Ivetofta

Story

Ivetofta is a village and a suburb of Bromölla, in Skåne County in southern Sweden. With a history going back to the 12th century, it was once a rural municipality in the former Kristianstad County. It lies on the eastern bank of Ivö Lake, between Ivö and the smaller lake Levrasjön. The Ivetofta Local Historical Society was founded in 1981 and as of 2013 has nearly 500 members.GeographyThe village is located between Ivösjön and Hanöbukten, and consists of the forested Ryssberget hill and sandy plains which are cultivated. The habitats are characterized as pine forest, deciduous forest, meadow, pasture, and grassy heath.HistoryThe name is first documented in 1319 as Ywätoffte. It stems from the old name Ivösjön, the Ivö Lake, and "toft" meaning farm. Bromölla, of which Ivetofta is a suburb, came to be established initially as a borough when limestone was found nearby, and later became a municipality. The origin of its name is attributed to a mill named Bromölla which existed on the bank of the Skräbe River and is dated to the 1460s. A ceramic vessel discovered at Ivetofta attests to prehistoric hunter-gatherers who predated farming here. Palaeontological finds include Plesiosaurian bone fragments which were provided to the Palaeontological Institute of Lund in 1961 from a borehole, while archaeology has uncovered cremation urns from pits estimated as Late Bronze Age.