Rygge
Encyclopedia
Rygge is a municipality
Municipalities of Norway
Norway is divided into 19 administrative regions, called counties , and 430 municipalities...

 in Østfold
Østfold
is a county in southeastern Norway, bordering Akershus and southwestern Sweden , while Buskerud and Vestfold is on the other side of the bay. The seat of the county administration is Sarpsborg, and Fredrikstad is the largest city.Many manufacturing facilities are situated here. Moss and...

 county
Counties of Norway
Norway is divided into 19 administrative regions, called counties . The counties form the primary first-level subdivisions of Norway and are further divided into 430 municipalities...

, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rygge. Rygge was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt
Formannskapsdistrikt
Formannskapsdistrikt was the name for a Norwegian local self-government districts put into force in 1838. This system of municipality was created in a bill approved by the Storting and signed into law by King Carl Johan on 14 January 1837...

).

The emblem of Rygge is the Pasque flower
Pulsatilla vulgaris
Pulsatilla vulgaris belongs to the buttercup family , native to western, central and southern Europe....

. Rygge is connected to Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...

 by double-tracked railway, and four-lane motorway.

Name

The municipality (originally the parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...

) is named after the old Rygge farm, since the first church was built there. The Old Norse
Old Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....

 form of the name is not known (the oldest manuscripts from 1353-1528 use the form "Ryg(g)jof"). A possible (but uncertain) reconstruction is Rýgjuhof. The first element would then be the genitive case
Genitive case
In grammar, genitive is the grammatical case that marks a noun as modifying another noun...

 of rýgja, a sideform of rýgr which means "lady". (Like ylgja to ylgr, both forms with the meaning 'she-wolf'.) The last element is probably hof meaning "temple
Temple
A temple is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities, such as prayer and sacrifice, or analogous rites. A templum constituted a sacred precinct as defined by a priest, or augur. It has the same root as the word "template," a plan in preparation of the building that was marked out...

". If this is correct, then the word rýgja most probably is referring to the goddess Freyja, since the meaning of the word freyja also is 'lady'.

An alternative explanation is that the word is derived from "rygg", which means "ridge", and related to place names like "Ryen" further east. The "ridge" in question would be the end moraine
Moraine
A moraine is any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris which can occur in currently glaciated and formerly glaciated regions, such as those areas acted upon by a past glacial maximum. This debris may have been plucked off a valley floor as a glacier advanced or it may have...

 that runs across the landscape here, from the other side of the fjord
Fjord
Geologically, a fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created in a valley carved by glacial activity.-Formation:A fjord is formed when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley by abrasion of the surrounding bedrock. Glacial melting is accompanied by rebound of Earth's crust as the ice...

 and stretching east through Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

 and into the Baltic region
Baltic region
The terms Baltic region, Baltic Rim countries, and Baltic Rim refer to slightly different combinations of countries in the general area surrounding the Baltic Sea.- Etymology :...

. In Østfold, this moraine is referred to as the "Raet
Vestfoldraet
Vestfoldraet is a large, visible but mostly covered ground moraine formed during the last Ice Age, which stretches through most of Vestfold county in Norway in a south-west to north-east direction...

"
.

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...

 is from modern times. They were granted on 30 November 1984. The arms shows a golden spur
Spur
A spur is a metal tool designed to be worn in pairs on the heels of riding boots for the purpose of directing a horse to move forward or laterally while riding. It is usually used to refine the riding aids and to back up the natural aids . The spur is used in every equestrian discipline...

 on a red background. A spur like this was found in the area that dated back to the Viking Age
Viking Age
Viking Age is the term for the period in European history, especially Northern European and Scandinavian history, spanning the late 8th to 11th centuries. Scandinavian Vikings explored Europe by its oceans and rivers through trade and warfare. The Vikings also reached Iceland, Greenland,...

. It is one of the largest golden items that was ever found in Norway and was thus chosen as a symbol on the arms.

Military

Rygge Air Station
Rygge Air Station
Rygge Air Station is located in the municipalities of Rygge and Råde in Østfold, Norway. The Royal Norwegian Air Force operates various squadron and aircraft at the airbase, including Sea King helicopters, F-5 Freedom Fighters, Dassault Falcon 20 aircraft as well as Bell 412 helicopters...

 replaced a temporary airfield constructed by German forces
Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany started with the German invasion of Norway on April 9, 1940, and ended on May 8, 1945, after the capitulation of German forces in Europe. Throughout this period, Norway was continuously occupied by the Wehrmacht...

 during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. The contemporary airfield, northeast of the highway and main railway is situated in Rygge and its neighbouring municipality Råde
Råde
Råde is a municipality in Østfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Karlshus. The parish of Raade was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 ....

. It was constructed from 1952–1954 and until recently it was one of the largest establishments of the Royal Norwegian Air Force
Royal Norwegian Air Force
The Royal Norwegian Air Force is the air force of Norway. It was established as a separate arm of the Norwegian armed forces on 10 November 1944. The RNoAF's peace force is approximately 1,430 employees . 600 personnel also serve their draft period in the RNoAF...

. The military use of the airfield is now much reduced. A civilian air terminal Moss Airport, Rygge
Moss Airport, Rygge
Moss Airport, Rygge is an international airport serving Moss, Oslo and Eastern Norway, located in Rygge. It is both a regional airport for Østfold as well as an airport for low-cost airlines. The airport is located outside Moss and outside Oslo and is owned and operated by the private company...

, was opened in early 2008.

External links

  • Municipal fact sheet from Statistics Norway
    Statistics Norway
    Statistics Norway is the Norwegian statistics bureau. It was established in 1876.Relying on a staff of about 1,000, Statistics Norway publish about 1,000 new statistical releases every year on its web site. All releases are published both in Norwegian and English...

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