Klaksvík is the second largest town of the
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark.
They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...
behind
Tórshavn
Tórshavn (; lit. "Thor's harbour"), usually locally referred to as simply ''Havn'', is the capital and largest city of the Faroe Islands. It is located in the southern part on the east coast of Streymoy. To the northwest of the city lies the ...
. The town is located on
Borðoy
Borðoy ( da, Bordø) is an island in the north-east of the Faroe Islands. Its name means 'headland island'. There are eight settlements: Klaksvík (the second largest town in the Faroes), Norðoyri, Ánir, Árnafjørður, Strond, Norðtoftir, ...
, which is one of the northernmost islands (the
Norðoyar
The six islands in the northeast of the Faroe Islands are together referred to as Norðoyar, i.e. the Northern Isles ( da, Norderøerne). These Islands from west to east are Kalsoy, Kunoy, Borðoy, Viðoy, Svínoy and Fugloy. Klaksvík
Klak ...
). It is the administrative centre of
Klaksvík municipality
Klaksvík Municipality (Klaksvíkar kommuna) is a municipality of the Faroe Islands. The town of Klaksvík is the administrative centre.
Its area comprises the majority of the islands of Borðoy, Kalsoy and Svínoy (added 1 January 2009).
It ...
.
History
![KlaksvikHouse](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/KlaksvikHouse.jpg)
The first settlement at Klaksvík dates back to Viking times, but it was not until the 20th century that the district merged to form a large, modern Faroese town that became a cultural and commercial centre for the Northern Isles and the Faroe Islands as a whole.
Klaksvík is located between two inlets lying back to back. It has an important harbour with fishing industry and a modern fishing fleet. Originally, four farms were located where Klaksvík is now. In time, they grew into four villages: Vágur, Myrkjanoyri, Gerðar and Uppsalir; which finally merged to form the town of Klaksvík in 1938. What triggered the development of the town was the establishment of a centralized store for all the northern islands on the location.
The
brewery
A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of be ...
Föroya Bjór
Föroya Bjór is a Faroese brewing company based in Klaksvík. Apart from beers the company also produces soft drinks. It was established in 1888 in Klaksvík.
History
In 1883 Símun F. Hansen went to Denmark to learn the art of brewing and baki ...
in Klaksvík is a Faroese family brewery, founded in 1888. The ram has been the symbol of the brewery since the early beginning. Since August 2007, when
Restorffs Bryggjarí
Restorffs Bryggjarí was a Faroe Islands, Faroese brewing company established by the Danish-German immigrant Martin Christian Restorff in 1849.
Restorffs Bryggjarí was situated in the capítal Tórshavn, where the majority of its beer produc ...
went out of business, Föroya Bjór has been the only producer of beer and soft drinks in the Faroe Islands.
With the opening of the
Leirvík
Leirvík ( da, Lervig) is a town on the Faroe Islands and was an important regional ferry harbour at the east coast of the second-largest island Eysturoy. Leirvík has a population of 1,048 (2022).
It was the only town in the municipality of Lei ...
sub-sea tunnel, the
Norðoyatunnilin
Norðoyatunnilin (''The Northern Isles Tunnel'') is a two-lane road tunnel under the Leirvíksfjørður in the Faroe Islands. It connects the islands of Eysturoy and Borðoy. The tunnel is 6.2 km long and goes down to a depth of 150 metre ...
in April 2006, Klaksvík gained a physical link with the mainland of the Faroe Islands and can now be considered one of its key ports. Several developments are under way to exploit this symbiosis, including a new industrial park located by the tunnel entrance. Klaksvík is home to
Summarfestivalurin Summarfestivalurin (the Summer Festival) is a musical festival in Klaksvík in the Faroe Islands, established in 2004.
History
2004
Summarfestivalurin - The Summer Festival - was held for the first time in August 2004 in Klaksvík in the Faroe ...
.
Notable buildings
Christianskirkjan, built in 1963, is the first one in modern times in
Scandinavia
Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...
to be built in Norse style. The roof construction is the same as that found in the Viking halls, and which has survived in Faroese smoke rooms (kitchens) and village churches. This open roof construction has proved to be especially suitable for church buildings, as the acoustics in this church are better than in others of a similar size. The church is dedicated to the memory of the sailors who lost their lives during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. Hanging from the ceiling is an old 8-man rowing-boat, from
Viðareiði
Viðareiði (pronounced , literally: ''Wood-Isthmus'', da, Viderejde) is the northernmost settlement in the Faroe Islands and lies on the Island of Viðoy, which belongs to the Norðoyar Region.
Geography
It lies on an isthmus with high mountai ...
, it was used to transport the priest between villages.
Transport
Klaksvík used to be an isolated town until 2006 when the
Norðoyatunnilin
Norðoyatunnilin (''The Northern Isles Tunnel'') is a two-lane road tunnel under the Leirvíksfjørður in the Faroe Islands. It connects the islands of Eysturoy and Borðoy. The tunnel is 6.2 km long and goes down to a depth of 150 metre ...
opened. A frequent bus service now links the town to
Tórshavn
Tórshavn (; lit. "Thor's harbour"), usually locally referred to as simply ''Havn'', is the capital and largest city of the Faroe Islands. It is located in the southern part on the east coast of Streymoy. To the northwest of the city lies the ...
