Haugesund

Haugesund ([ˈhæʉɡəsʉn] ) is a town in Haugesund Municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The town is located along the Karmsundet strait on the southwest coast of Norway. The town lies about 60 kilometres (37 mi) north of the city of Stavanger and about 120 kilometres (75 mi) south of the city of Bergen. The 21.42-square-kilometre (5,290-acre) town has a population (2025) of 47,346 and a population density of 2,210 inhabitants per square kilometre (5,700/sq mi). The town of Haugesund dominates the landscape of the area. About 15.54 square kilometres (6.00 sq mi) of the municipality (about 21% of the municipality) is covered by the urban area of the town of Haugesund. The remaining area of the municipality (about 79% of the land area) is very rural. The portion of the municipality including the urban town of Haugesund has about 37,600 residents, while the rural portion of the municipality has about 1,000 residents. The town of Haugesund has grown to the south, so a portion of the urban town crosses over into Karmøy Municipality. The 5.88-square-kilometre (2.27 sq mi) area of the town located in Karmøy has about 9,700 residents.