| Eidskog | |
| Former Name: | Eidskogen herred |
| Idnumber: | 3416 |
| County: | Innlandet |
| District: | Vinger / Glåmdal |
| Capital: | Skotterud |
| Established: | 1 Jan 1864 |
| Preceded: | Vinger Municipality |
| Demonym: | Eidskoging |
| Language: | Bokmål |
| Coatofarms: | Eidskog komm.svg |
| Webpage: | www.eidskog.kommune.no |
| Mayor: | Kamilla Thue |
| Mayor Party: | Ap |
| Mayor As Of: | 2015 |
| Elevation Max M: | 435 |
| Highest Point Ref: | [1] |
| Area Rank: | 181 |
| Area Total Km2: | 640.39 |
| Area Land Km2: | 603.37 |
| Area Water Km2: | 37.02 |
| Area Water Percent: | 5.8 |
| Population As Of: | 2025 |
| Population Rank: | 162 |
| Population Total: | 6059 |
| Population Density Km2: | 9.5 |
| Population Increase: | -3.4 |
| Coordinates: | 59.9981°N 12.0606°W |
Eidskog is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Vinger. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Skotterud. Other villages in the municipality include Magnor, Matrand, and Åbogen.
The 640km2 municipality is the 181st largest by area out of the 357 municipalities in Norway. Eidskog Municipality is the 162nd most populous municipality in Norway with a population of 6,059. The municipality's population density is and its population has decreased by 3.4% over the previous 10-year period.[2] [3]
The municipality was established on 1 January 1864 when the old Vinger Municipality was divided in two: Vinger Municipality (population: 6,226) in the north and Eidskog Municipality (population: 6,920) in the south. On 1 January 1986, the northern part of the Åbogen area (population: 14) was transferred from Kongsvinger Municipality to Eidskog Municipality.[4]
Historically, the municipality was part of the old Hedmark county. On 1 January 2020, the municipality became a part of the newly-formed Innlandet county (after Hedmark and Oppland counties were merged).[5]
The municipality is named Eidskog (non|Eiðaskógr) since it was an old name for the area. The first element is the plural genitive case of which means "isthmus" or in this situation, a "path between two lakes". The first element is which means "woods" or "forest". Thus the name means "the woods with the many Norse, Old: eiðs". (In historical times, people traveled in small boats on the lakes and the rivers, but they had to drag the boats over the Norse, Old: eids.)[6] Historically, the name of the municipality was spelled Eidskogen. On 3 November 1917, a royal resolution changed the spelling of the name of the municipality to Eidskog, removing the definite form ending -en.[7]
The coat of arms was granted on 12 September 1986. The official blazon is "Argent, a grouse sable regardant crested gules" (no|I sølv en svart orrhane med hodet vendt bakover). This means the arms have a field (background) has a tincture of argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The charge is a black grouse with a red comb. The design was chosen since this type of bird is a common inhabitant of the many forests in the municipality. Forestry is also one of the main sources of income in the area. The arms were designed by Stein Davidsen. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.[8] [9] [10]
The Church of Norway has two parishes (Norwegian: sokn) within Eidskog Municipality. It is part of the Solør, Vinger og Odal prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Hamar.
| Eidskog | Eidskog Church | Matrand | 1665 | |
| Magnor Church | Magnor | 1923 | ||
| Vestmarka | Vestmarka Church | Vestmarka | 1883 |
The municipality is located in the southeastern part of Innlandet county. It is bordered to the east and north by Kongsvinger Municipality, to the northwest by Sør-Odal Municipality, to the west by Nes Municipality and Aurskog-Høland Municipality (both in Akershus county), and to the south by Eda Municipality in Sweden.
The lakes Digeren, Mangen, and Skjervangen are all located in Eidskog Municipality. The highest point in the municipality is the 435m (1,427feet) tall mountain Hornkjølberget, just south of the border with Kongsvinger Municipality.
| Ancestry | Number | |
|---|---|---|
 Sweden | 138 | |
 Lithuania | 33 | |
 Thailand | 29 | |
| 26 | ||
 Poland | 24 | |
 Germany | 23 | |
 Denmark | 21 |
The way through Eidskog was also militarily important and many times through history has been the point of Swedish strikes into Hedmark. To defend against these assaults, a number of fortifications were built in the vicinity, including ones at Magnor and Matrand, but the chief fortification was Kongsvinger Fortress (to the north).
The last Swedish attack through Eidskog was in 1814 when Major General Carl Pontus Gahn on July 31 crossed the border and marched against Kongsvinger. His forces were stopped at Lier outside Kongsvinger on 2 August 1814 by troops led by Lieutenant Colonel Andreas Samuel Krebs (1769-1818) and retreated to Eidskog. On 4 August 1814, Krebs followed after to drive Swedish troops off Norwegian territory. The two forces met in the Battle of Matrand which was the bloodiest battle of the war and ended with a Norwegian victory.
Later in 1814, Norway was joined in union with Sweden and the confrontations at the Eidskog border ended.
The Soot Canal, constructed in 1849, has Norway's oldest sluice gates. It was the work of Engebret Soot (1786–1859). It was built to allow timber to be transported (floated) to the Halden sawmills. The canal was 1.5km (00.9miles) long and had 16 locks which extended from Lake Skjervangen at 185m (607feet) above sea level up to Lake Mortsjølungen at 201m (659feet) above sea level.
The route through Eidskog became an important connection between the two countries; this was strengthened with the opening of the Grenseban railway in 1862, which connected Christiania to Stockholm.
Eidskog Municipality is responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor is indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council.[12] The municipality is under the jurisdiction of the Romerike og Glåmdal District Court and the Eidsivating Court of Appeal.
The municipal council Norwegian: (Kommunestyre) of Eidskog Municipality is made up of 25 representatives that are elected to four year terms. The tables below show the current and historical composition of the council by political party.
The mayor (no|ordfører) of Eidskog Municipality is the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Here is a list of people who have held this position:[13]
. Norske gaardnavne: Hedmarkens amt . 1900 . W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri . 3 . Kristiania, Norge . 218 . no . Oluf Rygh.