, while smaller services operate to
Fuglafjørður
Fuglafjørður is a village on Eysturoy's east coast in the Faroe Islands. Its name means "fjord of birds".
The village is at the edge of a bay and expands into the surrounding steep hills.
The town centre is located close to the harbour and ...
,
Kunoy
Kunoy (meaning ''Woman island'', is an island located in the north-east of the Faroe Islands between Kalsoy to the west (with which there is no physical link) and Borðoy to the east (to which it is linked via a causeway).
Settlements and transp ...
and
Viðareiði
Viðareiði (pronounced , literally: ''Wood-Isthmus'', da, Viderejde) is the northernmost settlement in the Faroe Islands and lies on the Island of Viðoy, which belongs to the Norðoyar Region.
Geography
It lies on an isthmus with high mountai ...
. Also it has remained the ferry port for
Kalsoy
Kalsoy ( da, Kalsø) is an island in the north-east of the Faroe Islands of Denmark between Eysturoy and Kunoy. The name means man island; by contrast with the parallel island to the east, Kunoy, the name of which means woman island.
The northern ...
. Since 2014, a city bus (Bussleiðin) connects the outlying parts with the city centre, and taxis offer additional services. The bus services and the ferry to Kalsoy are operated by
Strandfaraskip Landsins, the public transport company of the Faroe Islands. There is a
helipad
A helipad is a landing area or platform for helicopters and powered lift aircraft.
While helicopters and powered lift aircraft are able to operate on a variety of relatively flat surfaces, a fabricated helipad provides a clearly marked hard s ...
which mainly has flights to isolated islands like
Fugloy
Fugloy ( Danish ''Fuglø'', Old Norse ''Fuglaey'') is the easternmost island in the Faroe Islands.
The name means ''bird island,'' and refers to the large number of birds that nest on the island's cliffs.
Geography
There are two settlements:
...
and
Svínoy
Svínoy ( da, Svinø) is an island located in the north-east of the Faroe Islands, to the east of Borðoy and Viðoy. It takes its name from Old Norse, Svíney, meaning "Swine Isle". Svinoy also refers to a section of the ocean where North Atlanti ...
, as well as to Tórshavn.
Twin towns - Sister cities
Klaksvik is
twinned with:
* -
Sisimiut
Sisimiut (), formerly known as Holsteinsborg, is the capital and largest city of the Qeqqata municipality, the second-largest city in Greenland, and the largest Arctic city in North America.The term 'city' is loosely used to describe any popula ...
,
Greenland
Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...
* -
Kópavogur
Kópavogur () is a town in Iceland that is the country's second largest municipality by population.
It lies immediately south of Reykjavík and is part of the Capital Region. The name literally means ''seal pup inlet''. The town seal contains th ...
,
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
* -
Trondheim
Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...
,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
* -
Norrköping
Norrköping (; ) is a city in the province of Östergötland in eastern Sweden and the seat of Norrköping Municipality, Östergötland County, about 160 km southwest of the national capital Stockholm, 40 km east of county seat Linköp ...
,
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
* -
Tampere
Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city in the Pirkanmaa region, located in the western part of Finland. Tampere is the most populous inland city in the Nordic countries. It has a population of 244,029; the urban area has a population o ...
,
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
* -
Odense
Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (behind Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2022, the city proper had a population of 180,863 while Odense Municipality had a population of 20 ...
,
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
* -
Taiji
Tai chi (), short for Tai chi ch'üan ( zh, s=太极拳, t=太極拳, first=t, p=Tàijíquán, labels=no), sometimes called " shadowboxing", is an internal Chinese martial art practiced for defense training, health benefits and meditation. T ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
since 2018
* -
Wick
Wick most often refers to:
* Capillary action ("wicking")
** Candle wick, the cord used in a candle or oil lamp
** Solder wick, a copper-braided wire used to desolder electronic contacts
Wick or WICK may also refer to:
Places and placename ...
,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
,
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
. For twenty years the town was twinned with Wick. In August 2015, Wick councillors threatened to break these ties on account of a Faroese long standing practice which involves hunting and eating migrating
pilot whale
Pilot whales are cetaceans belonging to the genus ''Globicephala''. The two extant species are the long-finned pilot whale (''G. melas'') and the short-finned pilot whale (''G. macrorhynchus''). The two are not readily distinguishable at sea, a ...
s. As of January 2016 the decision has been postponed.
Sports
These are some of the sporting associations in Klaksvík:
The local football club is
KÍ.
The local gymnastics club is Klaksvíkar Fimleikafelag.
In
handball
Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the g ...
there are two clubs, one for men and another for women.
The women's handball club is Stjørnan.
The men's handball club is Team Klaksvík.
See also
*
List of towns in the Faroe Islands
This is a list of villages (and towns) of the Faroe Islands. :fo:Býir í Føroyum :de:Liste der Städte und Orte auf den Färöern
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of Towns In The Faroe Islands
Towns
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Isla ...
References
External links
Official website of Klaksvík Municipality(in Faroese and English)
Tourist Information Centre in the Northern Islands - page about KlaksvíkWebsite of the Port of Klaksvík
{{DEFAULTSORT:Klaksvik
Populated places in the Faroe Islands
Populated coastal places in the Faroe Islands
Ports and harbours of the Faroe Islands