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Sandnes

Sandnes

Overview
is a city and municipality
Municipalities of Norway
|Norway is divided into 19 administrative regions, called counties , and 430 municipalities...

 in Rogaland
Rogaland
is a county in Norway, bordering Hordaland, Telemark, Aust-Agder and Vest-Agder. It is the center of the Norwegian petroleum-industry, and as a result of this, Rogaland has the lowest unemployment rate of any county in Norway, 1.1%.-Etymology:...

 county
Counties of Norway
||-|Norway is divided into 19 administrative regions, called counties . The counties form the primary first-level subdivisions of Norway and are further divided into 431 municipalities...

, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a country in Northern Europe occupying the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, as well as Jan Mayen and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard under the Spitsbergen Treaty...

. It is part of the region of Jæren
Jæren
Jæren is a traditional district stretching across some 65 kilometers on the southwestern coast of Norway. It is located south of Boknafjorden and northwest of Dalane in the county of Rogaland. It has a geographical size of 1,070 km², and the population is about 260,000. Jæren is often separated...

.

Sandnes was separated from Høyland
Høyland
Høyland is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway.The parish of Høiland was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 . According to the 1835 census the municipality had a population of 2,286. On 6 April 1861 the city Sandnes was separated from Høyland to contstitute a municipality of...

 as a municipality of its own in 1860, and gained city status the same year. On 1 January 1965, the rural municipalities of Høyland and Høle
Høle
Høle is a village and former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway.The municipality was separated from Strand as Høgsfjord formannskapsdistrikt in 1842. On 1 January 1871 the district Forsand was divided from Høgsfjord to form a municipality of its own...

, as well as parts of Hetland
Hetland
Hetland is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway.It was created as Hetland formannskapsdistrikt in 1837. On 1 July 1922, Randaberg was separated from Hetland to create a municipality of its own. The split left Hetland with a population of 10,167...

, were merged with Sandnes.

The city is named after an old farm ("Sandnæs" 1723), since the city was built on its ground.
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Encyclopedia
is a city and municipality
Municipalities of Norway
|Norway is divided into 19 administrative regions, called counties , and 430 municipalities...

 in Rogaland
Rogaland
is a county in Norway, bordering Hordaland, Telemark, Aust-Agder and Vest-Agder. It is the center of the Norwegian petroleum-industry, and as a result of this, Rogaland has the lowest unemployment rate of any county in Norway, 1.1%.-Etymology:...

 county
Counties of Norway
||-|Norway is divided into 19 administrative regions, called counties . The counties form the primary first-level subdivisions of Norway and are further divided into 431 municipalities...

, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a country in Northern Europe occupying the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, as well as Jan Mayen and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard under the Spitsbergen Treaty...

. It is part of the region of Jæren
Jæren
Jæren is a traditional district stretching across some 65 kilometers on the southwestern coast of Norway. It is located south of Boknafjorden and northwest of Dalane in the county of Rogaland. It has a geographical size of 1,070 km², and the population is about 260,000. Jæren is often separated...

.

History


Sandnes was separated from Høyland
Høyland
Høyland is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway.The parish of Høiland was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 . According to the 1835 census the municipality had a population of 2,286. On 6 April 1861 the city Sandnes was separated from Høyland to contstitute a municipality of...

 as a municipality of its own in 1860, and gained city status the same year. On 1 January 1965, the rural municipalities of Høyland and Høle
Høle
Høle is a village and former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway.The municipality was separated from Strand as Høgsfjord formannskapsdistrikt in 1842. On 1 January 1871 the district Forsand was divided from Høgsfjord to form a municipality of its own...

, as well as parts of Hetland
Hetland
Hetland is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway.It was created as Hetland formannskapsdistrikt in 1837. On 1 July 1922, Randaberg was separated from Hetland to create a municipality of its own. The split left Hetland with a population of 10,167...

, were merged with Sandnes.

Name


The city is named after an old farm ("Sandnæs" 1723), since the city was built on its ground. The first element is sand which means "sand
Sand
Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.As the term is used by geologists, sand particles range in diameter from 0.0625 to 2 millimeters. An individual particle in this range size is termed a sand grain...

" or "sandy beach
Beach
A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of a body of water. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, or cobblestones...

", the last element is nes which means "headland
Headland
A headland is land surrounded by water on three sides.Headland can also refer to:*Headlands and bays*headLand, an Australian television series*Headland , the area at each end of a planted field used for turning farm machinery...

".

