Andebu

Andebu is a village in Sandefjord municipality, Vestfold County, and a former municipality. The administrative centre of the municipality was the village of Andebu. The village is surrounded by forests, mountains, and hills. Its nearest cities are Sandefjord and Tønsberg. The parish of Andebo was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). On 1 January 2017, the municipality became a part of Sandefjord municipality, along with Stokke. The former municipality now makes up the northernmost part of Sandefjord municipality. Andebu was the fourth-largest municipality in Vestfold and is situated in the center of the county. Its economy is primarily related to logging and forestry. Andebu has been inhabited for centuries and the oldest artifacts retrieved here dates back 4000 years to the Iron Age. Most retrieved artifacts are various types of tools, mainly axes made of flint and other rocks. Andebu’s geography consists mainly of valleys, hills, mountains, forests, and lakes. Andebu is home to three Medieval churches. It is home to Norway's oldest parish register, which belongs to Andebu Church and is dated to 1623. Andebu is also the home of Høyjord Stave Church, the only stave church in Vestfold County. Andebu was home to 2,160 residents as of 2016. Andebu has large areas of woodland. The main villages are Andebu, Høyjord, and Kodal. The church buildings in all three villages are from the Middle Ages; Kodal Church (Kodal kirke) dates from the 12th century; Høyjord Stave Church (Høyjord Stavkyrkje) was built around 1150–1200. The Old Norse form of the name was Andabú. The meaning of the first element is unknown and the last element is bú which means "district". Prior to 1889, the name was written "Andebo". The coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 12 December 1986. The arms show three silver triangles, each for one of the three villages/parishes in the municipality: Andebu, Høyjord, and Kodal. The three triangles also form the letter A, the initial of the municipality.