Steigen Municipality

Steigen (Norwegian pronunciation: [ˈstæɪɡn̩])[needs pitched IPA] is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway.

During the 1960s, there were many municipal mergers across Norway due to the work of the Schei Committee.

This is referring to the high and steep mountain Steigtinden (-tinden means "the peak") behind the farm.

[9] The coat of arms was granted on 12 October 1988, but they were not formally approved by the government until 11 January 1991.

The official blazon is "Or three axe blades sable in bend" (Norwegian: I gull tre svarte øksehoder i skrå rekke).

The arms were designed by Henry Tømmerås, the municipal cultural secretary at the time.

The municipality is located along the coast of the Vestfjorden, about 100 kilometres (62 mi) north of the town of Bodø, well inside the Arctic Circle.

The road to Steigen departs from European route E6 and makes use of the 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) long Steigentunnelen (see World's longest tunnels).

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Steigen is made up of 17 representatives that are elected for four year terms.

The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.

Brennviksanden beach and Vestfjord seen from the 1048 m high mountain Kråktind
Steigen winter panorama