Meråker

Meråker is a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Stjørdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Midtbygda which is about 20 km west of Storlien in Sweden and 46 km east of the town of Stjørdalshalsen in neighboring Stjørdal municipality. Other villages in Meråker include Gudåa, Kopperå, and Stordalen.

The municipality markets itself as a recreational area. The main areas of employment are in industry and agriculture. The municipality is noted for its characteristic dialect.

The 1274 km2 municipality is the 80th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Meråker is the 259th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 2,426. The municipality's population density is 2 PD/km2 and its population has decreased by 3.3% over the previous 10-year period.

General information
The municipality of Meråker was established on 1 January 1874 when the old municipality of Øvre Stjørdal was divided into two: Hegra (population: 3,409) in the east and Meråker (population: 1,861) in the west. The municipal borders have not changed since then. On 1 January 2018, the municipality switched from the old Nord-Trøndelag county to the new Trøndelag county.

Name
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Meråker farm (spelled "Mørakre" around 1430) since the first Meråker Church was built there. The meaning of the first element is uncertain (maybe which means "mare" or  which means "bog" or "marsh"). The last element is which means "field" or "acre". Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Meraker. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Meraaker. On 21 December 1917, a royal resolution enacted the 1917 Norwegian language reforms. Prior to this change, the name was spelled Meraaker with the digraph "aa", and after this reform, the name was spelled Meråker, using the letter å was instead.

Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted on 28 September 1990. The official blazon is "Gules, a cart argent" (I rødt en sølv vogn). This means the arms have a red field (background) and the charge is a mining cart. The mining cart has a tincture of argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. This design was chosen to symbolize the fact that mining has traditionally played a major role in the area and has been of great economic importance for Meråker. 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 Meråker. It is part of the Stjørdal prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Nidaros.

Meråker Smelter
In 1898, a carbide factory was opened at Kopperå, later this factor was rebuilt as a silicon smelter. The smelter was in operation until June 2006. Its main product was microsilica which is used as an additive to cement.

Geography
Meråker is a landlocked municipality in the central part of Trøndelag county. To the north is the municipality of Verdal, to the west is Stjørdal, to the south is Selbu and Tydal, and to the east is Sweden.

There are three major lakes in Meråker: Feren, Fjergen, and Funnsjøen. The river Stjørdalselva runs through the municipality towards the Trondheimsfjord. The river Rotla begins in the southern part of Meråker. The mountain Fongen sits on the southern border with Tydal and Selbu.

Government
Meråker 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 Trøndelag District Court and the Frostating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council
The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Meråker 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 Meråker:


 * 1874–1877: Christian Erlandsen
 * 1878–1885: John Johnsen
 * 1886–1887: Iver Lie
 * 1888–1893: Fredrik Rø (V)
 * 1894–1897: O. Hugdahl
 * 1898–1907: Fredrik Rø (V)
 * 1908–1910: Carl Olaf Iversen (H)
 * 1911–1913: Olav Stubban (Ap)
 * 1914–1916: Ole E. Wollan (Ap)
 * 1917–1922: Peder J. Myrmo (Ap)
 * 1923–1925: Arne Bergsaas (Ap)
 * 1926–1937: Kristian Rothaug (Ap)
 * 1938–1939: Joar Eimhjellen (Ap)
 * 1939–1941: Alf Karlsen (Ap)
 * 1942-1942: Arild Solberg (NS)
 * 1943–1945: Alf Hembre (NS)
 * 1945–1966: Alf Karlsen (Ap)
 * 1967–1973: Johnny Stenberg (Ap)
 * 1973-1995: Svein Brækken (Ap)
 * 1995-2015: Bård Langsåvold (Ap)
 * 2015-2019: Kari Anita Furunes (Sp)
 * 2019–2023: Kjersti Kjenes (LL)
 * 2023-present: Kari Anita Furunes (Sp)

Transportation
The European route E14 highway runs east to west through the municipality connecting to Trondheim Airport, Værnes about 40 km to the west. The Meråker Line railway follows the E14 through the municipality also, with stops at Kopperå Station, Meråker Station, and Gudå Station.

Media
The newspaper Meråkerposten has been published in Meråker since 1982.

Notable people

 * Anton Johnson Fridrichsen (1888 in Meråker – 1953), a Swedish theologian
 * Helge Ingstad (1899 in Meråker - 2001), an author, explorer, and archeologist
 * Arne Braa Saatvedt (1922 in Meråker – 1945), a Norwegian police official and member of the Nasjonal Samling; executed in 1945
 * Bård Langsåvold (born 1952), a Norwegian politician and Mayor of Meråker from 1995-2015
 * Dag Lyseid (1954–2012), a footballer and politician and deputy Mayor of Meråker from 1999-2008
 * Vebjørn Selbekk (born 1969), a newspaper editor and author who was brought up in Meråker

Sport

 * Magnar Lundemo (1938 in Meråker - 1987), a cross country skier and track and field athlete who competed at the 1960 and 1964 Winter Olympics
 * Frode Estil (born 1972), a retired cross country skier who lives in Meråker
 * Kine Beate Bjørnås (born 1980), a retired cross country skier
 * Simen Raaen Sandmæl (born 1990 in Meråker), a Norwegian footballer with over 130 club caps