is a town and municipality in the county of Aust-Agder, Norway. The town is the administrative center of Aust-Agder county, and belongs to the geographical region of Sørlandet. The municipality is bordered to the southwest by Grimstad, to the northwest by Froland, and to the northeast by Tvedestrand.

The town of Arendal was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The rural municipality of Barbu was merged with Arendal on 1 January 1902. The rural municipalities of Hisøy, Moland, Tromøy and Øyestad were merged with Arendal on 1 January 1992.

General information

Origin of the name

The Old Norse form of the name was probably Arnardalr. The first element is the genitive case of orn which means "eagle" and the last element is dalr which means "valley" or "dale".

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms were granted on 7 November 1924 (based upon an older seal). The arms show a sailing ship as a symbol for the importance of fisheries and sailing to the local economy. A ship appeared on the oldest known seal of the town, dating back to the 17th century. In the late 19th and early 20th century the arms showed the ship in the upper part and a landscape with the Coat of arms of Norway in the base of the shield.^[1]

History

Arendal was established in the middle of the 1500s, and was then called Arendall. At that time it had no formal town status.

When Kristiansand was founded by King Christian IV in 1641, he granted the citizens a monopoly on all trade in Aust-Agder and Vest-Agder. This grant, intended to subsidize Kristiansand and its fortifications, placed existing towns in a difficult position. Both towns and the peasants in the up country protested the hardships this caused. As a result, Arendal received royal permission in 1622 to continue as a loading-place for timber until a means could be found to transfer its trade to Kristiansand.

The town was given market city privileges in 1723. However the peasants in the surrounding district, who by law were to sell their goods only at Arendal, were smuggling their goods out on cutters and selling them in Denmark, in the Baltic, and in Britain.

This continued until 1735, when Arendal was granted a full town charter. This charter, combined with Danish imposition of a monopoly on corn imports, caused great poverty and starvation among the peasants in the surrounding districts, leading to several famous rebellions.

As a result of the rebellions, the age of privileges for towns like Kristiansand and Arendal came to an apparent end in 1768 by royal proclamation. But the problems did not end then; a farmer, Kristian Jensson Lofthus, in Vestre Moland led a rebellion in 1786 which resulted in the government actually remedying some of the most repressive trade policies, but Lofthus died in prison. The charges against Lofthus were that he dealt in corn and other commodities to the detriment to Arendal?s privileges.

Shipping, shipbuilding, and timber trade as well as mining and ironworks were important branches of industry in Aust-Agder county for many centuries, especially in the Arendal region. Frequent contacts with the world abroad put their mark on our culture and traditions. In 1880, it was the land's biggest port in terms of tonnage handled. At the end of the 19th century, Arendal was recognized as a major shipping centre with many wealthy shipowners. In 1939, it had the 4th largest Norwegian tanker fleet; only Oslo, Bergen, and Stavanger were larger.

Today the town has small boat manufacturing, mechanical industry, electronics industry as well as one of the world's largest silicon carbide refining plants.

Townscape

Lille Torungen Lighthouse

"Store Torungen" lighthouse

The lighthouse Store Torungen is located on an island outside Arendal. It was constructed in 1844 and electrified in 1914. It is 34.3 meters high and contains a 2nd order lens. It is reachable by a 55 minute boat trip from the town centre. The lighthouse is still in use.

"Lille Torungen" lighthouse

The lighthouse Lille Torungen is situated on a small island outside Arendal. The lighthouse is 28.9 meters high. Lille Torungen and Store Torungen were constructed as twin lighthouses, and both are located in the Arendal shipping lane.

Culture

Arendal viewed from the harbour

Geography

Arendal is the type locality of the mineral Babingtonite, which was first described from specimens discovered here in 1824.^[2]

Merdø

The island of Merdø, an island far from the coast facing the Skagerrak, was a major export port in the 17th and 18th centuries and now has a museum, a kiosk, and several beaches. There is regular boat service from Arendal to the island every day during the summer season.

Transportation

Apart from being a port town, Arendal lies immediately southeast of the E18 highway. The Arendalsbanen railway line runs to Nelaug where it connects with Sørlandsbanen.

Famous residents

• Sam Eyde (1866-1940), Industrialist
• Øystein Grødum (1977), Speedskater
• Bård Torstensen (1961), Guitarist for heavy metal/rap band Clawfinger

Twin cities

• Rezekne, Latvia
• Silkeborg, Denmark
• Kalmar, Sweden
• Savonlinna, Finland
• Árborg, Iceland

See also

• UNEP/GRID-Arendal

References

External links

• Arendal official tourist information
• Arendal tourist information from Reiselivsbasen
• UNEP/GRID-Arendal, UN Environment Programme office in Arendal
• Arendal on Google Maps

In Norwegian only

• Municipality of Arendal
• Agderposten ? The leading newspaper covering Aust-Agder, with base in Arendal
• Arendal Football Club
• Arendal Public Library
• County museum & archiv: Aust-Agder kulturhistoriske senter
• Webcam of Arendal centre
• Canal Street - Arendal Jazz and Blues festival

Other languages

• Map of Aust-Agder including Arendal municipality

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