Jostedalsbreen National Park (Norwegian: Jostedalsbreen nasjonalpark) is a national park in Norway that includes the largest glacier on the European mainland, Jostedalsbreen. The park was created by a royal order on October 25, 1991, and later expanded to the northwest in 1998. The park now covers an area of 1,310 square kilometers (510 square miles), with glaciers covering approximately 800 square kilometers (310 square miles) of the park.

Location

The park is located in the municipalities of Luster, Sogndal, Gloppen, Sunnfjord, and Stryn, all of which are in Vestland county. There are three museums and visitor centers: the Breheimsenteret in Jostedalen, the Jostedalsbreen nasjonalparksenter in Oppstryn (Stryn Municipality), and the Norsk bremuseum in Fjærland (Sogndal Municipality).

Topography

The highest point in the park is Lodalskåpa, which reaches 2,083 meters (6,834 feet). The glacier's highest point, Brenibba, is located at 2,018 meters (6,621 feet) above sea level, while its lowest point is at 350 meters (1,150 feet) above sea level. In recent years, the glacier has gotten smaller. There are also ruins of farms that the glacier covered in 1750.

Name

The park is named after the main glacier found there, called Jostedalsbreen. The first part of the glacier's name comes from the old Jostedal Municipality. The second part is a specific form of the word "bre," which means "glacier."