Andenes (municipality)

is a former municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1924 until its dissolution in 1964. The municipality included the northern part of the island of Andøya as well as many small surrounding islets and skerries in what is now Andøy Municipality. The administrative centre was the village of Andenes where the Andenes Church is located. The municipality of Andenes was established on 1 January 1924 when Dverberg Municipality was divided into three: Andenes (population: 2,213) in the north, Bjørnskinn (population: 1,410) in the south, and Dverberg (population: 1,477) in the central part of the old municipality. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, the municipality of Andenes (population: 3,812) was merged (back) with the municipalities of Dverberg (population: 1,719) and Bjørnskinn (population: 1,835) to create the new Andøy Municipality. The municipality is named after the old village of Andenes (Andarnes). The first element is the genitive case of Ǫnd (originally Ǫmd) which is the old name for the island of Andøya. The meaning of the island's name is uncertain. The last element is nes which means "headland". During its existence, this municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipal council (Herredsstyre) of Andenes was made up of representatives that were elected to four year terms.