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Edgeøya (), occasionally anglicised as Edge Island, is a
Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...
island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
located in southeast of the
Svalbard Svalbard ( , ), also known as Spitsbergen, or Spitzbergen, is a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. North of mainland Europe, it is about midway between the northern coast of Norway and the North Pole. The islands of the group range ...
archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands. Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Archi ...
; with an area of , it is the third-largest island in this archipelago. An
Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...
island, it forms part of the
Søraust-Svalbard Nature Reserve Søraust-Svalbard Nature Reserve ( no, Søraust-Svalbard naturreservat) is located in the south-eastern part of the Svalbard archipelago in Norway. The nature reserve covers all of Edgeøya and Barentsøya in addition to a number of smaller island ...
, home to
polar bear The polar bear (''Ursus maritimus'') is a hypercarnivorous bear whose native range lies largely within the Arctic Circle, encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the largest extant bear specie ...
s and
reindeer Reindeer (in North American English, known as caribou if wild and ''reindeer'' if domesticated) are deer in the genus ''Rangifer''. For the last few decades, reindeer were assigned to one species, ''Rangifer tarandus'', with about 10 subspe ...
. An
ice field An ice field (also spelled icefield) is a mass of interconnected valley glaciers (also called mountain glaciers or alpine glaciers) on a mountain mass with protruding rock ridges or summits. They are often found in the colder climates and highe ...
covers its eastern side. The island takes its name from
Thomas Edge Thomas Edge (1587/88 – 29 December 1624) was an English merchant, whaler, and sealer who worked for the Muscovy Company in the first quarter of the 17th century. The son of Ellis Edge, Thomas Edge was born in the parish of Blackburn in Lancash ...
(died 1624), an
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
merchant and
whaler A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized vessel, designed or adapted for whaling: the catching or processing of whales. Terminology The term ''whaler'' is mostly historic. A handful of nations continue with industrial whaling, and one, Japa ...
. It is seldom visited today and development of tourist facilities is forbidden by law because of its nature reserve status.


History

The history of Edgeøya's discovery has been a matter of dispute. Thomas Edge, writing in 1622, claimed the island was discovered by one of his ships in 1616. However,
Joris Carolus Joris Carolus (–) was a Dutch cartographer and explorer who was employed by the Noordsche Compagnie and the Dutch East India Company. Career Carolus apparently was a native of Enkhuizen. After he lost a leg at the Siege of Ostend (1601–04) ...
, in a map published in 1614 and allegedly based on discoveries made by him the same year, shows what appears to be Edgeøya's south coast. Carolus showed the coastline split into two parts: "Onbekende Cust" (meaning "Unknown Coast" in Dutch) in the west, and "Morfyn" in the east. Islands are shown offshore of Morfyn. Martin Conway argued in 1901 that Carolus' chart indicated he discovered Edgeøya, but, as Wielder points out, Conway was ignorant of a map (engraved in 1612) by the
Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...
