Porsgrunn facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Porsgrunn kommune
Municipality
View of the town of Porsgrunn
Coat of arms Telemark within Norway
Porsgrunn within Telemark
Country	Norway
County	Telemark
District	Grenland
Established	1 Jan 1838
Administrative centre	Porsgrunn
Area
• Total	164.45 km2 (63.49 sq mi)
• Land	160.78 km2 (62.08 sq mi)
• Water	3.67 km2 (1.42 sq mi)  2.2%
Area rank	#315 in Norway
Population  (2023)
• Total	37,056
• Rank	#29 in Norway
• Density	230.5/km2 (597/sq mi)
• Change (10 years)	4.7%
Demonyms	Porsgrunnsfolk Porsgrunnsmann Porsgrunnskvinne
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 code	NO-4001
Official language form	Bokmål
Created as	Formannskapsdistrikt in 1838
Data from Statistics Norway

Porsgrunn is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the Grenland area. The main town and administrative center is Porsgrunn. Other important places in the municipality include the town of Brevik and the villages of Langangen and Heistad.

Porsgrunn covers about 164 square kilometers. This makes it the 315th largest municipality in Norway. It is also the 29th most populated, with 37,056 people. The population density is about 230 people per square kilometer. The number of people living here has grown by 4.7% in the last 10 years. The cities of Porsgrunn and Skien are close together. They form the seventh-largest urban area in Norway.

About Porsgrunn

View of the Langangen area

View of the town of Brevik in Porsgrunn Municipality

The town of Porsgrunn became a municipality on January 1, 1838. This happened because of a law called the formannskapsdistrikt law. Over time, the town grew bigger. In 1920, Porsgrunn added parts of nearby rural areas. These areas included parts of Gjerpen, Eidanger, and Solum municipalities.

In the 1960s, many municipalities in Norway joined together. This was part of a plan by the Schei Committee. On January 1, 1964, a big merger happened. The new, larger Porsgrunn Municipality was formed by combining:

• The town of Porsgrunn
• The town of Brevik
• All of Eidanger Municipality
• The Bakke area from Hedrum Municipality
• The Enigheten, Høyberg, and Skavåsen areas from Brunlanes Municipality

Later, in 1968, an area from Skien Municipality also became part of Porsgrunn.

What's in a Name?

The name "Porsgrund" was first written down in 1576. This was by a writer named Peder Claussøn Friis. He wrote that the Skien River flows into the fjord at a place called Porsgrund. The name likely came from medieval times. Nuns from Gimsøy Abbey used to go there to collect a shrub called pors (bog myrtle). The word grunn means "ground" or "land." So, Porsgrunn means "bog myrtle ground." On January 1, 1930, the spelling changed to "Porsgrunn." This made it sound more Norwegian.

Porsgrunn's Coat of Arms

A coat of arms is like a special symbol for a city or family. Porsgrunn's coat of arms was first given to the town in 1905. It was adopted again by the new, larger municipality in 1964.

The coat of arms has a red and blue background. It shows a diagonal silver stripe. Above the stripe is a silver bog myrtle branch. Below the stripe is a silver anchor. The silver stripe represents the small river that flows through the city. The bog myrtle plant is a special symbol because the name Porsgrunn comes from the Norwegian word for this plant. The anchor on the blue background shows how important the local harbor and the sea have been to Porsgrunn. Wilhelm Rudolph designed these arms.

Churches in Porsgrunn

Østre Porsgrunn Church

The Church of Norway has two main areas, called parishes, in Porsgrunn. These parishes are part of the Skien deanery in the Diocese of Agder og Telemark.

Porsgrunn's History

Porsgrunn City Hall

Porsgrunn has been an important harbor town since the late 1500s. In 1653, the Customs House was moved from Skien to Porsgrunn. This happened because the Skien River became too shallow for boats. Sawdust and mud from industries made the river difficult to navigate. Moving the Customs House helped Porsgrunn's harbor grow. Porsgrunn became a busy market town with special trading rights.

In the 1700s, some of Norway's most important families lived in Porsgrunn. These included the Aalls, Cappelens, Løvenskiolds, and Deichmans. At this time, Porsgrunn was also seen as a cultural center in Norway. The city gained more city rights in 1807. It became a full municipality in 1838 and a full city in 1842.

Porsgrunn was once home to the Skomvær. This was the largest sailing ship in Norway. In 1985, a sculpture called Amphitrite, the wave and the sea birds was put up in Porsgrunn. This sculpture honors Porsgrunn's long history with the sea.

Geography of Porsgrunn

The river flowing through the town

Porsgrunn Municipality shares borders with other municipalities. To the north are Skien and Siljan. To the west is Bamble, and to the east is Larvik. Porsgrunn is part of the Grenland area in southern Telemark.

