Orkanger is village and former municipality in Sør-Trøndelag

Sør-Trøndelag

- References :...

 county, Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. It is located in the present-day municipality of Orkdal

Orkdal

Orkdal is a municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Orkdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Orkanger. Other villages in the municipality include Kjøra, Geitastrand, Gjølme, Thamshavn, Fannrem, Vormstad, Svorkmo, and...

 at the end of the Orkdalsfjorden, and arm of the Trondheimsfjord

Trondheimsfjord

The Trondheimsfjord , an inlet of the Norwegian Sea, is Norway's third longest fjord at long. It is located in the west central part of the country, and it stretches from Ørland in west to Steinkjer in north, passing the city of Trondheim on its way...

. Orkanger is the administrative and commercial centre of the municipality of Orkdal

Orkdal

Orkdal is a municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Orkdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Orkanger. Other villages in the municipality include Kjøra, Geitastrand, Gjølme, Thamshavn, Fannrem, Vormstad, Svorkmo, and...

. Orkanger Church

Orkanger Church

Orkanger Church is a parish church in the municipality of Orkdal in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The church is located in the municipal center, Orkanger, near the Trondheimsfjord....

 is located here.

Combined with Fannrem

Fannrem

Fannrem is village in the municipality of Orkdal in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The village is located along the Orkla River about south of Orkanger, Thamshavn, and Gjølme, and about north of Vormstad....

, the conurbation

Conurbation

A conurbation is a region comprising a number of cities, large towns, and other urban areas that, through population growth and physical expansion, have merged to form one continuous urban and industrially developed area...

 constitutes the second largest urban area in Sør-Trøndelag

Sør-Trøndelag

- References :...

 county after the city of Trondheim

Trondheim

Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...

, the county capital. The 5.72 square kilometres (2.2 sq mi) area has a population (2009) of 6,982.

Just north of Orkanger lies the port

Port

A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....

 of Thamshavn

Thamshavn

Thamshavn is a small port village in the municipality of Orkdal in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is the site of the port for Orkanger and the ferrosilicon plant Elkem Thamshavn...

. Until 1974, Orkanger had a station on the Thamshavn Line railway with the Thamshavn Station

Thamshavn Station

Thamshavn Station is a former railway station on the Thamshavn Line, located at Thamshavn, a port area just northeast of Orkanger in the municipality of Orkdal in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located along the present day European route E39 highway....

 just north of the village. Between 1908 and 1949 there was a steam ship service to Trondheim on the SS Orkla

SS Orkla

A number of steamships have been named Orkla, including -, a Norwegian ship in service 1908-39, a Norwegian cargo ship in service 1953-57...

.

History

The municipality of Orkanger was established on 1 July 1920 when it was separated from Orkdal

Orkdal

Orkdal is a municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Orkdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Orkanger. Other villages in the municipality include Kjøra, Geitastrand, Gjølme, Thamshavn, Fannrem, Vormstad, Svorkmo, and...

. Initially, it had a population of 1,715. The municipality encompassed the urban area and the surrounding countryside. The municipality encompassed 7 square kilometres (2.7 sq mi). On 1 January 1963, the municipality of Orkanger ceased to exist and it was merged into the larger municipality of Orkdal

Orkdal

Orkdal is a municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Orkdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Orkanger. Other villages in the municipality include Kjøra, Geitastrand, Gjølme, Thamshavn, Fannrem, Vormstad, Svorkmo, and...

. Prior to the merger, Orkanger had 2,874 residents.

Name

The name "Orkanger" is composed of the name "Ork", which stems from the lake Orkelsjøen from which the river Orkla

Orkla River

The Orkla River is the longest river in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The long river follows the Orkdalen valley, discharging into the Orkdalsfjord, an arm of the Trondheimsfjord, at the village of Orkanger....

 runs. The second element of the name (Old Norse

Old Norse

Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....

: angr) means "narrow fjord

Fjord

Geologically, a fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created in a valley carved by glacial activity.-Formation:A fjord is formed when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley by abrasion of the surrounding bedrock. Glacial melting is accompanied by rebound of Earth's crust as the ice...

".