|
Ólavsøka
Ólavsøka () is the biggest summer festival in the Faroe Islands, and by most Faroese considered as the national holiday of the Faroes along with Flag Day on 25 April. Ólavsøka is celebrated over two days, from the 28th to the 29th of July, the second of which is the day when the Faroese Parliament (''Løgting'') opens its session. Ólavsøka is a cultural and sports festival with boat races, football matches and other events. The 28 July, which is the day where the finals of the rowing competitions take place, is half working day for the members of some of the labour unions while Saint Olaf's Day (''Ólavsøkudagur'') on 29 July is full holiday for members of most of the unions. The literal meaning is "Olaf's vigil" (''vigilia sancti Olavi'' in Latin), from Saint Olaf's death at the Battle of Stiklestad in 1030 (see Olsok). Vøka comes from Old Norse Vaka, which was a religious celebration that always lasted for two days. Like several other Faroese holidays, the ''vøka'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Løgting
The Løgting (pronounced ; ) is the unicameral parliament of the Faroe Islands, an autonomous territory within the Danish Realm. The name literally means "''Law Thing''"—that is, a law assembly—and derives from Old Norse ''lǫgþing'', which was a name given to ancient assemblies. A ''ting'' or ''þing'' has existed on the Faroe Islands for over a millennium and the Løgting was the highest authority on the islands in the Viking era. From 1274 to 1816 it functioned primarily as a judicial body, whereas the modern Løgting established in 1852 is a parliamentary assembly, which gained legislative power when home rule was introduced in 1948. Together with the Manx Tynwald and the Icelandic Alþing, the Løgting is one of the oldest surviving parliaments in the world, all three holding lineages to the old Norse assemblies of mainland Europe. Today, the Faroe Islands comprise one constituency, and the number of MPs is fixed at 33. The first election with this new syste ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Flag Day (Faroe Islands)
The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faroes) are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. Located between Iceland, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the islands have a population of 54,609 and a land area of 1,393 km². The official language is Faroese, which is partially mutually intelligible with Icelandic. The terrain is rugged, dominated by fjords and cliffs with sparse vegetation and few trees. As a result of its proximity to the Arctic Circle, the islands experience perpetual civil twilight during summer nights and very short winter days; nevertheless, they experience a subpolar oceanic climate and mild temperatures year-round due to the Gulf Stream. The capital, Tórshavn, receives the fewest recorded hours of sunshine of any city in the world at only 840 per year. Færeyinga Saga and the writings of Dicuil place initial Norse settlement in the early 9th century, with Grímur Kamban recorded as the first permanen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faroes) are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. Located between Iceland, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the islands have a population of 54,609 and a land area of 1,393 km². The official language is Faroese language, Faroese, which is partially mutually intelligible with Icelandic language, Icelandic. The terrain is rugged, dominated by fjords and cliffs with sparse vegetation and few trees. As a result of its proximity to the Arctic Circle, the islands experience perpetual Twilight, civil twilight during summer nights and very short winter days; nevertheless, they experience a Oceanic climate#Subpolar variety (Cfc, Cwc), subpolar oceanic climate and mild temperatures year-round due to the Gulf Stream. The capital, Tórshavn, receives the fewest recorded hours of sunshine of any city in the world at only 840 per year. Færeyinga saga, Færeyinga Saga and the writin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Faroese Dance
The Faroese chain dance (, ) is the national circle dance of the Faroe Islands, accompanied by kvæði, the Faroese ballads. The dance is a typical Medieval dance. The dance is danced traditionally in a circle, but when there are many dancers, they usually let it swing around in various wobbles within the circle. Dance rules When dancing there are a few rules. One is that your right hand must overlap the left hand of the one next to you while moving your feet two paces to the left and one pace back. The "skipari" is the one who sings and must know all the verses, while the people who are dancing with him in the circle join in at the chorus. ''The following description is by V. U. Hammershaimb, ''Færøsk Anthologi'', 1891:'' The storyline of the ballad is attended by everybody with great interest, and if something especially pleasant or moving occurs, it can be seen in the look and movement of the dancers – when the rage of the battle is described, the hands are clenched toge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Olsok