Important water bodies are found in the western part of the municipality. These include the Frierfjorden, Gunnekleivfjorden, and the mouth of the Porsgrunn River. The Herøya peninsula is southeast of the main city. It started as an industrial area but has grown into a part of the city. The Eidangerfjorden also runs through the middle of the municipality.

Porsgrunn's Industries

Porsgrunn is a major industrial center. It has a long history of heavy industry. Some important industries in Porsgrunn include:

Getting Around Porsgrunn

You can travel to and from Porsgrunn in several ways:

• Bus: Buses connect Porsgrunn to cities like Oslo, Kristiansand, and Notodden.
• Train: Trains stop at Porsgrunn Station.
  • The Vestfold Line goes to Drammen Station and then to Oslo Central Station.
  • The Bratsberg Line goes to Skien Station and Notodden Station.
• Ferry: There are ferries like the Fjordbåtene i Brevik.

Famous People from Porsgrunn

Cort Adeler

Severin Løvenskiold, 1854

Public Service and Leaders

• Cort Adeler (1622–1675), a Norwegian/Danish admiral.
• Niels Aall (1769–1854), a wealthy landowner and politician.
• Severin Løvenskiold (1777–1856), a nobleman and Prime Minister of Norway.
• Thobias Petter Wiibe (1815–1891), a politician and Mayor of Porsgrund.
• Niels Mathiesen (1829–1900), a politician and merchant.
• Jørgen Christian Knudsen (1843–1922), a ship-owner and politician.
• Johan Castberg (1862–1926), a politician and government minister.
• Carl P. Wright (1893–1961), a politician and Mayor of Porsgrunn.
• Erik Hesselberg (1914–1972), a sailor, author, painter, and crewmember of the Kon-Tiki expedition.
• Einar Tufte-Johnsen (1915–1985), an aviation officer and head of NATO Defense College.
• Finn Kristensen (born 1936), an electrician, trade union leader, and government minister.
• Ann-Marit Sæbønes (born 1945), a physiotherapist and the first female Mayor of Oslo.
• Mads Gilbert (born 1947), a doctor, humanitarian, and activist.
• Kristin Halvorsen (born 1960), a former political party leader and government minister.
• Vibeke Hein Bæra (born 1964), a lawyer.
• Robin Kåss (born 1977), a politician and Mayor of Porsgrunn.
• Torbjørn Røe Isaksen (born 1978), a former political leader and Minister of Education and Research.
• Kjetil Aleksander Lie (born 1980) & Espen Lie (born 1984), brothers who are chess players.

Business Leaders

• Hans Eleonardus Møller Sr. (1780–1860), a businessperson.
• Jørgen Wright Cappelen (1805–1878), a bookseller and publisher who helped start Cappelen Damm.
• Johan Jeremiassen (1843–1889), an entrepreneur and ship-owner who founded Porsgrund Porselænsfabrik.
• Petter Stordalen (born 1962), a billionaire businessman and hotel owner.

Artists and Performers

Halfdan Christensen, ca.1940

• Halfdan Christensen (1873–1950), a stage actor and theatre director.
• Tone Schwarzott (born 1941), an actress and poet.
• Yngvar Numme (born 1944), a singer, actor, and director.
• Bugge Wesseltoft (born 1964), a jazz musician and composer.
• Stephen Ackles (born 1966), a vocalist, pianist, and songwriter.
• Øyvind Torvund (born 1976), a composer.
• Aleksander Walmann (born 1986), a singer who represented Norway in Eurovision.
• Didrik Solli-Tangen (born 1987), a singer who represented Norway in Eurovision.
• Emil Solli-Tangen (born 1990), an opera singer.

Sports Stars

Rune Jarstein, 2019

• Jørgen Juve (1906–1983), a famous football player and Norway's highest scorer. He captained the team that won Olympic bronze in 1936.
• Cathrine Roll-Matthiesen (born 1967), a former handball player and Olympic silver medalist.
• Anita Valen (born 1968) & Monica Valvik (born 1970), sisters who are racing cyclists. They won many national championships.
• Ronny Deila (born 1975), a football manager and former player.
• Tony Capaldi (born 1981), a professional footballer.
• Rune Jarstein (born 1984), a football goalkeeper for clubs and the Norwegian national team.
• Espen Ruud (born 1984), a football defender for clubs and the Norwegian national team.
• Fredrik Nordkvelle (born 1985), a footballer.

Porsgrunn's Sister Cities

Porsgrunn has "sister city" relationships with these places:

• Kisumu, Kenya
• Pori, Finland
• Sigtuna, Sweden
• Sønderborg, Denmark
• Sundsvall, Sweden

See also

In Spanish: Porsgrunn para niños