Vesterålen is a
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
and
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 ...
in
Nordland
Nordland (; smj, Nordlánnda, sma, Nordlaante, sme, Nordlánda, en, Northland) is a county in Norway in the Northern Norway region, the least populous of all 11 counties, bordering Troms og Finnmark in the north, Trøndelag in the south, N ...
county,
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 ...
. It is located just north of
Lofoten
Lofoten () is an archipelago and a traditional district in the county of Nordland, Norway. Lofoten has distinctive scenery with dramatic mountains and peaks, open sea and sheltered bays, beaches and untouched lands. There are two towns, Svolvær ...
and west of
Harstad
( se, Hárstták) is the second-most populated municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is mostly located on the large island of Hinnøya. The municipal center is the Harstad (town), town of Harstad, the most populous town in Centra ...
. It is the northernmost part of Nordland county. Sortland is the largest town, situated near the center of the archipelago. Vesterålen includes the municipalities of
Andøy
Andøy is the northernmost municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Vesterålen archipelago. The main island in the municipality is Andøya. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Andenes. Other villages ...
,
Bø,
Hadsel
Hadsel ( sme, Válafierda) is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Stokmarknes. Other villages in Hadsel include Fiskebø ...
,
Sortland
or is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sortland. Other population centres in Sortland include Bø, Holand, Holmstad, ...
, and
Øksnes
Øksnes is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located on the northwestern part of the large island of Langøya, which is a part of the traditional region of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village ...
.
Name
The
Old Norse
Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...
forms of the name were ' and ' (
plural
The plural (sometimes abbreviated pl., pl, or ), in many languages, is one of the values of the grammatical category of number. The plural of a noun typically denotes a quantity greater than the default quantity represented by that noun. This de ...
). The first element is ' which means "
west
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...
" and the last element is ' which means "(deep and narrow) sound" or "
strait
A strait is an oceanic landform connecting two seas or two other large areas of water. The surface water generally flows at the same elevation on both sides and through the strait in either direction. Most commonly, it is a narrow ocean channe ...
". The name describes the seaway west of the island of
Hinnøya
Hinnøya is the fourth-largest island in Norway, and the largest outside the Svalbard archipelago. The lies just off the western coast of Northern Norway. The island sits on the border of Nordland and Troms og Finnmark counties. The western pa ...
. The old name of the seaway east of Hinnøya (now called
Tjeldsundet
Tjeldsundet is a strait in Northern Norway. The long strait is located between the island of Hinnøya and mainland Norway in its northern part and between Hinnøya and the island of Tjeldøya in its southern part. Tjeldsundet has been an importa ...
) might have been ' (meaning "the eastern sound/strait").
Geography
Vesterålen consists of the municipalities of
Andøy
Andøy is the northernmost municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Vesterålen archipelago. The main island in the municipality is Andøya. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Andenes. Other villages ...
,
Bø,
Hadsel
Hadsel ( sme, Válafierda) is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Stokmarknes. Other villages in Hadsel include Fiskebø ...
,
Sortland
or is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sortland. Other population centres in Sortland include Bø, Holand, Holmstad, ...
, and
Øksnes
Øksnes is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located on the northwestern part of the large island of Langøya, which is a part of the traditional region of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village ...
. According to some definitions,
Lødingen
Lødingen ( sme, Lodegat) is a municipality in Nordland county in Norway. Lødingen is located on the southeastern corner of the island of Hinnøya, and is part of the traditional district of Ofoten. The administrative centre of the municipalit ...
is also included. Vesterålen is made up of several islands:
Langøya
Langøya is the third largest island of Norway (outside of Svalbard), with an area of . The island is a part of the Vesterålen archipelago in Nordland county, Norway. The island includes the municipalities of Bø and Øksnes as well as parts ...
,
Andøya
Andøya is the northernmost island in the Vesterålen archipelago, situated about inside the Arctic circle. Andøya is located in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The main population centres on the island include the villages of ...
,
Hadseløya
Hadseløya or Hadseløy is an island in Hadsel Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located in the Vesterålen region on the north side of the Hadselfjorden. The town of Stokmarknes is situated on the northern shore of the island and t ...
, the western part of
Hinnøya
Hinnøya is the fourth-largest island in Norway, and the largest outside the Svalbard archipelago. The lies just off the western coast of Northern Norway. The island sits on the border of Nordland and Troms og Finnmark counties. The western pa ...
, the northern part of
Austvågøya and several smaller islands.
The landscape is mountainous, but the mountains have a more rounded shape compared to the mountains in Lofoten. The towns and villages are situated on the coastal brim (''Strandflaten'') between the mountains and the fjords. There are also several lakes, such as
Alsvågvatnet
Alsvågvatnet is a lake which lies in Øksnes Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is on the island of Langøya in the Vesterålen archipelago. There is birch woodland and bogland nearby. The lake sits at an elevation of above sea ...
.
Møysalen National Park
Møysalen National Park ( no, Møysalen nasjonalpark) is a national park located on the island of Hinnøya in Nordland county, Norway. The park was established in 2003 to preserve undisturbed coastal alpine landscape. The scenery is character ...
is partly located in Vesterålen
website. The climate in Vesterålen is
maritime
Maritime may refer to:
Geography
* Maritime Alps, a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps
* Maritime Region, a region in Togo
* Maritime Southeast Asia
* The Maritimes, the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Princ ...
