Jammerbugt Municipality

In the Middle Ages, Denmark was divided into syssels. The area that currently make up Jammerbugt Municipality was known as Han Hundred (Danish: Han Herred) and belonged to the syssel of Thysyssel. It later came under the fief of Aalborghus. In 1662 Han Hundred was merged with a number of hundreds and came under Åstrup, Sejlstrup, Børglum County. The county lasted until 1793. Vester Han Hundred, making up approximately half of the current Jammerbugt Municipality's borders, came under Thisted County, while Øster Han Hundred and Hvetbo Hundred, making up the other half, came under Hjørring County. These counties lasted until the 1970 Danish Municipal Reform where they came under the North Jutland County.

In 1842 Denmark was divided into smaller administrative divisions, namely parish municipalities (Danish: sognekommunner). The borders of these municipalities were largely based on the country's parishes. In the 1970 municipal reform these parish municipalities were dissolved. Three parish municipalities were merged to create Aabybro Municipality, three were merged to form Pandrup Municipality and seven were merged to form Fjerritslev Municipality. Five parish municipalities had been merged already in 1966 to form Brovst Parish Municipality. This parish municipality was changed to become Brovst Municipality in 1970.

Historical divisions

The table below shows the historical municipal subdivisions of Jammerbugt Municipality.

Dune plantations

In the northwestern corner of the municipality, bordering Thisted Municipality, is Vester Thorup Dune Plantation (Danish: Vester Thorup Klitplantage). In it is a small protected area. It's a chalk cliff with a unique flora known as Valbjerg Sande.

Vester Thorup Dune Plantation is home to a rich flora, including plants such as drug eyebright, deer fern, wintergreen, rough horsetail, lesser twayblade, marsh helleborine, butterwort, moonwort, Danish kidneyvetch and field gentian.

Although the flora is similar in most of the dune plantations along the municipality's coast, there are slight differences. In the Fosdal Plantation, located slightly north between Fjerritslev and Brovst, is a heath which is home to the wolf's bane, a rare plant in Denmark.

The fauna in the municipality's dune plantation include many birds and insects. There are mammals, such as polecats and hares, though there generally aren't many mammals in the dune plantations. Tranum Dune Plantation, west of Pandrup, has a population of roe deer, as does Blokhus Dune Plantation further north.