Name

The Old Norse form of the name was Hemsudalr. The second element is dalr, which means "dale" or "valley"; the first element is usually taken as the genitive case of the river name Hemsa (now Hemsil) of unknown derivation, although Sophus Bugge believed that it might derive from the Old Norse hemsa, hefnsa or hofn, meaning "going to pasture". The Norwegian word hems ("bed built in a small loft room") is named after the valley of Hemsedal.^[5]

Coat of arms

The coat of arms is from modern times. The arms were granted on 2 October 1992 and were designed by Stein Davidsen. The arms show a gold lynx head on a red background.^[6]

Number of minorities (1st and 2nd generation) in Hemsedal by country of origin in 2017^[7]

Ancestry	Number
Poland	130
Sweden	126
Denmark	65

Early history

Hemsedal stave church (Hemsedal stavkyrkje) is believed to have been built between 1207 and 1224, and is first mentioned, as Ecclesia Aamsodal, in the accounts and diaries of the Papal nuncios sent to Scandinavia to collect tithes in 1282–1324.^[8] In 1327 it was also mentioned under the name Skodvinar Kirkja i Hemsudali; this refers to alternate names of the farm where it stood, Kyrkjebøen: Skodvin and Skadengård. The church was dismantled in 1882.^[9]

Hemsedal Church (Hemsedal kyrkje) was built during 1882 as a replacement for Hemsedal stave church. It was constructed of wood on the basis of plans by architect Johannes Henrik Nissen. It has 500 seats. The organ was built in 1888 by Olsen & Jørgensens orgelfabrikk and was restored in 1976. The church is associated with the Hallingdal deanery of the Diocese of Tunsberg.^[10]

Hemsedal's economy has traditionally been based on agriculture. The valley had small and medium-sized farms that were widely scattered on the valley bottom on both sides of the river and along the slopes. Because of the high altitude, farming has concentrated for the most part on livestock and dairy, and use of summer shielings has been important for the farms, which could not find sufficient pasturage in the valley bottom. Most therefore had milking stations on the shielings.

In the 1647 cadastre there was only one farm in Hemsedal large enough to pay full taxes; there were 24 liable for half taxation and 15–16 assessed as disused. In addition, there were a number of enterprises that were not assessed tax. The estimated population was about 400 (the exact number is unknown). Until the mid-19th century, the population increased steadily. In 1845 there were 1,775 people in the village. However, the population declined again over the next 75 years. In 1920 it had fallen to 1,358, before once more starting to increase. ^[11]

Recent history

Aerial view of Hemsedal in winter

View of Hemsedal in summer from Tuv

Skogstad Hotell was completed in 1905 as the first hotel in the village. Before that, in the latter half of the 19th century, a road had been built through the village with the hope that it would become a major route to Western Norway. However, things changed dramatically with the opening of the Bergen Railway in 1909. Hemsedal once more became a detour, while upper Hallingdal took over as the main route.^[12]

After the World War II, new places to stay were established in the valley, such as Vangen Pensjonat (inn) at Tuv (1947) and Lykkjaheim Pensjonat (1953). A tourist agency was established in 1939 and in 1952 suggested building a ski lift in Hemsedal, but this did not happen until 1959, when Fossheim Pensjonat created the Tottenheisen, a 350-metre (1,150 ft) ski lift behind the inn at Ulsåk, serving the first piste in the village, Tottenløypa. However, this lift was torn down in 1961.^[13][14]

Hemsedal Skisenter opened at Holdeskaret in 1961, and a few years later, planning began for tourist development. Over the five years beginning in 1980, a series of new businesses aimed at tourists were established. The first chairlift, Olaheisen, opened in 1983. Tourism has continued to grow in economic significance for Hemsedal. More than half of visitors come from abroad. Hemsedal is now also popular in the summer season, due to opportunities for fishing, hiking, climbing, cycling, golf and other activities.^[15][16]

Mountains

• Hydalsberget
• Langebottfjellet
• Leinenosi

Skogshorn

Hemsedal Top 20

Tourism

One of the first tourists in Hemsedal was the Norwegian polar explorer Fritjof Nansen, who visited in 1898 and stayed at the Bjøberg Fjellstue. Today Hemsedal is a popular destination, with Hemsedal Skisenter the main attraction. About 70% of all visitors come in the winter season (December–May) and most of the remaining 30% in the summer months.^[15]

Hemsedal Skisenter is the second largest ski resort in Norway, with 44 km slopes. The ski centres in Hemsedal and Grøndalen were bought in 2000 by the Swedish company Sälenstjärnen, which changed its name the following year to SkiStar. Skistar also owns Trysil Ski Centre, Sälen and Åre, Vemedalen and Hammarbybacken in Sweden.^[18]