Gudbrandsdalen

Gudbrandsdalen is a valley and traditional district in the Norwegian fylke (county) of Oppland. The valley is oriented in a north-westerly direction from Lillehammer at Lake Mjøsa, extending 230 km toward Romsdal. The large river Gudbrandsdalslågen flows through the valley, starting from Lesjaskogsvatnet and ending in lake Mjøsa.

The long valley is divided into three parts: Norddalen (the municipalities of Lesja, Dovre, Skjåk, Lom, Vågå, and Sel); Midtdalen (the municipalities of Nord-Fron, Sør-Fron, and Ringebu); and Sørdalen (the municipalities of Øyer, Gausdal, and Lillehammer).

The name
The name Gudbrandsdalen means 'the valley/dale of Gudbrand'. The "en" means "the". Gudbrand (Norse Guðbrandr) is an old male name compounded of guð m 'god' and brandr m 'sword'. This was probably a title used by the kings of the valley living at Hundorp.

History
Gudbrandsdalen is shaped by the recent ice age and rivers from the present glacial areas in Jotunheimen and Dovre. Bones and teeth from mammoths and musk oxen, living in the area at that time, are found in the valley.

Stone Age - Several traces of hunters are found in the valley (and in the mountain areas around). Of special interest is a rock carving of elks in the northern part of Lillehammer.

1015 - Gudbrandsdalen is mentioned extensively in the Heimskringla (The Chronicle of the Kings of Norway) by Snorri Sturlson. The account of King Olaf's (A.D. 1015-1021) conversion of Dale-Gudbrand to Christianity is popularly recognized.

1206 The heir of the Norwegian throne, Håkon Håkonsson, is saved by birkebeiners with a ski-run from Lillehammer to Rena.

1349 to 1350 – The Black Plague halved the population in Gudbrandsdalen. This resulted in a temporary improvement for the lower classes as crofters became scarce and even the poor were able to rent the better farms in the bottom lands.

1537 - During the Reformation the Church was subordinated to the “lendmenn” or sheriff. Church property was appropriated by the Crown and the King became the biggest Gudbrandsdalen landowner.

1612 - Near Otta in Gudbrandsdalen, was the Battle of Kringen where local peasants in 1612 defeated the Scottish mercenary army. The legends of this battle live on to this day, including the story of how the peasant girl Prillar-Guri lured the Scots into an ambush by playing the traditional ram's horn.

1670 to 1725 – Most of the royal property was sold off to pay for war debts, first to established property holders, but increasingly to peasant proprietors. A freeholder’s era began and a new “upper class” of land holders was formed.

1789 "Storofsa" - the greatest flood recorded in Gudbrandsdalen: Several farms devastated, and many people killed.

1827 the city of Lillehammer is established.

1856 the paddle steamer Skibladner on the lake Mjøsa and Hovedbanen (the first railroad in Norway) connect Gudbrandsdalen to Christiania.

1904 The outdoor museum of Maihaugen, exhibiting old houses from all parts of Gudbrandsdalen, opens at Lillehammer.

1921 Dovrebanen, the railway between Oslo and Trondheim through Gudbrandsdalen, is finished and opens.

1940 Severe fighting in Gudbrandsdalen at Tretten and Kvam, trying to stop the German advance.

1994 The 1994 Winter Olympics are celebrated at Lillehammer.

Towns

 * Lillehammer
 * Ringebu
 * Otta

Mountain areas close to the valley

 * Jotunheimen
 * Rondane
 * Dovre

Named for Gudbrandsdal

 * Gudbrandsdalsost
 * Gudbrandsdalsbunad
 * Dølahest (Dole Gudbrandsdal)
 * Dølafe