Klaksvík

Klaksvík
—  Municipality and town  —
Klaksvík Location in the Faroe Islands
Coordinates: 62°13′26″N 6°34′43″W
State	Kingdom of Denmark
Constituent country	Faroe Islands
Island	Borðoy
Population (2006)
• Total	4,645
Time zone	GMT
• Summer (DST)	EST (UTC+1)
Postal code	FO 700
Website	http://www.klaksvik.fo/

Klaksvík (Danish: Klaksvig) is the second largest town of the Faroe Islands. The town is located on Borðoy, which is one of the northernmost islands (in Faroese: Norðoyar).

The first settlement at Klaksvík dates back to Viking times, but it was not before the 20th century that the district merged to form a large, modern Faroese town that became the cultural and commercial centre for the Northern Isles and the Faroe Islands as a whole.

Klaksvik is located between two inlets lying back to back. It has an important harbour with fishing industry and a modern fishing fleet. Originally, four farms were located where Klaksvik is now. In time, they grew into four villages, Vágur, Myrkjanoyri, Gerðar and Uppsalar, that finally merged to form the town of Klaksvík in 1938. What triggered the development of the town was the establishment of a centralized store for all the northern islands on the location.

The brewery Föroya Bjór in Klaksvík is a Faroese family brewery, founded in 1888. The ram has been the symbol of the brewery since the early beginning. Since August 2007, when Restorffs Bryggjarí went out of business, Föroya Bjór has been the only producer of beer and soft drinks in the Faroe Islands.

With the opening of the Leirvík sub sea tunnel, the Norðoyatunnilin in April 2006, Klaksvík is physically linked with the mainland of the Faroe Islands and can now be considered one of its key ports. Several developments are under way to exploit this symbiosis, including a new industrial park located by the tunnel entrance. Klaksvík is home to Summarfestivalurin, the largest music festival in the Faroe Islands.

The Christianschurch

Christianskirkjan build 1963, is the first one in Scandinavia to be built in Old Norse style. The roof construction is the same as the one you would find in the Viking halls, and the same which has survived in the Faroese smoke rooms (kitchens) and in the Faroese village churches. This open roof construction has proved to be especially suitable for church buildings, as the acoustics in this church is better than in any other of a similar size. The church is dedicated to the memory of the sailors who lost their life during Second World War.

Twin towns

• - Murmansk, Russia
• - Wick, Scotland
• - Sisimiut, Greenland
• - Kópavogur, Iceland
• - Trondheim, Norway
• - Norrköping, Sverige
• - Tampere, Finland
• - Grenaa, Denmark
• - Odense, Denmark

Images of Klaksvík

Klaksvík city map.   Klaksvík in 1898 (1).   Klaksvík in 1898 (2).   Klaksvík in 1898 (3).   View from the harbour to the island of Kunoy.   Shipyard in Klaksvík.   Christianskirkja (Church of Klaksvík).   Before the Norđoyatunnel was opened in 2006, there was a car ferry to Leirvík, Eysturoy.   A fisherman and his boat.   Háfjall (647 m) and Hálgafelli (503 m) rise steeply over Klaksvík.

See also

• Klaksvíkar Ítróttarfelag (local football team)
• List of towns in the Faroe Islands

References

The Tourist Information Centre

External links and source

• Faroeislands.dk: Klaksvík Faroeislands.dk
• Tourist information
• Port of Klaksvik
• (Faroese & English) www.klaksvik.fo Klaksvík's web site