernøya. The highest point was the 1149m (3,770feet) tall mountain Store Haldi, located on the border with Alta Municipality to the south.
While it existed, Talvik 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.[8] The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.
The mayors (Norwegian: ordfører) of Talvik (incomplete list):[9]
The municipal council Norwegian: (Herredsstyre) of Talvik was made up of 21 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.
. Norges Sivile, Geistlige, Rettslige og Militære Inndeling 1. Januar 1951 . 1951-01-01 . H. Aschehoug & Co. . Norges Offisielle Statistikk . Oslo, Norge . no . PDF . Statistics Norway.
. Norske gaardnavne: Finmarkens amt . 1924 . W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri . 18 . Kristiania, Norge . 49–50 . no . Oluf Rygh.