Olsok () is a national day of celebration on July 29 in the Nordic countries of Norway and the Faroe Islands, and also in the provinces of Härjedalen in Sweden and Savonlinna in Finland. Background King Olaf II Haraldsson of Norway is remembered as Rex perpetuus Norvegiae, the Eternal King of Norway. July 29 is traditionally the date of the death of King Olaf at the Battle of Stiklestad, north of Nidaros (Trondheim), Norway, in 1030. King Olaf's martyrdom at Stiklestad appears to have contributed decisively to establishing Christianity throughout the nation of Norway. King Olaf was subsequently canonized in Nidaros on 3 August 1031 following efforts principally of north Bishop Grimkell. Until the Lutheran Reformation in the 16th century, Olsok was a major church feast in the Nordic countries. The late 19th and the early 20th century saw a renewed interest in Olsok, particularly in Norway. The Roman Catholic Church in Norway recognizes Olsok as a major feast all over the cou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Stevna
A stevna (plural: stevnur) is a regional summer festival in the Faroe Islands, usually accompanied by or built around national rowing boat championships. The races and regattas are always held on Saturdays, except the Ólavsøka race in the capital of Tórshavn, which has a fixed date. There are seven official rowing-related ''stevnur'': Stevnur in the Faroe Islands * Norðoyastevna is held annually in Klaksvík, usually in the first weekend of June. * Eystanstevna is held in Runavík the second weekend of June every year, and has a rowing race every other year. In the odd years (2005, 2007 etc.) the race is held at the Varmakelda. * Sundalagsstevna is held in a weekend in mid-June in the Sundalagið region. The host town alternates between Kollafjørður, Hósvík and Hvalvík. * Jóansøka is in the last weekend of June, or the Saturday nearest to 24 June, which is St John's Day. In the even years it is held in Vágur and in the odd years in Tvøroyri. * Varmakelda is usually ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Suðuroy
Suðuroy (pronounced: suːwʊrɔior suːri ‘South Island’, ) is the southernmost of the Faroe Islands. The island covers 163.7 square kilometres (63.2 sq mi). In 2018 the population was 4,601. Suðuroy region ( sýsla) comprises this island and Lítla Dímun, the next isle northward in the Faroes, which is uninhabited. History One ancient settlement, Víkarbyrgi was abandoned late in the 1990s. Another settlement, Akraberg was abandoned around 1350 because of the Black Death; the people who lived there at that time came from Friesland, and legend has it that people in Hørg (in Sumba) can trace their ancestry back to this settlement, which was situated on the southernmost point of the island. In the 17th century, Suðuroy was subjected to repeated attacks by North African pirates, who in the Faroe Islands were referred to as Turks when North Africa belonged to the Ottoman Empire. One well known such incident was the Slave raid of Suðuroy. They abducte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Tvøroyri
Tvøroyri is a village on the north side of the Trongisvágsfjørður on the east coast of Suðuroy island in the Faroe Islands. Together with Froðba, Trongisvágur, Líðin and Øravík it forms Tvøroyri Municipality. The village is considered to have been founded in 1836, when the Danish Royal Trade Monopoly in the Faroe Islands, Royal Danish Monopoly Trade Store was founded on a small tongue of land, called Tvøroyri. In a short span of years, Tvøroyri grew into a large village, mainly after 1856 when the monopoly state of the store was abolished. Around the turn of the 20th century, Tvøroyri was one of the largest towns on the Faroe Islands and had one of the main fishing industries. Overview Church of Tvoroyri, The church in Tvøroyri was constructed in Norway as a building set, moved to Tvøroyri and then built here in 1907, ready to use in 1908. The old church was moved to Sandvík. Trongisvágur Trongisvágur is the village furthest to the west of the inlet of Trong ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
