# Karmsundet

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Strait in Rogaland, Norway

Karmsundet Karmsund (unofficial) View of the fjord and the electric pylons Location Rogaland county, Norway Coordinates 59°17′50″N 5°19′35″E / 59.29722°N 5.32639°E / 59.29722; 5.32639 Type Strait Primary inflows Røværsfjorden Primary outflows Boknafjorden Basin countries Norway Max. length 30 kilometres (19 mi) Settlements Haugesund, Kopervik Location Interactive map of the fjord

**Karmsundet**[1] is a [strait](/source/Strait) located in [Rogaland](/source/Rogaland) county, [Norway](/source/Norway). The 30-kilometre (19 mi) long strait separates the [island of Karmøy](/source/Karm%C3%B8y_(island)) on the west and the [mainland](/source/Mainland-Karm%C3%B8y) of Norway and island of [Vestre Bokn](/source/Vestre_Bokn) in the east. The strait runs through [Haugesund Municipality](/source/Haugesund_Municipality), [Karmøy Municipality](/source/Karm%C3%B8y_Municipality), and [Bokn Municipality](/source/Bokn_Municipality). The [town of Haugesund](/source/Haugesund_(town)) lies at the northern end of the strait and the town of [Kopervik](/source/Kopervik) lies in the central part of the strait, and the town of [Skudeneshavn](/source/Skudeneshavn) lies near the southern end where the strait flows into the [Boknafjorden](/source/Boknafjorden). The [Karmsund Bridge](/source/Karmsund_Bridge), a part of the [European route E134](/source/European_route_E134) highway, links Karmøy island to the mainland. The bridge was completed in 1955. The small islands of [Vibrandsøya](/source/Vibrands%C3%B8ya), [Risøya](/source/Ris%C3%B8y), and [Hasseløya](/source/Hassel%C3%B8y) lie in the strait at the northern end, just off shore from the town of Haugesund.[2]

Near the [Norsk Hydro](/source/Norsk_Hydro) Factory on Karmøy island, there are three powerlines that cross the Karmsundet on 143-metre (469 ft) tall electricity [pylons](/source/Transmission_tower), which are the tallest in Norway. A local newspaper in this area is named after the strait: *Karmsund Avis*.[3]

## History

The [eddic](/source/Elder_Edda) poem *[Grímnismál](/source/Gr%C3%ADmnism%C3%A1l)* says that [Thor](/source/Thor), the weather god, wades the straits at Karmsundet every morning on his way to [Yggdrasil](/source/Yggdrasil), the tree of life.

Standing above Karmsundet, near the town of [Haugesund](/source/Haugesund_(town)), is [Haraldshaugen](/source/Haraldshaugen), a monument commemorating the traditional burial site for several early Norwegian rulers, including [Harald I](/source/Harald_Fairhair).

The professor in [philology](/source/Philology) [Magnus Olsen](/source/Magnus_Olsen) wrote that the name of the country [Norway](/source/Norway#Etymology), which means the northbound route, refers to the inner-archipelago sailing route, which begins at Karmsund, and originally to the southernmost part of this sailing route, the home area of [Harald Fairhair](/source/Harald_Fairhair), the first king of Norway.

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-name_1-0)** ["Informasjon om stadnamn"](https://stadnamn.kartverket.no/fakta/1101). *Norgeskart* (in Norwegian). [Kartverket](/source/Norwegian_Mapping_Authority). Retrieved 2026-03-02.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-snl_2-0)** Thorsnæs, Geir, ed. (2024-11-27). ["Karmsundet"](https://snl.no/Karmsundet). *[Store norske leksikon](/source/Store_norske_leksikon)* (in Norwegian). Foreningen Store norske leksikon. Retrieved 2026-03-02.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** ["Karmsund Avis"](https://web.archive.org/web/20070102072939/http://www.karmsundavis.no/). Archived from [the original](http://www.karmsundavis.no) on 2007-01-02.

Authority control databases VIAF

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Karmsundet](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karmsundet) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karmsundet?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.