Hisøy

Former municipality in Aust Agder, Norway
the former municipality in southern Norway

Hisøy (historically: Hisø) is a former municipality in the old Aust Agder county in Norway. The municipality existed from 1881 until 1992 when it was merged into the municipality of Arendal in what is now Agder county. At the time of its dissolution, it was the smallest municipality in the whole county. The municipality encompassed the islands of Hisøya, Gjervoldsøy, Havsøya, Ærøya, Store Torungen, Lille Torungen, and several other small, unpopulated islands. The administrative centre was the village of Kolbjørnsvik on Hisøya island. Hisøy Church was the main church for the municipality, located in the village of His in the central part of Hisøya.

The municipality of Hisø was created on 1 January 1881 when the municipality of Øyestad was split into Øyestad (population: 4,474) and Hisø (population: 2,652). On 1 January 1992, there was a major municipal merger involving Hisøy. The municipalities of Hisøy (population: 4,026), Tromøy (population: 4,711), Øyestad (population: 8,679), Moland (population: 8,148), and the town of Arendal (population: 12,478) all merged, forming a new, much larger municipality of Arendal.

The municipality (originally the parish) is named Hisøy (or historically Hisø) after the old His farm since the first Hisøy Church was built there. The meaning of the first element of the name is uncertain. It could come from the word hís which means "the cut" (possibly referring to how the river Nidelva turns near the island). Another The last element is øy which means "island". Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Hisø. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to His. On 19 July 1930, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Hisøy.

The coat of arms for Hisøy municipality was granted on 12 December 1986 and it was in use until 31 December 1991 when the municipality ceased to exist. The official blazon is "Gules, two lighthouses argent issuant from the base" (I rødt to oppvoksende sølv fyrtårn). This means the arms have a red field (background) and the charge is two twin lighthouses. The lighthouses have a tincture of argent which means they are commonly colored white, but if the arms are made out of metal, then silver is used. The lighthouses were chosen to represent the two local lighthouses: Store Torungen Lighthouse and Lille Torungen Lighthouse which mark the waters around the island of Hisøya and the entrance to the harbour for the town of Arendal. The arms were designed by Thorleif Bredesen.

While it existed, this municipality was responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, unemployment, social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads. During its existence, this municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.

The municipal council (Herredsstyre) of Hisøy was made up of representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.