cartographer Cartography (; from grc, χάρτης , "papyrus, sheet of paper, map"; and , "write") is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an im ...
Petrus Plancius Petrus Plancius (; 1552 – 15 May 1622) was a Dutch-Flemish astronomer, cartographer and clergyman. He was born as Pieter Platevoet in Dranouter, now in Heuvelland, West Flanders. He studied theology in Germany and England. At the age of 24 he ...
, which illustrated a coastline to the east of Spitsbergen. The coastline, indented, with islands offshore, was labelled "Gerrits Eylant". Wielder believed this to be the first record of Edgeøya's south coast. Schilder, an expert on Dutch cartography, said Carolus merely copied both coastlines from earlier charts, while he believed that Plancius had copied some names from a chart by Mouris Willemsz, unknown to Wielder, that was published in 1608 or earlier by Cornelis Claeszoon (British Library, London). Willemsz's chart, which Schilder says shows Edgeøya labeled as "Groen Landt", doesn't show Edgeøya at all, but only shows a single coastline (not two) that is supposed to represent Spitsbergen. In fact, what appears to be Bjørnøya is shown to the southeast of Spitsbergen. Plancius had thus only created a duplicate Spitsbergen. Carolus, as well, made a duplicate Spitsbergen, as his ''Morfyn'' has an uncanny resemblance to Willemsz's ''Groen Landt''. This would indicate that the island would not have been discovered until 1616, as claimed by Edge. A 1617 letter written between the English whalers proves that Europeans had discovered the island at least at that late of date, or earlier, as Edge claims. Four Russian sailors were marooned on Edgeøya, or a small island off the coast of Edgeøya, from 1743 until September 1749. Three survived to tell an epic tale of survival. Author
David Roberts David or Dave Roberts may refer to: Arts and literature * David Roberts (painter) (1796–1864), Scottish painter * David Roberts (art collector), Scottish contemporary art collector * David Roberts (novelist), English editor and mystery writer ...
wrote a book about his research on this story, ''Four Against The Arctic.'' He concluded, although not definitively, that the men were probably on a small island to the southeast of Edgeøya called
Halvmåneøya Halvmåneøya ( en, Half Moon Island) is a small, uninhabited Norwegian island off the southeastern coast of Edgeøya, part of the Svalbard archipelago. Halvmåneøya, as part of Edgeøya, has been a nature preserve since 1973, and visitation is st ...
, or Half Moon Island. While no major settlement grew upon Edgeøya, whaling and
walrus The walrus (''Odobenus rosmarus'') is a large pinniped, flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous distribution about the North Pole in the Arctic Ocean and subarctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. The walrus is the only living species in ...
hunting Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
were extensive industries in the area. Remains of these can be found offshore of Edgeøya, on
Bölscheøya Bölscheøya ( en, Bölsche Island) is an island southwest of Negerpynten, the southeastern point of Edgeøya. It is part of Thousand Islands. The island was named in 1868 by the German geographer August Petermann (1822–78) after the German j ...
in the
Thousand Islands The Thousand Islands (french: Mille-Îles) constitute a North American archipelago of 1,864 islands that straddles the Canada–US border in the Saint Lawrence River as it emerges from the northeast corner of Lake Ontario. They stretch for abo ...
group.


