Undal

Undal is a former municipality that was located in the old Vest-Agder county in Norway. The 368 km2 municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1845. It encompassed parts of the present-day municipalities of Lyngdal and Lindesnes. The municipality encompassed most of the Audnedalen valley which follows the river Audna southwards to the sea.

History
The parish of Undal was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt law). The municipality was short-lived and it existed only until 1845, when it was divided into the new municipalities of Nordre Undal (population: 802) in the north and Søndre Undal (population: 3,893) in the south. Prior to the split Undal had a population of 4,695.

Name
The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the Audnedalen valley (Auðnudalr), but over time the name was shorted due to a corruption of the language. The first element is the genitive case of the river name Auðna (now Audna). The river name is derived from the word which means "destruction" or "wasteland" (because of the flooding that often happens along the river). The last element is which means "valley" or "dale". The municipality was dissolved in 1848, but the name lived on. In the early 20th century, the name Undal was Norwegianized to Audnedal, bringing back its more original spelling.

Government
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 Undal:
 * 1837–1841: Rev. Lassen
 * 1841–1844: Bertel Person Roland