The Porsangerfjorden ( en, Porsanger Fjord; sme, Porsáŋgguvuotna; fkv, Porsanginvuono) is a
fjord in
Troms og Finnmark county,
Norway.
Name
The fjord is officially named ''Porsangerfjorden'' in
Norwegian. It is also known informally as ''Porsangen'', but that is not an official name. The official
Northern Sami name is and the official
Kven name is .
Geography
The long fjord is Norway's fourth-longest fjord.
It is located in the municipalities of
Nordkapp and
Porsanger and it empties out into the
Barents Sea. The large island of
Magerøya and the
Porsanger Peninsula
The Porsanger Peninsula ( no, Porsangerhalvøya) is a peninsula in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The large peninsula sits between the Altafjorden and the Porsangerfjorden and includes parts of the municipalities of Alta, Hammerfest, Måsøy, ...
lie along the western shore of the fjord, and the
Sværholt Peninsula lies along the eastern shore of the fjord. The
Helnes Lighthouse sits at the mouth of the fjord, on the western coast. The village of
Lakselv sits at the innermost part (southern part) of the fjord. Other settlements along the fjord include the villages of
Brenna,
Børselv,
Indre Billefjord
Indre (; oc, Endre) is a landlocked department in central France named after the river Indre. The inhabitants of the department are known as the ''Indriens'' (masculine; ) and ''Indriennes'' (feminine; ). Indre is part of the current administra ...
,
Kistrand
Kistrand ( sme, Čuđegieddi; fkv, Ryssämarkka) is a village in Porsanger Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is located on the eastern side of the Porsanger Peninsula, along the western shore of the Porsangerfjorden. The vil ...
,
Olderfjord
Olderfjord ( sme, Leaibevuotna; fkv, Leipovuono) is a village in Porsanger in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The village lies at the end of Olderfjorden on the eastern coast of the Porsanger Peninsula, along the shore of the Porsangerfjorden ...
,
Repvåg
Repvåg ( sme, Reiffváhki) is a small fishing village in Nordkapp Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The village is located along the western shore of the Porsangerfjorden on the mainland Porsanger Peninsula.
The fishing vi ...
, and
Nordvågen
Nordvågen is a small fishing village in Nordkapp Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The village is located on the eastern coast of the island of Magerøya about northeast of the town of Honningsvåg, along the Porsangerfjorden. ...
. The town of
Honningsvåg is also located near the mouth of the fjord. There are many islands inside the fjord, notably
Tamsøya and
Reinøya.
Important Bird Area
A 50,290 ha area comprising the inner (southern) part of the fjord, as well as several small islands and a strip along the mid-eastern shore, has been designated an
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations.
IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...
(IBA) by
BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...
because it supports populations of many birds, including
lesser white-fronted geese,
long-tailed ducks,
common eiders,
velvet scoters,
red-breasted mergansers,
bar-tailed godwits,
red knots and
purple sandpipers. Habitats include
mudflat
Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal fl ...
s,
heathland,
grassland,
salt marsh,
mires and
birch forest.
Media gallery
Porsangerfjorden2.jpg, Orkkanluokta in Porsangerfjorden
Kistrand, Porsangen fjord.jpg, View near Kistrand
Kistrand ( sme, Čuđegieddi; fkv, Ryssämarkka) is a village in Porsanger Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is located on the eastern side of the Porsanger Peninsula, along the western shore of the Porsangerfjorden. The vil ...
Porsangerfjord-2012-07-13-10-30-016.jpg, View of the coastline
Repvåg.jpg, View of the fishing village of Repvåg
Repvåg ( sme, Reiffváhki) is a small fishing village in Nordkapp Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The village is located along the western shore of the Porsangerfjorden on the mainland Porsanger Peninsula.
The fishing vi ...
NOR-2016-Mager%C3%B8ya-Helnes_Lighthouse_(Helnes_fyr)_02.jpg, Helnes fyr, Magerøya
References
Fjords of Troms og Finnmark
Porsanger
Nordkapp
Important Bird Areas of Norway
Important Bird Areas of the Arctic
{{Norway-fjord-stub