Geography and ecology

Edgeøya is located at
geographical co-ordinates The geographic coordinate system (GCS) is a spherical or ellipsoidal coordinate system for measuring and communicating positions directly on the Earth as latitude and longitude. It is the simplest, oldest and most widely used of the various ...
. To the west lies Storfjorden, which separates Edgeøya from
Spitsbergen Spitsbergen (; formerly known as West Spitsbergen; Norwegian: ''Vest Spitsbergen'' or ''Vestspitsbergen'' , also sometimes spelled Spitzbergen) is the largest and the only permanently populated island of the Svalbard archipelago in northern Norw ...
. To the north, the
sound In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...
known as Freemansundet lies between Edgeøya and
Barentsøya Barentsøya, sometimes anglicized as Barents Island, is an island in the Svalbard archipelago of Norway, lying between Edgeøya and Spitsbergen. Barents Island has no permanent human inhabitants. Named for the Dutch explorer Willem Barents (who ...
. In the northeast,
Olgastretet Olgastretet (English: Olga Strait) is a strait in the Svalbard archipelago, separating Edgeøya and Barentsøya from Svenskøya of the Kong Karls Land. The strait takes its name from Olga Nikolaevna of Russia Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Ru ...
separates Edgeøya from
Kong Karls Land Kong Karls Land or King Charles Land is an island group in the Svalbard archipelago, in the Arctic Ocean. The island group covers an area of and is made up of the islands of Kongsøya, Svenskøya, Abel Island, Helgoland Island, and Tirpitzøya. ...
. Minor island groups lay to the east ( Ryke Yseøyane) and to the south (
Thousand Islands The Thousand Islands (french: Mille-Îles) constitute a North American archipelago of 1,864 islands that straddles the Canada–US border in the Saint Lawrence River as it emerges from the northeast corner of Lake Ontario. They stretch for abo ...
). The island's south coast in indented by its largest
fjord In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Ice ...
, Tjuvfjorden. The island's northernmost point is Kapp Heuglin, a cape named in August 1870 for the
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
explorer
Theodor von Heuglin Martin Theodor von Heuglin (20 March 1824, Hirschlanden, Württemberg5 November 1876), was a German explorer and ornithologist. Biography Heuglin was born in Hirschlanden (now part of Ditzingen) in Württemberg. His father was a Protestant past ...
(1824–76), during the Heuglin-Zeil expedition.
Geologically Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other E ...
, the island resembles central Spitsbergen, with
Mesozoic The Mesozoic Era ( ), also called the Age of Reptiles, the Age of Conifers, and colloquially as the Age of the Dinosaurs is the second-to-last era of Earth's geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceo ...
rocks (specifically,
Triassic The Triassic ( ) is a geologic period and system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.36 Mya. The Triassic is the first and shortest period ...
shale Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4) and tiny fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especial ...
s with subordinate
sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...
s, with occasional
diabase Diabase (), also called dolerite () or microgabbro, is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies and often exhibit fine-graine ...
intrusions, and, in the southwest,
strata In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as ei ...
from the
Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The J ...
), the effects of glacial
erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is distin ...
, and appearance of
polar ice cap A polar ice cap or polar cap is a high-latitude region of a planet, dwarf planet, or natural satellite that is covered in ice. There are no requirements with respect to size or composition for a body of ice to be termed a polar ice cap, nor a ...
s. On the eastern side of the island is the large glacier of Edgeøyjøkulen. Along with Barentsøya and some of the neighbouring islands, Edgeøya forms part of South East Svalbard Nature Reserve, established by the Norwegian government in 1973. There is a significant reindeer population, and the island is an important site for
polar bear The polar bear (''Ursus maritimus'') is a hypercarnivorous bear whose native range lies largely within the Arctic Circle, encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the largest extant bear specie ...
reproduction Reproduction (or procreation or breeding) is the biological process by which new individual organisms – "offspring" – are produced from their "parent" or parents. Reproduction is a fundamental feature of all known life; each individual or ...
; moreover, the polar bear population in this Barents Sea area is a unique
deme In Ancient Greece, a deme or ( grc, δῆμος, plural: demoi, δημοι) was a suburb or a subdivision of Athens and other city-states. Demes as simple subdivisions of land in the countryside seem to have existed in the 6th century BC and ear ...
(unique genetic population).C. Michael Hogan, 2008


In popular culture

Edgeøya is the setting for the novel ''The Solitude of Thomas Cave'' (2007), by Georgina Harding, in which the title character, on a wager, successfully over-winters on the island in 1616–17. It is also the setting for the book ''Four Against the Arctic'' by David Roberts, which tells the true story of 4 Pomory sailors who spent 6 years on the island after their ship was destroyed.


See also

*
List of islands of Norway This is a list of islands of Norway sorted by name. For a list sorted by area, see List of islands of Norway by area. A * Alden * Aldra * Algrøy * Alsta * Altra * Anda * Andabeløya * Andørja * Andøya, Vesterålen * Andøya, Agder * Ar ...


Line notes


References


Kapp Heuglin
in the Svalbard place names database,
Norwegian Polar Institute The Norwegian Polar Institute (NPI; no, Norsk Polarinstitutt) is Norway's central governmental institution for scientific research, mapping and environmental monitoring in the Arctic and the Antarctic. The NPI is a directorate under Norway's Min ...
(URL accessed 29 July 2006) * C. Michael Hogan (2008
''Polar Bear: ''Ursus maritimus'', globalTwitcher.com, ed. Nicklas Stromberg
* David Roberts, ''Four Against the Arctic: Shipwrecked for Six Years at the Top of the World'' * Website specifically dedicated t

including background regarding geology, flora and fauna, photos.
Svalbard Images (2008) ''Edgeøya''
* Günter Schilder (1984) "Development and Achievements of Dutch Northern and Arctic Cartography in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries", in: ''Arctic''; Vol. 37, No. 4, December 1984. *
Svalbard place names database: Edgeøya in the Norwegian Polar Institute
(URL accessed 29 July 2006) {{DEFAULTSORT:Edgeoya Islands of Svalbard Uninhabited islands of Norway