Kviteseid
Kviteseid is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the traditional districts of Vest-Telemark and Upper Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Kviteseidbyen. Other villages in Kviteseid include Åsgrend, Brunkeberg, Eidstod, Fjågesund, Kilen, Morgedal, and Vrådal.
Kviteseid Municipality
Kviteseid kommune | |
|---|---|
Municipality | |
| Hviteseid herred (historic name) | |
|
Flag | |
Telemark within Norway | |
Kviteseid within Telemark | |
| Coordinates: 59°23′54″N 8°29′42″E | |
| Country | Norway |
| County | Telemark |
| District | Vest-Telemark |
| Established | 1 Jan 1838 |
| • Created as | Formannskapsdistrikt |
| Administrative centre | Kviteseidbyen |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2023) | Tarjei Draugedal (KrF) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 708.48 km2 (273.55 sq mi) |
| • Land | 623.06 km2 (240.56 sq mi) |
| • Water | 85.42 km2 (32.98 sq mi) 12.1% |
| • Rank | #163 in Norway |
| Population (2023) | |
| • Total | 2,427 |
| • Rank | #258 in Norway |
| • Density | 3.9/km2 (10/sq mi) |
| • Change (10 years) | −3.2% |
| Demonym | Kvitseiding |
| Official language | |
| • Norwegian form | Nynorsk |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| ISO 3166 code | NO-4028 |
| Website | Official website |
The 708-square-kilometre (273 sq mi) municipality is the 163rd largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Kviteseid is the 258th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 2,427. The municipality's population density is 3.9 inhabitants per square kilometre (10/sq mi) and its population has decreased by 3.2% over the previous 10-year period.
Kviteseid Seminar was the first public teacher training school in Norway which started in 1819 and was in operation until 1889. Kviteseid Library (Kviteseid Folkebibliotek) was founded in 1895. The library was first based on a book collection from Kviteseid Seminar. The main industries of the municipality are forestry, agriculture, tourism, and hydroelectric power. The Telemark Canal goes through Kviteseid. There are also several ski resorts in Kviteseid.
The little village of Morgedal is located in northern Kviteseid. It is known as the "Cradle of Modern Skiing" ("Skisportens vugge") and the home of Sondre Norheim. Here, the Olympic Flame was lit for the 1952 Winter Olympics in Oslo, 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, and 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer.