Bokn

Bokn is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Haugaland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Føresvik, the only urban area in Bokn. Other villages in Bokn include Arsvågen, Trosnavåg, and Loten. The island municipality is mostly located on the three islands of Ognøya, Vestre Bokn, and Austre Bokn. All three main islands are connected to the mainland via a network of bridges.

The 47 km2 municipality is the 348th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Bokn is the 341st most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 868. The municipality's population density is 19.5 PD/km2 and its population has increased by 0.3% over the previous ten-year period.

General information
The municipality of Bokn (historically spelled Bukken) was established in 1849 when it was separated from the large municipality of Skudenes. Initially, Bokn had 1,035 residents. The borders of Bokn have not changed since that time.

Name
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the islands of Austre Bokn and Vestre Bokn (Bókn). The meaning of the name is uncertain. It is possible that the word was derived from the Old High German word bouchen which means "sea mark" or "beacon", possibly referring to the local mountain that was a navigational mark for boats. Before 1889, the name was spelled "Bukken".

Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted on 8 August 1986. The official blazon is "Azure, six plates, one over two over three" (På blå grunn seks sølv myntar, 1-2-3). This means the arms have a blue field (background) and the charge is a set of six circles. The set of circles has a tincture of argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The blue background represents the sea and the set of six circles represent coins, which symbolize the richness from the sea since it is an island municipality and therefore dependent on fishing and sailing. The six circles are set in a triangle to symbolize a cairn, representing the fact that the island was historically used as a sea mark for sailors. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Churches
The Church of Norway has one parish (sokn) within the municipality of Bokn. It is part of the Haugaland prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Stavanger.

Buildings and structures
There is a 168 m tall guyed mast for FM-/TV-broadcasting at located at 59.22016°N, 5.42828°W.

Geography
The island municipality of Bokn is located on the northern side of the Boknafjorden, at the southern end of the Karmsundet strait. The island of Karmøy lies to the west and the mainland of Tysvær is located to the northeast. The island municipality of Kvitsøy lies south of Bokn and the island municipality of Rennesøy lies to the southeast of Bokn.

Bokn is one of the smallest municipalities in Rogaland, consisting of three main islands: Ognøya, Austre Bokn, and Vestre Bokn. There are also some smaller, uninhabited islands surrounding the main islands.

The islands are rugged with many small hills with small lakes in the valleys. The hills are largely covered with heather, but bushes and trees are increasingly competing, especially birch. The highest point is the 297 m high Boknafjellet, a small mountain on Vestre Bokn island.

Government
Bokn Municipality is 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. The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Haugaland og Sunnhordland District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council
The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Bokn is made up of 17 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.

Mayors
The mayors (ordfører) of Bokn:


 * 1849–1851: Lars Rasmusson Loden
 * 1852–1853: Daniel Larsson Trosnavåg
 * 1854–1855: Kristoffer Larsson Øvrabø
 * 1856–1857: Ingebrigt Ingebrigtsson Laupland
 * 1858–1865: Lars Rasmusson Loden
 * 1866–1867: Bjørn Torbjørnsson Nerabø
 * 1868–1869: Torgils Olsson Alvestad
 * 1870–1873: Valentin Tormodsson Våga
 * 1874–1885: Kristoffer Perdersson Vatnaland
 * 1886–1910: Jakob Pedersson Torland
 * 1911–1913: Gabriel Dybing
 * 1914–1916: Jakob Hognaland
 * 1917–1919: Gabriel Dybing
 * 1920–1922: Martin Jøsang
 * 1923–1925: Julius Håland
 * 1925–1934: Elisæus Vatnaland (Bp)
 * 1935–1937: Julius Håland
 * 1938–1941: Jens L. Vatnaland (Bp)
 * 1942–1945: Tønnes Bryningsland (NS)
 * 1945–1945: Jens L. Vatnaland (Bp)
 * 1946–1947: Monrad Alvestad (Ap)
 * 1948–1951: Helge Alvestad
 * 1952–1955: Osmund S. Våga (Bp)
 * 1956–1963: Jens L. Vatnaland (Sp)
 * 1964–1969: Ingolf Kro (Sp)
 * 1970–1971: Sigvart Våga (Sp)
 * 1972–1975: Leif Vatnaland (Sp)
 * 1978–1979: Ingolf Kro (Sp)
 * 1980–1981: Leif Vatnaland (Sp)
 * 1982–1983: Arne Øvrebø (H)
 * 1984–1995: Leif Vatnaland (Sp)
 * 1995–1999: Sigrunn Hole Hosaas (Sp)
 * 1999–2007: Svein Ove Alvestad (H)
 * 2007–2015: Kyrre Lindanger (Ap)
 * 2015–2019: Tormod Våga (Sp)
 * 2019–2023: Osmund Våga (Sp)
 * 2023-present: Egil Våge (Sp)

Transportation
The three islands of Bokn are now linked via bridges to Tysvær municipality on the mainland. These bridges are part of the European route E39 highway and they are part of the main coastal highway between the cities of Stavanger and Bergen. There is a ferry connection southward across the Boknafjorden to Rennesøy which is connected by road to Stavanger. The planned Rogfast undersea tunnel will directly connect both sides of the Boknafjorden from Stavanger to Bokn, with a planned completion date of 2023.

Economy
Apart from a factory producing various tanks made of glassfiber-reinforced plastic (Bokn Plast), there is no industry on the islands other than some fish farming. People have traditionally lived off fishing and farming, but more recently, some work has been in the North Sea petroleum industry. Tourism is likely to play a bigger part in the future.

Notable people

 * Asbjørn Kloster (1823 in Vestre Bokn – 1876), a social reformer, minister, teacher, publisher, and leader of the Norwegian temperance movement
 * Lars Elisæus Vatnaland (1892 in Bokn – 1983), a Norwegian politician and Mayor of Bokn municipality from 1925 to 1934