Coat-of-arms


The coat-of-arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms, more properly called an armorial achievement, armorial bearings or often just arms for short, in European tradition, is a design belonging to a particular person and used by them in a wide variety of ways. Historically, they were used by knights to identify them apart from enemy...

 was granted on 21 April 1972. The arms show a piece of pottery
Pottery
Pottery is the ceramic ware made by potters. Major types of pottery include earthenware, stoneware, and porcelain. The places where such wares are made are called potteries. Pottery is one of the oldest human technologies and art-forms, and remains a major industry today...

, as pottery was one of the main industries in the late 18th century. The symbol is a leirgauk, which in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that developed in England during the Anglo-Saxon era. As a result of the military, economic, scientific, political, and cultural influence of the British Empire during the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries, and of the United States since the mid 20th century,...

 would be a ceramic
Ceramic
A ceramic is an inorganic, non-metallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...

 cuckoo
Cuckoo
The cuckoos are a family, Cuculidae, of near passerine birds. The order Cuculiformes, in addition to the cuckoos, also includes the turacos . Some zoologists and taxonomists have also included the unique Hoatzin in the Cuculiformes, but its taxonomy remains in dispute...

-bird
Bird
Birds are winged, bipedal, endothermic , vertebrate animals that lay eggs. There are around 10,000 living species, making them the most numerous tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Birds range in size from the Bee Hummingbird to the ...

 (leir(e)= clay
Clay
Clay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained minerals, which show plasticity through a variable range of water content, and which can be hardened when dried and/or fired...

/ceramic and gauk/gjök = cuckoo-bird). The ceramic Sandnes-cuckoo is an ocarina
Ocarina
The ocarina is an ancient flute-like wind instrument. While several variations exist, an ocarina is typified by an oval-shaped enclosed space with four to twelve finger holes and a mouth tube projecting out from the body...

 or simple flute which was made by the potteries in Sandnes and used to advertise their products. Later it also became a nickname for people from Sandnes.

Geography


The city of Sandnes is located about south of Stavanger
Stavanger
is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway. Stavanger was established as a municipality 1 January 1838...

, and these two cities have expanded so as to form a conurbation
Conurbation
A conurbation is an urban area or agglomeration comprising a number of cities, large towns and larger urban areas that, through population growth and physical expansion, have merged to form one continuous urban and industrially developed area...

. The municipality of Sola
Sola
Sola is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is part of the region of Jæren. The old municipality of Håland was divided into Sola and Madla in 1930....

 is located to the west, Klepp
Klepp
Klepp is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The parish of Klep was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 ....

 and Time
Time, Norway
Time is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is part of the region of Jæren. The administrative centre of Time is the town of Bryne.-Name:...

 to the south, and Gjesdal
Gjesdal
Gjesdal is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. In the north west the municipality borders Sandnes, to the north Forsand, to the east Sirdal, to the south Bjerkreim, and to the west Time....

 and Forsand
Forsand
Forsand is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. Forsand was separated from Høle on 1 January 1871. In 1999, evidence of a population here dating back to around 7500 BC was located....

 to the east. The fjord
Fjord
Geologically, a fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides, created in a valley carved by glacial activity.-Formation:Fjords are formed when a glacier cuts a v-shaped valley by abrasion of the surrounding bedrock. Many such valleys were formed during the recent ice age...

 Gandsfjord
Gandsfjord
Gandsfjord is a fjord in Rogaland, Norway connected to Boknafjord and adjacent to the cities Stavanger and Sandnes....

en is situated north-south and ends in the centre of Sandnes. The international airport of Stavanger is situated in Sola.

Sandnes's districts are Lura, Trones, Stangeland, Soma, Malmheim, Sandved, Ganddal, Figgjo, Austrått, Sviland, Hana (includes Aspervika and Dale), Høle, Riska.

The landscape of the Stavanger and Sandnes region is quite flat. On the long west coast there are several beaches and further inland the land is raised to form low plains with some small peaks rising up to above sea level. From Stavanger and Sandnes it is approximately one hour by car to alpine and skiing resorts. In Sandnes there are some easily accessible small mountain peaks, such as dalsnuten and Dale, with a view over the Sandnes/Stavanger area. The renowned Lysefjord
Lysefjord
Lysefjord is a fjord located in Forsand in south-western Norway...

 is also easily accessible by car or boat.

Distance to some cities

  • Stavanger
    Stavanger
    is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway. Stavanger was established as a municipality 1 January 1838...

     
  • Kristiansand
    Kristiansand
    is a city, municipality and the county capital of Vest-Agder county in Southern Norway. Kristiansand municipality is the 6th largest in Norway with a population of 80,109 as of 1 January 2009...

     
  • Bergen
    Bergen
    Bergen is the second largest city in Norway, with a population of 253,600 as of July 2009. Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Economic Region, as defined by Statistics Norway, had a population of 385,450 as of January 2009.Bergen is located in the...

