Vear is a village in Tønsberg Municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. The village is located along the border with Sandefjord Municipality and along the Tønsbergfjorden, about 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) to the southwest of the city of Tønsberg and about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) to the southeast of the village of Sem. The village lies along Norwegian County Road 303 between Melsomvik and Tønsberg.[3]

Vear
Village
View of the village indoor arena, Vearhallen
View of the village indoor arena, Vearhallen
Vear is located in Vestfold
Vear
Vear
Location of the village
Vear is located in Norway
Vear
Vear
Vear (Norway)
Coordinates: 59°15′34″N 10°21′39″E / 59.25939°N 10.36091°E / 59.25939; 10.36091
CountryNorway
RegionEastern Norway
CountyVestfold
MunicipalityTønsberg Municipality
Area
 • Total2.32 km2 (0.90 sq mi)
Elevation42 m (138 ft)
Population
 (2023)[1]
 • Total3,683
 • Density1,591/km2 (4,120/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Post Code
3173 Vear

The 2.32-square-kilometre (570-acre) village has a population (2023) of 3,683 and a population density of 1,591 inhabitants per square kilometre (4,120/sq mi).[1]

History

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The village had historically grown up along border between Sem Municipality and Stokke Municipality, with certain parts of the village located on either side of the border, but the majority of the village was in Stokke. Stokke established an elementary- and middle school at Vear in 1974. Later, in 1988, Sem was merged into Tønsberg Municipality. In 1989, Tønsberg established an elementary school at Hogsnes. Vear and neighboring Hogsnes have grown together and make up one residential community.[4]

On 1 January 2017, the municipality of Stokke was merged with Sandefjord Municipality, but the village of Vear did not. Vear residents decided to leave Stokke in order to merge into neighboring Tønsberg. Turnout for the ballot was big with 72.9 percent of eligible voters. 63.8 percent of Vear residents decided to transfer to Tønsberg, while 34.1 percent preferred to follow Stokke into Sandefjord municipality. Vear is home to 2,500 residents, which made up 22 percent of Stokke's total population prior to the merge.[3][5]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Statistisk sentralbyrå (1 January 2023). "Urban settlements. Population and area, by municipality".
  2. ^ "Vear, Tønsberg". yr.no. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  3. ^ a b Lundbo, Sten, ed. (20 December 2023). "Vear". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  4. ^ Larsen, Erlend (2016). Tre kommuner blir til én: Suksesskriteriene bak nye Sandefjord (in Norwegian). E-forlag. p. 28. ISBN 9788293057277.
  5. ^ Larsen, Erlend (2016). Tre kommuner blir til én: Suksesskriteriene bak nye Sandefjord (in Norwegian). E-forlag. pp. 164–165. ISBN 9788293057277.
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  •   Media related to Vear at Wikimedia Commons