Rana | |
Idnumber: | 1833 |
County: | Nordland |
District: | Helgeland |
Capital: | Mo i Rana |
Established: | 1 Jan 1838 |
Preceded: | none |
Disestablished: | 1839 |
Succeeded: | Nord-Rana & Sør-Rana |
Established2: | 1 Jan 1964 |
Preceded2: | Mo i Rana, Nord-Rana, and other areas |
Demonyms: | Ranværing Ransmann |
Language: | Neutral |
Coatofarms: | Rana komm.svg |
Webpage: | www.rana.kommune.no |
Mayor Party: | Ap |
Mayor As Of: | 2015 |
Area Rank: | 4 |
Area Total Km2: | 4460.18 |
Area Land Km2: | 4202.78 |
Area Water Km2: | 257.41 |
Area Water Percent: | 5.8 |
Population As Of: | 2023 |
Population Rank: | 46 |
Population Total: | 25980 |
Population Density Km2: | 6.2 |
Population Increase: | 0.9 |
Coordinates: | 66.3719°N 14.3428°W |
Utm Zone: | 33W |
Utm Northing: | 7361554 |
Utm Easting: | 0470618 |
Geo Cat: | adm2nd |
Rana is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Mo i Rana, which houses the National Library of Norway. Other population centers in Rana include Båsmoen, Dunderland, Eiteråga, Flostrand, Hauknes, Mæla, Myklebustad, Nevernes, Røssvoll, Selfors, Skonseng, Storforshei, Utskarpen, and Ytteren.
The 4460km2 municipality is the 4th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway (the largest municipality outside Troms and Finnmark counties). Rana is the 46th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 25,980. This makes it the second largest municipality in Nordland county - and the third largest in North Norway. The municipality's population density is and its population has increased by 0.9% over the previous 10-year period.[1] [2]
Rana was a part of the Terra Securities scandal in 2007 relating to some investments that were made by the municipality.
Economy: as of 2023, FREYR has a so-called test factory for battery technology; the size of the factory is 13,000 square meters,[3] and it had[4] 70 employees before 10 were laid off in late November.[5] [6] As of Q4 2023, the first production line is delayed.[7] The company said that it will halve its cash expenses, for year 2024.[4] [8]
The municipality of Rana was originally established on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). However, it was divided into Nord-Rana and Sør-Rana in 1839. In 1844, Nord-Rana was renamed Mo and Sør-Rana was renamed Hemnes. The village of Mo was separated from the rural district of Mo and became a town and municipality of its own on 1 January 1923. At that time, the rural district changed its name back to Nord-Rana. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1964, the town of Mo (population: 9,616), the municipality of Nord-Rana (population: 11,636), the northern part of the municipality of Sør-Rana (population: 697), and the Sjona area of the municipality of Nesna (population: 543) were all merged. The united municipality was named simply Rana.[9]
The municipality is named after the river Ranelva (Norse, Old: Raðund). The name of the river is probably derived from the word Norse, Old: raðr which means "quick", "fast", or "rapid". Another possibility is that the name comes from the old Sami god Rana Niejta.[10]
The coat of arms was granted on 5 March 1965. The official blazon is "Per bend sinister vert and Or" (Norwegian: Venstre skrådelt av grønt og gull). This means the arms have a field (background) that is divided by a diagonal line from the lower left to the upper right. The field that is below the line has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. The field that is above the line has a tincture of green. The arms symbolize the forests (upper part/green) and the minerals (lower part/gold), as there many minerals can be found in the area, especially iron ore. The arms were originally granted to the municipality of Mo on 29 April 1960 until that municipality was dissolved in 1 January 1964 when it became part of the new municipality of Rana. The arms were designed by Gunnar Alm.[11] [12] [13]
The Church of Norway has six parishes (Norwegian: sokn) within the municipality of Rana. It is part of the Indre Helgeland prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Sør-Hålogaland.
Gruben | Gruben Church | Mo i Rana | 1965 | |
Mo | Mo Church | Mo i Rana | 1724 | |
Nevernes | Nevernes Church | Nevernes | 1893 | |
Nord-Rana | Selfors Church | Selfors | 1973 | |
Ytteren Church | Ytteren | 1977 | ||
Røssvoll | Røssvoll Church | Røssvoll | 1953 | |
Sjona | Sjona Church | Myklebustad | 1916 |
The municipality is located just south of the Arctic Circle, on the southern side of the Saltfjellet mountains with the Svartisen glacier, Norway's second largest glacier. Some of the large mountains in Rana include Bolna and Nasa. Mo is so close to the Arctic Circle that parts of the sun is continuously over the horizon (Midnight sun) from early June to early July, and there is no darkness from mid-May to the beginning of August. But there is no true polar night in December.[14] The Saltfjellet–Svartisen National Park is partly located in Rana. There are many valleys such as the Dunderland Valley and Grønnfjelldal.
The majority of the population in the municipality lives in Mo i Rana, where the Ranelva (river) meets the Ranfjorden. North of Mo i Rana, the European route E6 highway passes through the suburb of Selfors. In western Rana, the population centers around the Sjona fjord.
Rana and Saltfjellet are famous for their numerous caves due to the limestone rock. There are several nature reserves in the municipality, such as Alterhaug with several warmer-climate plants grow including the elm.[15] Engasjyen, the estuary of the Rana river, has a rich bird life in the spring.[16] Blakkådalen has old growth spruce forests.[17] Fisktjørna, has a largely undisturbed mixed old growth forest with unusually rich plant life due to the extremely lime-rich soil.[18]
Rana is situated near the innermost part of the long Ranafjord, and the winters can be cold, especially away from the fjord. There is often a lot of snow in winter. Summer days in Rana are among the warmest in North Norway.
There are many lakes and rivers in the municipality, both in the lowlands and in the mountains.
All municipalities in Norway are responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor is indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.[19] The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Helgeland District Court and the Hålogaland Court of Appeal.
The municipal council (Norwegian: Kommunestyre) of Rana is made up of 37 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.
Rana has an airport, Mo i Rana Airport, Røssvoll in the village of Røssvoll, not far from the town of Mo i Rana. There are several large highways in Rana: European route E6, Norwegian County Road 17, and Norwegian County Road 12. The Illhollia Tunnel is part of the E6 highway. The Nordland Line passes through Rana, with several stations including Mo i Rana Station, Dunderland Station, and Bolna Station.
See main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Norway.
The sister cities of Rana are:[22]