     
  • Oslo
    Oslo
    is the capital and largest city in Norway. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the town was largely destroyed by a fire in 1624. The Danish–Norwegian king Christian IV rebuilt the city as Christiania . Oslo, then an alternative name, became official again in 1925...

     
  • Ålesund
    Ålesund
    is a city and municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the Sunnmøre region. It is a sea port, and is noted for its unique concentration of Jugendstil architecture....

     
  • Trondheim
    Trondheim
    is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The city of Trondheim was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838...

     
  • Tromsø
    Tromsø
    is a city and municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø....

     

Economy


Sandnes hosts a large array of retail shops of most kinds and is used by the neighbouring municipalities appreciating the service and wide range of selections. Sandnes is known as Norway's bicycle city, mainly due to the fact that the bicycle manufacturer Øglænd DBS was situated here for decades. The city offers a variety of routes for everyday riders and tourists. Since 1996 a public bicycle rental programme has been in operation in the city.

The city holds a vibrant industry mainly in the Ganddal area in the south and the Lura and Forus area in the north towards the Stavanger boundary. There is a significant activity towards the oil exploration in the North Sea
North Sea
The North Sea is a marginal, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf. The Dover Strait and the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Sea in the north connect it to the Atlantic Ocean. It is more than long and wide, with an area of around...

 and also some IT related companies. In this suburban region between Stavanger and Sandnes malls and department stores have also been established. Among these malls is one of Norway's biggest malls, Kvadrat
Kvadrat Storsenter
Kvadrat is one of the largest shopping mall in Norway by revenue. The mall is situated in Sandnes, near Stavanger in Norway. Kvadrat Storsenter was opened in 1984 and contains 160 stores in several connected buildings totalling 84 912 m².- External links :*...

 meaning "square" (although it is not square shaped anymore as it has expanded several times since it opened in 1984).

Around 30% are employed in Stavanger (Q4 2004).

Sandnes was formerly known as the pottery town of Norway - due to the important ceramics industry based on the extensive occurrence of clay
Clay
Clay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained minerals, which show plasticity through a variable range of water content, and which can be hardened when dried and/or fired...

 in the surroundings.

Culture


The primary football team (Sandnes Ulf
Sandnes Ulf
Sandnes Ulf is a Norwegian football club from Sandnes, Rogaland. They currently play in the Norwegian Second Division, the third highest division in the Norwegian football league system. Sandnes Ulf is the biggest football club in Sandnes, but has traditionally been in the shadow of local giants...

) is currently competing in the second highest division of Norwegian professional football, Adeccoligaen
Adeccoligaen
The First Division is the second highest division of the Norwegian football league system. Since 2005, the official name of the league has been Adeccoligaen after its sponsor Adecco....

.

Sandnes is the only city in Norway which is a member of the World Health Organisation’s network of Healthy Cities.

Sandnes is the home of professional poker player Annette Obrestad
Annette Obrestad
Annette Obrestad is a Norwegian poker player. Obrestad is the youngest person to ever win a World Series of Poker Europe bracelet and in 2007 was considered to be one of the best online multi-table tournament players in the world...

, who was born in Stavanger, just 9.3 miles away. Annette became the youngest ever winner of a WSOP bracelet when winning the Betfair
Betfair
Betfair is the world's largest Internet betting exchange. The company is based in Hammersmith in West London, England.Since Betfair was launched in June 2000 it has become the largest online betting company in the UK and the largest bet exchange in the world...

 World Series of Poker Europe
World Series of Poker Europe
The World Series of Poker Europe is the first expansion effort of World Series of Poker-branded poker tournaments outside the United States. Since 1970, participants had to travel to Las Vegas if they wanted to compete in the World Series of Poker...

 title in September 2007 at the age of 18.

Sandnes and its neighbor city Stavanger has been chosen along with Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...

, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...

, to be a European Capital of Culture for 2008.

Thomas Dybdahl
Thomas Dybdahl
Thomas Dybdahl is a Norwegian musician in the singer/songwriter tradition.- Biography :Thomas Dybdahl went out to become somewhat of a shooting-star in Norway. As a solo artist, the former guitarist of the band Quadraphonics released his first single EP Bird in 2000...

, famous Norwegian singer/songwriter is from Sandnes.

The winner of Norwegian Idol 2004 was Kjartan Salvesen
Kjartan Salvesen
Kjartan Salvesen is the winner of the second season of Norwegian version of Idol by 840.000 votes, the highest number for any participant on the show. His single "Standing Tall" sold five times platinum, making it the second most sold single of all time in Norway. He later released a self-titled...

 from Sandnes, whose first album sold 40.000 copies in Norway (double platinum).

External links