Stad, Norway

Stad is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Nordfjord. The municipality includes much of the northern shore of the Nordfjorden as well as the Stad peninsula. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Nordfjordeid. Other villages in the municipality include Selje, Barmen, Ervik, Flatraket, Hoddevik, Hoddevika, Håvik, Leikanger, Mogrenda, Stårheim, Haugen, Kjølsdalen, Heggjabygda, and Lote.

The 753 km2 municipality is the 152nd largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Stad is the 119th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 9,543. The municipality's population density is 13.7 PD/km2 and its population has increased by 9.6% over the previous 10-year period.

The Stad Ship Tunnel is a planned canal and tunnel to bypass the Stad peninsula in Stad Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. When built it will be the first full-size ship tunnel in the world and will allow boats to avoid traveling around the Stad peninsula—a particularly dangerous sea route.

General information
The municipality of Stad was established on 1 January 2020 when Selje Municipality, Eid Municipality, and the Bryggja area of Vågsøy Municipality were merged to form one large municipality.

Name
The municipality is named after the Stad peninsula (Staðr) which is located in the western part of the municipality. The name is identical to the word which means "stop", "halt", or "hesitation". The name possibly was used for the peninsula because of the rough waters around it which often caused seafarers here to wait for better weather.

Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted on 15 May 2019 for use starting on 1 January 2020 when the municipality was established. The blazon is "Azure, " (NORSKE_BLAZON). This means the arms have a teal-colored field (background) and the charge is a two-part design with St. Sunniva on the left and a fjord horse on the right. The charge 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 arms are an informal impalement of the old arms of the two municipalities of Selje and Eid which were merged in 2020 to form Stad. These two figures were chosen because the region is well known for its own race of horses, called the Fjording, that are very common and popular in the area. The Fjording is characterised by its white and black mane. The woman is a depiction of Saint Sunniva, the royal Irish missionary who died as a martyr on the island of Selja while trying to convert the locals to Christianity. Later, the Selje Abbey was built on the spot where she died. She was later named the patron saint of the Norwegian Diocese of Bjørgvin and all of Western Norway. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Churches
The Church of Norway has six parishes (sokn) within the municipality of Stad. It is part of the Nordfjord prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.

Geography
Stad Municipality is located in the northwesternmost part of Vestland county, in the Nordfjord region. It includes the Stad peninsula and the islands of Barmøya, Venøya, and Selja. The Sildagapet bay, the North Sea, and the Vanylvsfjorden lie on the western sides of the municipality. The Nordfjorden runs along the south side of the municipality. Hornindalsvatnet, the deepest lake in Europe, is partially located in the municipality.

Stad Municipality is bordered to the southwest by Kinn Municipality, to the north by Vanylven Municipality, Sande Municipality, and Volda Municipality (in Møre og Romsdal county). The municipalities of Bremanger and Gloppen lie to the south, across the fjord. Stryn Municipality lies to the east.

Government
Stad 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 Sogn og Fjordane District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council
The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Stad is made up of 31 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 (ordførar) of Stad:
 * 2020-2021: Alfred Bjørlo (V)
 * 2021-2023: Gunnar Silden (V)
 * 2023-present: Sigurd Reksnes (Sp)

Notable people

 * Sophus Lie (1842 in Nordfjordeid – 1899), a Norwegian mathematician
 * Olav L. Os (1882 in Nordfjordeid – 1953), a politician and silver fox breeder
 * Oliver H. Langeland (1887 in Nordfjordeid – 1958), a military officer, civil servant, and leader of Milorg District 13 in WWII
 * Kolbjørn Varmann (1904 in Nordfjordeid – 1980), a priest, politician, Minister of Transport, and County Governor of Finnmark
 * Sølve Skagen (born 1945 in Nordfjordeid), a Norwegian film director
 * Åge Starheim (born 1946 in Nordfjordeid), a Norwegian politician and mayor of Selje from 1983-1989
 * Harald Aabrekk (born 1956 in Nordfjordeid), a Norwegian football coach and a former player
 * Brynjar Rasmussen (born 1977 in Nordfjordeid), a Norwegian jazz musician who plays the clarinet
 * Azar Karadas (born 1981 in Nordfjordeid), a former footballer with over 400 club caps and 10 for Norway
 * Ingrid Thunem (born 1989 in Nordfjordeid), a Paralympic swimmer