Time, Norway

Time is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Jæren. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Bryne. Some villages in the municipality include Kvernaland, Lyefjell, Mossige, and Undheim. Most of Time is fairly flat and it is used for agriculture. The eastern portion of the municipality is more rugged moorland.

The 183 km2 municipality is the 309th largest by area out of the 356 municipalities in Norway. Time is the 66th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 19,781. The municipality's population density is 115.8 PD/km2 and its population has increased by 13.4% over the previous 10-year period.

General information
The parish of "Thime" was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). The municipal borders have been slightly changed twice since that time. On 1 January 1970, a small unpopulated area was moved from Time to Gjesdal municipality. Then again on 1 January 1989 another unpopulated area was transferred to Gjesdal. Both times it was to make more room for the growing village of Ålgård.

Name
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Time farm (Þímin) since the first Time Church was built there. The meaning of the first element is uncertain. It may come from the Anglo-Saxon word Þínan which means "to get wet" or the Old Norse word which means "thawed" or "melted". Both possible meanings likely refer to the wet and marshy areas in Time. The last element is which means "meadow" or "pasture". Historically, the municipality name was spelled Thime, but the "h" was dropped as the Norwegian language was reformed over time.

Coat of arms
The coat of arms was granted on 23 December 1977. The blazon is "Gules, a lapwing rising argent" (På raud botn ei sølv vipe med utslegne vengjer). This means the arms have a red field (background) and the charge is a northern lapwing (Vanellus vanellus). 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. This bird (known as a vipe in Norwegian) was chosen as a symbol for the municipality as it is a typical bird for the area. It is shown with wings upwards to symbolize optimism. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Churches
The Church of Norway has three parishes (sokn) within the municipality of Time. It is part of the Jæren prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Stavanger.

Geography
Time is located in the district of Jæren which is mostly flat and agricultural. The river Figgjoelva marks the northern border of Time with the municipality of Sandnes. The large lake Frøylandsvatnet forms part of the border with the neighboring municipality of Klepp. The landlocked municipality also includes part of the "Høg-Jæren" ("high-Jæren") area which is not flat like the rest of the district. Høg-Jæren is more hilly, rugged, and less densely populated.

Government
Time 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 Sør-Rogaland District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council
The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Time is made up of 27 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 Time (incomplete list):


 * 1838-1840: Ingebret Svennsson Mossige
 * 1919-1924: Nils M. Kverneland (Bp)
 * 1932-1940: Gunnar Aasland (Bp)
 * 1945-1954: Gunnar Aasland (Bp)
 * 1955-1959: Bjarne Undheim (Sp)
 * 1999-2011: Arnfinn Vigrestad (KrF)
 * 2011-2020: Reinert Kverneland (H)
 * 2020-present: Andreas Vollsund (H)

Twin towns/Sister cities
Time has sister city agreements with the following places:
 * Alnwick, Northumberland, England, United Kingdom
 * 🇸🇪 Älmhult, Kronoberg County, Sweden
 * 🇫🇮 Lapinjärvi, Uusimaa, Finland
 * 🇩🇰 Allerød, Zealand, Denmark

Notable people

 * Arne Garborg (1851–1924), a writer who used Landsmål (now known as Nynorsk)
 * Ole Gabriel Kverneland (1854–1941), a ploughsmith and factory owner who founded Kverneland Group
 * Peter Hognestad (1866–1931), a Lutheran theologian, writer, and Bishop of Bjørgvin
 * Fritz Røed (1928–2002), a sculptor who was famous for Sverd i fjell (English: Swords in Rock)
 * Sølve Grotmol (1939–2010), a TV presenter for the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation
 * Janove Ottesen (born 1975), a musician and front figure of Kaizers Orchestra who grew up in Bryne
 * Geir Zahl (born 1975), a musician and guitar player of Kaizers Orchestra
 * Hanne Sigbjørnsen (born 1989), a cartoonist, blogger, and nurse

Sport

 * Sissel Løchen (born 1969), a wheelchair curler, psychiatric nurse, and silver medallist at the 2018 Winter Paralympics
 * Alfie Haaland (born 1972), a former footballer who was raised in Bryne with 264 club caps and 34 for Norway
 * Geir André Herrem (born 1988), a footballer with over 300 club caps
 * Erling Haaland (born 2000), a footballer currently playing for Manchester City