Sannidal

Sannidal is a former municipality in Telemark county, Norway. The 197 km2 municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1960. The area is now part of Kragerø Municipality. The administrative centre was the village of Kil where the Sannidal Church is located.

Sannidal Municipality was located just inland from the town of Kragerø. The main population centre of Sannidal was the village of Kil, which is situated at the end of the Kilsfjord. For this reason it was one of the earliest settlements in the area, being an important link between the sea and the land. The village was important for both exports and imports since the boat was the main means of transport at the time. Exports of timber dating from 1600s-1700s gave the area a good income and made Kil the first commercial center for Sannidal and surrounding country.

History
The parish of Sannikedal (later spelled Sandøkedal or Sannidal) was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). On 1 January 1861, an area of Sandøkedal (population: 857) that was adjacent to the growing town of Kragerø was annexed and transferred from Sandøkedal to Kragerø. On 1 January 1882, the southeastern coastal and island areas of the municipality (population: 3,907) were separated to form the new Skaatø Municipality. This left Sandøkedal with 2,186 residents. During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee. On 1 January 1960, Sannidal Municipality (population: 2,604) was merged with the neighboring Skåtøy Municipality (population: 3,208) and the neighboring town of Kragerø (population: 4,638).

Name
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the Sannidal valley (Sandaukadalr) since the first Sannidal Church was built there. The first element is the genitive case of the word sandauki which means "an increase of sand". This is likely referring to some sandbanks. The last element is which means "valley" or "dale". Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Sannikedal. In 1857, the spelling was changed to Sandøkedal. In 1889, the name was changed back to Sannikedal. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Sannidal.

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.

Mayors
The mayors (ordfører) of Sannidal (incomplete list):
 * 1871-1874: Peder Rinde (V)
 * 1879-1882: Peder Rinde (V)
 * 1945-1955: Eigil Liane (Ap)

Municipal council
The municipal council (Herredsstyre) of Sannidal 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.