, with mild winters considering this archipelago is well north of the
arctic circle
The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the most northerly of the five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle.
The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at w ...
.
Bø is the northernmost location in Norway with daily mean above in all winter months.
Transportation
Vesterålen is connected to the mainland and
Evenes airport by bridges. It is connected to Lofoten by ferry, although since the opening of the
Lofast Lofoten Mainland Connection ( no, Lofotens fastlandsforbindelse) or Lofast is a part of European route E10 that connects the Norwegian archipelago of Lofoten to the mainland, giving direct access to Lofoten from the surrounding municipalities. The c ...
road in December 2007, Lofoten can also be reached by road.
The coastal steamer
Hurtigruten
''Hurtigruten'' (), formally Kystruten Bergen-Kirkenes ("coastal route Bergen- Kirkenes"), is a Norwegian public coastal route transporting passengers that travel locally, regionally and between the ports of call, and also cargo between ports no ...
calls at the ports of Stokmarknes, Sortland, and
Risøyhamn
Risøyhamn is a village in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The village is located on the southern part of the island of Andøya. The island of Andøya is connected to the neighboring island of Hinnøya by the Andøy Bridge at ...
in Vesterålen. There are two regional airports:
Stokmarknes Airport, Skagen
Stokmarknes Airport ( no, Stokmarknes lufthavn; ) is an airport in Hadsel Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located on the island of Langøya, about northeast of the town of Stokmarknes and about southwest of the town of Sortlan ...
for small aircraft, and
Andenes Airport
is the administrative centre of Andøy Municipality which is located in the Vesterålen district of Nordland county, Norway. The village of Andenes is the northernmost settlement of the island of Andøya (and in Nordland county). To the east i ...
on Andøya.
Economy
The population in Vesterålen as of 1 January 2004 was 30,648 according to
Statistisk Sentralbyrå) The largest town is
Sortland
or is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sortland. Other population centres in Sortland include Bø, Holand, Holmstad, ...
, but the regional hospital is in nearby
Stokmarknes
is a town and the administrative centre of Hadsel Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located on the northern coast of the island of Hadseløya and on the small, neighboring island of Børøya. In 2000, Stokmarknes received "town stat ...
in Hadsel municipality. The
Royal Norwegian Air Force
The Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) ( no, Luftforsvaret, , The Air Defence) is the air force of Norway. It was established as a separate arm of the Norwegian Armed Forces on 10 November 1944. The RNoAF's peacetime establishment is approximatel ...
has based all its
P-3 Orion
The Lockheed P-3 Orion is a four-engined, turboprop anti-submarine and maritime surveillance aircraft developed for the United States Navy and introduced in the 1960s. Lockheed based it on the L-188 Electra commercial airliner. has its northern base at
Sortland
or is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sortland. Other population centres in Sortland include Bø, Holand, Holmstad, ...
(Kystvaktskvadron Nord).
Fishing, in particular
cod fisheries
Cod fisheries are fisheries for cod. Cod is the common name for fish of the genus ''Gadus'', belonging to the family Gadidae, and this article is confined to three species that belong to this genus: the Atlantic cod, the Pacific cod and the Gr ...
, has always been important in Vesterålen. There is also
fish farming
upright=1.3, Salmon farming in the sea (mariculture) at Loch Ainort, Isle of Skye">mariculture.html" ;"title="Salmon farming in the sea (mariculture">Salmon farming in the sea (mariculture) at Loch Ainort, Isle of Skye, Scotland
Fish farming or ...
, and some
agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
in Vesterålen.
Media gallery
IMG 0612a - Landbruksskolen på Kleiva.jpg, The high school for agriculture at Kleiva, Sortland municipality
Nyksund 01082004.jpg, Nyksund
Nyksund is a coastal fishing village on the northern part of the island of Langøya in the Vesterålen archipelago. It is part of the municipality of Øksnes in Nordland county, Norway. It is located about southeast of the village of Stø, alt ...
(1 August 2004)
Fra Frøskeland mot Ræka - IMG 0316a.jpg, View towards Ræka, Sortland
Aurora-borealis andoya.jpg, The Aurora Borealis
An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of br ...
is visible in all of Vesterålen. Andøy, October 2007.
Bleik village and Bleik island, seen from Mount Royken.jpg, The village of Bleik
Bleik is a fishing village in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The village is located on the northwestern part of the island of Andøya, about southwest of the village of Andenes.
The village has a population (2018) of 461 whic ...
in Andøy, with the long beach and a sea bird colony on the small island Bleiksøya. The deep ocean is very close to shore here, and sperm whale
The sperm whale or cachalot (''Physeter macrocephalus'') is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It is the only living member of the genus ''Physeter'' and one of three extant species in the sperm whale famil ...
s feed in this area.
References
External links
Vesterålen group on FlickrAurora borealis (northern lights) picture from Bø in Vesterålen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vesteralen
Districts of Nordland
Archipelagoes of Norway
Landforms of Nordland
Hadsel
Sortland
Øksnes
Bø, Nordland
Andøy