Aurland

Aurland is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It is located on the south side of the Sognefjorden in the traditional district of Sogn. The administrative center is the village of Aurlandsvangen. Other villages include Bakka, Flåm, Undredal, and Gudvangen.

General information

Aurland was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The original municipality was identical to the Aurland parish (prestegjeld) with the sub-parishes (sokn) of Aurlandsvangen, Flåm, and Undredal. In 1859, the sub-parish of Nærøy was created by separating it from the sub-parish of Undredal. The municipal borders have not changed since 1838.

Name

The name Aurland derives from the Old Norse words aurr (which means "gravel") plus land (which means "land" or "district").

Coat-of-arms

Aurland's coat-of-arms is of modern origin. They were granted on 22 May 1987. The arms depict a silver colored goat's head on a blue background. A goat was considered an appropriate symbol for the municipality since the area is famed for its production of goat cheese and goat farming.