Toftir ( da, Tofte) is a village in

Nes Municipality Nes is a municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Årnes. Name The municipality (originally the parish) is named af ...

on the island of

Eysturoy Eysturoy (pronounced estroimeaning 'East Island') is a region and the second-largest of the Faroe Islands, both in size and population. Description Eysturoy is separated by a narrow sound from the main island of Streymoy. Eysturoy is extremely ...

, in 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 ...

. It is part of a chain of villages stretching over a distance of 10 kilometres on the east side of

Skálafjørður Skálafjørður ( da, Skålefjord) is a fjord in Eysturoy and the longest in the Faroe Islands. Name Skála is a town situated on the western shore of the fjord. Its name (''Skáli'', genitive case ''skála'') means 'hall', 'assembly hall' or 'i ...

(

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 ...

) on Eysturoy island. The highest hill in Toftir, called ''Húkslond'', is 129 metres high, and

is the only area in the Faroes which has no mountains above 200 metres. The

Lake Toftir Lake Toftir ( fo, Toftavatn) is a lake on the island of Eysturoy in the Faroe Islands. Lake Toftir is located between the villages of Toftir and Rituvík. It is the fourth-largest natural lake in the Faroe Islands and it measures . The lake is n ...

area was the first area in the Faroe Islands to become a

Nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

in the 1980s, and in 2006 Nes Municipality, in cooperation with neighbouring

Runavík Runavík is a comparatively urbanised village in Runavík Municipality, Faroe Islands. It lies on the south half of the isle of Eysturoy. Port Founded in 1916, Runavík has an important port, originally used predominantly by fishing boats but n ...

Municipality, joined a network of local authorities in the

Nordic countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; literal translation, lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmar ...

working to halt the

loss of biodiversity Biodiversity loss includes the worldwide extinction of different species, as well as the local reduction or loss of species in a certain habitat, resulting in a loss of biological diversity. The latter phenomenon can be temporary or permanent, de ...

in their local areas.

History

The settlement of Toftir dates back to the ''landnám'' (settlement) period. According to local lore, only one woman survived the

Black Death The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...

(1348–1350), which left the village in ruins; hence the name Toftir, meaning "ruins". The village name prior to the Black Death is said to have been Hella, meaning "slope", which refers to the gradual sloping hillside on which the village is built.

Local economy

Toftir has one major retail store with late opening hours, one

café A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-ca ...

''Í Hópinum'', which serves liquor, and a shop, ''Navia'' which sells woollens and also souvenirs. Toftir has a relatively large harbour with a filleting plant that opened in 1969, and hosts the headquarters of Faroe Fish Market.

Fredericks Church

Fredericks Church (''Fríðrikskirkjan'') ( CotFI) in Nes was completed in 1994 and was named in honor of Fríðrikur Petersen (1853-1917) who served as

rural dean In the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion as well as some Lutheran denominations, a rural dean is a member of clergy who presides over a "rural deanery" (often referred to as a deanery); "ruridecanal" is the corresponding adjective. ...

on Nes from 1900 to 1917. Other local religious communities include the

Inner mission The Inner Mission (german: Innere Mission, also translated as Home Mission) was and is a movement of German evangelists, set up by Johann Hinrich Wichern in Wittenberg in 1848 based on a model of Theodor Fliedner. It quickly spread from Germany to ...

which is a

revivalist movement Christian revivalism is increased spiritual interest or renewal in the life of a church congregation or society, with a local, national or global effect. This should be distinguished from the use of the term "revival" to refer to an evangelis ...

of the

Plymouth Brethren The Plymouth Brethren or Assemblies of Brethren are a low church and non-conformist Christian movement whose history can be traced back to Dublin, Ireland, in the mid to late 1820s, where they originated from Anglicanism. The group emphasizes ...

and the Baháʼí Community.

Sport

The major sports venue in Toftir is the

Svangaskarð Svangaskarð (pronounced ), also referred to as Tofta Leikvøllur, is a multi-purpose stadium in Toftir, Faroe Islands with two football fields and a sports arena for athletics around the lower field. It is currently used mostly for football match ...

, the first of its kind in the Faroe Islands. Like most Faroese settlements, Toftir used to participate in the National

Rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically atta ...

sport of the Faroe Islands, but ceased participating in this sport in the 1980s. The village's

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

team,

B68 Toftir B68 Toftir is a Faroese football club, playing in the village of Toftir in Betri deildin. History After being promoted to the 1. deild (now called Effodeildin) in 1980, they won the league 3 times: in 1984, 1985, and 1992. In 2004 they were ...

, was established in 1962 and has won the Faroese league 3 times, in 1984, 1985 and 1992. The local

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

club ''Flot'' was established in 1984; it participates in the national swimming competitions in the islands. In 2009 a

Volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

team was established in Toftir; in 2010 the name ''Ternan'' was chosen for the team. Toftir is also home to one of the pioneering

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...

clubs in the islands, ''Tofta Talvfelag'' which has won the Islands' Chess Championships once. The Toftir Boat Association (''Bátafelagið'') was established on 13 March 2005, and two months later the first Boat Festival was held in Toftir; it is now held every year on the first weekend of May.

People from Toftir

Fróði Benjaminsen Fróði Benjaminsen (born 14 December 1977) is a Faroese international footballer who plays as a defender or midfielder for Skála ÍF. Benjaminsen previously played for HB Tórshavn, B68 Toftir, Fram Reykjavík and B36 Tórshavn. He has appear ...

, footballer *

Jóan Símun Edmundsson Jóan Símun Edmundsson (born 26 July 1991) is a Faroese professional footballer who plays for Belgian club Beveren and the Faroe Islands national team. Club career B68 Toftir Edmundsson started his career with B68 Toftir. Newcastle United I ...

, footballer * Øssur Hansen, footballer * Hans Jacob Højgaard (1904–1992),

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

Heri Joensen Heri Joensen (; born 21 February 1973) is a Faroese musician, notable for being the vocalist for the heavy metal band Týr. Heri was born in the Faroe Islands capital of Tórshavn which has had an influence on his song writing. As well as Týr, ...

, musician in heavy metal band TÝR * Jógvan Martin Olsen, footballer *

Johan Poulsen Johan Martin Fredrik Poulsen (September 26, 1890 – June 24, 1980) was a Faroese teacher and politician for the Union Party. Poulsen was born in Toftir.''Kraks Blå Bog''. 1974. Copenhagen: Krak./ref> He represented the Union Party in the Faro ...

(1890–1980), teacher and politician

References

External links

{{commons, Toftir, Toftir
Faroeislands.dk: Toftir
Images and description of all cities on the Faroe Islands.
Nes MunicipalityB68 FC-ToftirFramtak
Populated places in the Faroe Islands