What does BIRI stand for? 

Biri

Biri is a village in the municipality of Gjøvik, Oppland county, Norway. It was formerly classified as a municipality. The parish of Biri was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838. On 1 January 1910, the district Snertingdal was divided from Biri to form a municipality of its own, leaving Biri with 2,815 inhabitants. On 1 January 1964, Biri was incorporated into the neighboring municipality of Gjøvik. Prior to the merger, Biri had 3,274 inhabitants. Biri was the center of several small villages including Biri Øverbygd, Udahlsroa and Klomsteinroa. This has traditionally been an agricultural and forestry community. The village of Biri had a population of 1,389 inhabitants as of 1 January 2009. It is located at Mjøsa Bridge on the west side of Mjøsa lake, between Lillehammer and Gjøvik. The Vismunda river, which drains into Mjøsa, has been an important lifeline. Biri church is a cruciform church dating from 1777. Built of timber, it has 450 seats. The church was erected after the original church burned down. In 1890 there was another major fire, this time at the Biri parsonage. The fire also destroyed church records for 1789-1814 and 1854-1877. In April 2007, major damage in the church led to an extensive rehabilitation.

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