Originally, Skåre encompassed the far northwestern corner of Rogaland county on the mainland, plus several islands off the western coast.

[4] The municipality (originally the parish) is named after the old Skara farm (Old Norse: Skára) since the first Skåre Church was built there.

The name likes derives from the word skor which means "a rift in a rock".

[8] The municipal council (Herredsstyre) of Skåre was made up of 25 representatives that were elected to four year terms.

The party breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows: The mayors (Norwegian: ordfører) of Skåre (incomplete list):