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Flora, Norway

Flora kommune
Municipality
Floro.jpg
Coat of arms of Flora kommune
Coat of arms
Official logo of Flora kommune
Sogn og Fjordane within
Norway
Flora within Sogn og Fjordane
Flora within Sogn og Fjordane
Coordinates: 61°35′15″N 05°16′38″E / 61.58750°N 5.27722°E / 61.58750; 5.27722Coordinates: 61°35′15″N 05°16′38″E / 61.58750°N 5.27722°E / 61.58750; 5.27722
Country Norway
County Sogn og Fjordane
District Sunnfjord
Administrative centre Florø
Government
 • Mayor (2011) Bengt Solheim-Olsen (H)
Area
 • Total 693.28 km2 (267.68 sq mi)
 • Land 647.73 km2 (250.09 sq mi)
 • Water 45.55 km2 (17.59 sq mi)
Area rank 161 in Norway
Population (2013)
 • Total 11,697
 • Rank 94 in Norway
 • Density 18.1/km2 (47/sq mi)
 • Change (10 years) 2.7 %
Demonym(s) Floraværing
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
ISO 3166 code NO-1401
Official language form Nynorsk
Website www.flora.kommune.no
Data from Statistics Norway

Flora is a municipality in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative centre is the town of Florø, which was founded in 1860, has 8,642 inhabitants (2012). The Eikefjord area, which is the second largest settlement in Flora, has about 1000 inhabitants. Other village areas in the municipality include Rognaldsvåg, Stavang, Grov, Norddalsfjord, Nyttingnes, Steinhovden, and Brandsøy.

The municipality stretches from inner fjords where the mountains ascend to the Ålfotbreen glacier, to the outermost islands off the mainland coast. The town is today both a charming little community, and at the same time a town with busy industries that are developing continuously. Trade and industry in Flora is mainly fishing industry, shipyards, and supply for the oil and gas industry in the North Sea.

The municipality is named after the farm Flora (Old Norse Flóra) since the town of Florø was built on its ground in 1860. The name is probably derived from a Germanic root meaning “flat” or “even” (cf. English floor). Flora itself is the accusative/dative case form of “Flore” (Old Norse Flóri), from which the names Florø and Florelandet are derived. A common misunderstanding is that the name Florø is the Danish word ø (“island”) suffixed to Flora. Although not true, it almost lead to the town being renamed “Florøy” in the 1930s.


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Wikipedia

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