Gyland (municipality)

Gyland is a former municipality in the old Vest-Agder county, Norway. The 182 km2 municipality was located in the northeastern part of the present-day municipality of Flekkefjord in what is now Agder county. The municipality existed very briefly from 1838 until 1839 and then it was re-created in 1893 and it existed until 1965. The administrative centre was the village of Gyland where Gyland Church is located.

History
The parish of Gyland was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law), but it was almost immediately merged into neighboring Bakke municipality in the fall of 1839. The Gyland area (population: 1,085) was separated (again) from Bakke municipality on 31 December 1893 to once again form its own municipality. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1965, the municipalities of Gyland, Bakke, Hidra, and Nes were merged with the town of Flekkefjord to form a new, larger municipality of Flekkefjord. Prior to the merger, Gyland had a population of 691.

Name
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Gyland farm (Gýjuland) since the first Gyland Church was built there. The meaning of the first element is uncertain. One possibility is that it comes from the word Gýja which is likely the old name for the local Gylandselva river. The old river name may have been derived from the Old High German word giwên which means "gape" or "gaping", in this sense referring to the gorges in the area. The other possibility is that it comes from the word which means "female troll" or "giantess". The last element is which means "land" or "district".

Government
While it existed, this municipality was responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, unemployment, social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads. 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.

Municipal council
The municipal council (Herredsstyre) of Gyland was made up of representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.