Jordsand was a small

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

hallig The ''Halligen'' (German, singular ''Hallig'', ) or the ''halliger'' (Danish, singular ''hallig'') are small islands without protective dikes. They are variously pluralized in English as the Halligen, Halligs, Hallig islands, or Halligen islands. ...

located in the Wadden Sea southeast of the Danish island

Rømø Rømø (german: Röm, frr, Rem) is a Danish island in the Wadden Sea. Rømø is part of Tønder Municipality. The island had 650 inhabitants as of 1 January 2011,

and east of the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

island

Sylt Sylt (; da, Sild; Sylt North Frisian, Söl'ring North Frisian: ) is an island in northern Germany, part of Nordfriesland district, Schleswig-Holstein, and well known for the distinctive shape of its shoreline. It belongs to the North Frisian ...

. The island was first known by the name ''Hiortsand'' ("

hart Hart often refers to: * Hart (deer) Hart may also refer to: Organizations * Hart Racing Engines, a former Formula One engine manufacturer * Hart Skis, US ski manufacturer * Hart Stores, a Canadian chain of department stores * Hart's Reptile Wo ...

island") and was possibly connected to both the mainland and the island of Sylt. The old name refers to the presence of

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...

on the island. Records from 1231 describe the island as having a size equivalent of 20 km² (7.7 square miles). It contained numerous terps. The island was destroyed in a series of

storm tide A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the n ...

s. Its size was described in 1807 and 1873 as 40.7 and 18.4

hectares The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is ab ...

respectively. In 1895, a storm destroyed the last terp and the island was abandoned and became a

bird sanctuary An animal sanctuary is a facility where animals are brought to live and to be protected for the rest of their lives. Pattrice Jones, co-founder of VINE Sanctuary defines an animal sanctuary as "a safe-enough place or relationship within the cont ...

. Attempts to protect it from the recurring floods were made in the 1970s but with limited success since the island remained unprotected by a dyke. The island's size ultimately shrunk to 2.3 hectares and the uninhabited island was finally destroyed in a flood during the winter of 1998/99. By 1999 all vegetation on the former island had disappeared, and the

Danish Nature Agency The Danish Nature Agency ( Danish: ''Naturstyrelsen'') is part of the Ministry of Environment ( da, Miljøministeriet), and deals with a number of tasks in nature conservation and forestry. In addition, the agency is in charge of operation and admi ...

removed its observational hut from the flooded area. In 1999, the island was officially registered as disappeared. The area is now a sandbank (''højsande''), ''Jordsand Flak''Jordsand
''

Den Store Danske Den may refer to: * Den (room), a small room in a house * Maternity den, a lair where an animal gives birth Media and entertainment * ''Den'' (album), 2012, by Kreidler * Den (''Battle Angel Alita''), a character in the ''Battle Angel Alita ...

'' similar to

Koresand Koresand is a sandbank in the Danish part of the Wadden Sea, south west of the island of Mandø. There was at least one settlement on Koresand until the frequent storm tides during the 1900s led to its being abandoned. In summer it is possible ...

near

Fanø Fanø () is a Danish island in the North Sea off the coast of southwestern Denmark, and is the very northernmost of the Danish Wadden Sea Islands. Fanø municipality is the municipality ( Danish, '' kommune'') that covers the island and its sea ...

. ''Højsande'' denotes a sandbank that is only flooded during exceptionally high waters. Its name lives on in the name of one of Germany's oldest environmental organizations, ''Verein Jordsand'' established in 1907.

Sources

* Palle Uhd Jepsen: ''Wattenmeerbilder''. Vardemuseum 2000 Former islands of Denmark Former populated places in Denmark Halligen {{Denmark-island-stub