Lolland (; formerly spelled ''Laaland'', literally "low land") is the fourth largest

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 ...

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 ...

, with an area of . Located in the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

, it is part of Region Sjælland (Region Zealand). As of 1 January 2022, it has 57,618 inhabitants.statistikbanken.dk. People. Population. (Table) BEF4 (Islands). Danmarks Statistik. Retrieved 25 August 2022.

Overview

Lolland is also known as the "pancake island" because of its flatness: the highest point of the entire island is above sea level, just outside the village of Horslunde. The island has been an important communication highway, among others for

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

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 ...

. Historically,

sugar beet A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and which is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together wi ...

has been grown in Lolland. Sugar is still a major industry, visible from the large number of sugar beet fields. The largest

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

of Lolland is

Nakskov Nakskov is a town in south Denmark. It is situated in Lolland municipality in Region Sjælland on the western coast of the island of Lolland. The town has a population of 12,495 (1 January 2022). To the west is Nakskov Fjord, an inlet from the La ...

, with 12,600 residents. Other main towns are Maribo (6,000 residents), which hosts the seat of the Diocese of Lolland and Falster, Sakskøbing (3,500 residents) and Rødby (2,500 residents). Since January 1, 2007, Lolland has been administered by two municipalities, ''

Lolland Lolland (; formerly spelled ''Laaland'', literally "low land") is the fourth largest island of Denmark, with an area of . Located in the Baltic Sea, it is part of Region Sjælland (Region Zealand). As of 1 January 2022, it has 57,618 inhabitant ...

'' covering the western two thirds, and ''

Guldborgsund Guldborgsund is the strait between the Danish islands of Lolland and Falster. It connects Smålandsfarvandet in the north with the Bay of Mecklenburg in the south. The strait is about 30 kilometers long; its breadth varies from 150 meters at Gu ...

'' uniting the eastern third with the neighbouring island Falster. Lolland has motor and railway links both to the island of

Falster Falster () is an island in south-eastern Denmark with an area of and 43,398 inhabitants as of 1 January 2010.

to the east and to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

(the German island

Fehmarn Fehmarn (, da, Femern; from Old Wagrian Slavic "''Fe More''", meaning "''In the Sea''") is an island in the Baltic Sea, off the eastern coast of Germany's northernmost state of Schleswig-Holstein. It is Germany's third-largest island, after Rüg ...

, linked to the mainland) via ferry. European route E47 links

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

(Germany) via Lolland.

Transport

Route E47 from Copenhagen crosses the

strait between Lolland and Falster via a modern tunnel, but the motorway currently terminates at

Rødbyhavn Rødbyhavn () is a small town and harbour on the south coast of Lolland, Denmark, with a population of 1,544 (1 January 2022).Vogelfluglinie The (German) or (Danish) is a transport corridor between Copenhagen, Denmark, and Hamburg, Germany. As the Danish and German names (literally: '' bird flight line'') imply, the corridor is also an important bird migration route between arctic ...

. During construction of the

Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link The Fehmarn Belt fixed link ( da, Femern Bælt-forbindelsen, german: Fehmarnbelt-Querung) or Fehmarn Belt tunnel is an under-construction immersed tunnel, which will connect the Danish island of Lolland with the German island of Fehmarn, cros ...

however, they currently take the longer way to the mainland via the Great Belt Bridge, then

Funen Funen ( da, Fyn, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, after Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy. It is the 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 469,947 as of ...

and

Jutland Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...

. The governments of Denmark and Germany plan to connect Lolland with Fehmarn by a future immersed tunnel, the

. Two older bridges also span the strait between Lolland and Falster, the

Frederick IX Bridge The King Frederick IX bridge ( da, Kong Frederik den 9's Bro; named for King Frederick IX of Denmark) is a combined road and railway bridge carrying the Danish national road 9 as well as Sydbanen and Lollandsbanen railway lines across the Guldborg ...

and

Guldborgsund Bridge The Guldborgsund bridge ( da, Guldborgbroen) spans the northern end of the Guldborgsund, between the islands of Lolland and Falster in Denmark. The bridge consists of two steel arched spans with a 30m central opening section having two rising ba ...

at the northern end of the strait. Frederick IX bridge is the railway bridge to Falster.

Demography

Towns and villages

Population 1 January 2014.

Attractions

Among the attractions of the island are the 19th century

Fuglsang Manor Fuglsang is a 19th-century manor house now operated by Det Classenske Fideicommis as a cultural centre as an active agricultural estate at Toreby on the island of Lolland, in southeastern Denmark. The estate was owned by members of the de Neergaar ...

, and the neighbouring

Fuglsang Art Museum Fuglsang Art Museum ( da, Fuglsang Kunstmuseum) is an art museum set in rural surroundings in Guldborgsund Municipality on the island of Lolland in Denmark. It is part of the Fuglsang Cultural Centre. The museum features Danish art with an empha ...

, which opened in 2008. Knuthenborg Safari Park north of Maribo is the largest safari park in

Northern Europe The northern region of Europe has several definitions. A restrictive definition may describe Northern Europe as being roughly north of the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, which is about 54th parallel north, 54°N, or may be based on other g ...

and the

holiday resort A resort (North American English) is a self-contained commercial establishment that tries to provide most of a vacationer's wants, such as food, drink, swimming, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping, on the premises. The term ''resort' ...

Lalandia Lalandia is the name of two Danish holiday resorts owned by Parken Sport & Entertainment. The original Lalandia Rødby is located in Rødbyhavn, and based on successful experiences from Rødbyhavn, Lalandia opened a new tropical holiday and activi ...

is a giant indoor

water park A water park (or waterpark, water world) is an amusement park that features water play areas such as swimming pools, water slides, splash pads, water playgrounds, and lazy rivers, as well as areas for floating, bathing, swimming, and other baref ...

. Furthermore, Middelaldercentret is an open-air museum on the most eastern part of the island, just outside

Nykøbing Falster Nykøbing Falster (; originally named Nykøbing) is a southern Danish city, seat of the Guldborgsund ''kommune''. It belongs to Region Sjælland. The city lies on Falster, connected by the Frederick IX Bridge over the Guldborgsund (''Guldb ...

. The Centre is an experimental

living history Living history is an activity that incorporates historical tools, activities and dress into an interactive presentation that seeks to give observers and participants a sense of stepping back in time. Although it does not necessarily seek to ree ...

museum and it contains a reconstructed part of a medieval town from around 1400. It is among the most authentic reconstructions of the medieval period in Europe, and holds both the largest and the oldest trebuchets in the world. Lolland has many sandy beaches and areas with

summer house A summer house or summerhouse has traditionally referred to a building or shelter used for relaxation in warm weather. This would often take the form of a small, roofed building on the grounds of a larger one, but could also be built in a garden ...

s, which are primarily visited by German tourists.

References

* Tageo.com, "VESTSJAELLAND DENMARK Geography Population" (coordinates), 2007, webpage
Tageo-index
* Denmark Postal codes, webpage
Postnumre-DK
* Tele.dk Denmark detailed road map, webpage
Tele-DK-Danmark

External links

{{Authority control Islands of Denmark Geography of Guldborgsund Municipality Geography of Lolland Municipality Region Zealand Danish islands in the Baltic Lolland Municipality Guldborgsund Municipality