Øystre Slidre Municipality

General information

The municipality of Østre Slidre, later spelled Øystre Slidre, was established in 1849, when the former Slidre Municipality, created in 1838, was divided into Østre Slidre Municipality, with a population of 2,406, and Vestre Slidre Municipality, with a population of 3,130. On 1 January 1882, a small area of Vang Municipality, with 31 residents, was transferred to the neighbouring Østre Slidre Municipality. On 1 January 1899, a small uninhabited area of Østre Slidre Municipality was transferred to Vestre Slidre Municipality.

Historically, the municipality was part of the former Oppland county. On 1 January 2020, Øystre Slidre became part of the newly created Innlandet county, formed through the merger of Hedmark and Oppland.

On 1 January 2021, the Skjelgrenda area of Vestre Slidre Municipality was transferred to Øystre Slidre Municipality.

Name

The municipality, originally the parish, is named after the old Slidre farm, recorded in Old Norse as Slíðrar, because the old Slidredomen church was built there. The name is probably derived from slíðr, meaning "sheath", possibly referring to a long depression near the church. When the municipality and parish were divided in 1849, the word østre, meaning "eastern", was added to the name. The meaning of Østre Slidre is therefore "the eastern part of Slidre". The municipality was historically spelled Østre Slidre. On 11 September 1925, a royal resolution changed the official spelling to Øystre Slidre, using a local dialect form of the same word.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 17 March 1989. The official blazon is "Plumetty azure and argent" (Norwegian: Dekt av blå og sølv skjell). This means that the arms have a field, or background, covered with a plumetty pattern in alternating blue and argent tinctures. Argent is usually shown as white, or as silver when metal is used.

The design is intended to resemble tiles made of slate. It refers to the slate industry, which was formerly important in the area, and to the use of slate roofing in Valdres. The arms were designed by Odd Karlberg. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Churches

The Church of Norway has four parishes, or sokn, within Øystre Slidre Municipality. They are part of the Valdres prosti, or deanery, in the Diocese of Hamar.

History

Båtskaret (lit. 'The boat pass') is a narrow pass along the mountain Bitihorn where in medieval times people from the Øystre Slidre area dragged their boats through, therefore the name. A bit further into the mountain there is a big lake called Vinstre with a lot of fine trout. As a result of a dispute between people from Valdres and people from Gudbrandsdalen, they could not leave their boats behind. Therefore, they had to resort to dragging their boats through Båtskaret. According to local folklore, the dispute began in medieval times with a young bride being married to an old man and a knight stealing his way over the mountains to rescue her.