Lier, Norway

Lier is a municipality in Viken county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Lierbyen. The municipality of Lier was established on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The area Åssiden was transferred from Lier to the neighboring municipality of Drammen on 1 July 1951.

Lier kommune
Municipality
City Hall in Lierbyen
Coat of arms
Viken within
Norway
Lier within Viken
Coordinates: 59.7937863°N 10.2660000°E / 59.7937863; 10.2660000
CountryNorway
CountyViken
DistrictMiddle Viken
Administrative centreLierbyen
Government
 • Mayor (2011)Helene Justad (H)
Area
 • Total301 km2 (116 sq mi)
 • Land281 km2 (108 sq mi)
Area rank277 in Norway
Population
 (24971)
 • Total21,594
 • Rank40 in Norway
 • Density77/km2 (200/sq mi)
 • Change (10 years)
9.8%
Demonym(s)Liung[1]
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeNO-3049
Official language formBokmål[2]
Websitewww.lier.kommune.no
Data from Statistics Norway

Norway's longest indoor shopping center, Liertoppen, is located in Lierskogen. The newspaper Lierposten is published in Lier.[3]

General information

Name

The Old Norse form of the name was Líðir. The name is the plural form of líð which means "hillside".

Coat of arms

The coat of arms and was designed by Hallvard Trætteberg and granted on 14 August 1970. The arms show five silver-colored apple blossoms on a red background. The area is well known for the production of various types of fruit, berries, vegetables, and flowers, so this was chosen as a symbol of the area's lush scenery and agriculture.[4][5]

Number of minorities (1st and 2nd generation) in Lier by country of origin in 2017[6]
Ancestry Number
 Poland1,199
 Lithuania343
 Somalia310
 India301
 Pakistan245
 Iraq197
 Vietnam186
 Germany166
 Sweden162
 Kosovo153

Geography

Lier borders to the municipalities of Asker, Bærum, Drammen, Modum and Hole. It includes the villages of Lierbyen, Sylling, Sjåstad, Nøste, Gullaug, Lierskogen, and Tranby.

Lier is thought of as a "green lung" for Norway's capital, Oslo, with its vast number of fields and apple trees. It is also famous for its agricultural products as strawberries and vegetables.

The Gilhusodden Nature Preserve is home of many different bird species. The area is also used for recreation, especially swimming and sunbathing, with its long, shallow beach.

Notable residents

Attractions
Frogner Kirke
Frogner parsonage
  • Bygdeborgen – village stronghold from the Middle Ages on Fosskollen
  • Frogner Kirke – romanesque parish church built in 1650
  • Gilhusodden – Nature Preserve
  • Gjellebekk skanse – defence bulwark during the Great Northern War which prevented a Swedish invasion of Norway in 1716
  • Lier Bygdetun – Rural Museum including a 40-acre (160,000 m2) farm
  • Hans Christian Heg statue - at Haugestad in the community of Lierbyen
  • St. Hallvard's minne – memorial of St. Hallvard, patron saint of Oslo
  • Sylling cemetery – Ten British RAF Airmen are buried in the Commonwealth War Graves Plot

Twin towns – sister cities
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Norway

Lier is twinned with:[7]

  • Liertoppen Shopping Center
  • Gamle Hegg skole
  • Jacobsen Elektro main office
  • Hvalsdammen

References
  1. "Navn på steder og personer: Innbyggjarnamn" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet.
  2. "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no.
  3. Store norske leksikon: Lierposten.
  4. Norske Kommunevåpen (1990). "Nye kommunevåbener i Norden". Retrieved 10 January 2009.
  5. "Liers kommunevåpen" (in Norwegian). Lier kommune. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
  6. "Immigrants and Norwegian-born to immigrant parents". ssb.no. Archived from the original on 2 July 2015. Retrieved 30 July 2017.
  7. "Utveksling er topp". lierposten.no (in Norwegian). Lierposten. 14 April 2015. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
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