Værøy
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| Værøy kommune | |||
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| — Municipality — | |||
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| Coordinates (city): 67°40′23″N 12°40′9″E / 67.67306°N 12.66917°ECoordinates: 67°40′23″N 12°40′9″E / 67.67306°N 12.66917°E | |||
| Country | Norway | ||
| County | Nordland | ||
| District | Lofoten | ||
| Municipality ID | NO-1857 | ||
| Administrative centre | Sørland | ||
| Government | |||
| - Mayor (2003) | Harald Adolfsen (H) | ||
| Area (Nr. 428 in Norway) | |||
| - Total | 18 km2 (6.9 sq mi) | ||
| - Land | 18 km2 (6.9 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2008) | |||
| - Total | 743 | ||
| - Density | 43/km2 (111.4/sq mi) | ||
| - Change (10 years) | -7.7 % | ||
| - Rank in Norway | 418 | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| Official language form | Bokmål | ||
| Norwegian demonym | Værøyværing[1] | ||
| Website | www.varoy.kommune.no | ||
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Værøy is an island and municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Lofoten traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Sørland. Værøy was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). The new municipality of Røst was separated from Værøy on 1 July 1928.
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[edit] General information
[edit] Name
The Old Norse form of the name was Veðrøy. The first element is veðr which means "weather" (here referring to harsh weather and the exposed and unsheltered position of the island). The last element is øy which means "island".
[edit] Coat-of-arms
The coat-of-arms is from modern times. They were granted on 10 July 1988. The arms show a puffin. Puffins nest in large numbers in the area and used to be of great importance for the village, both for meat and down.[2]
[edit] Tourist attractions
- Turstien is a floodlit track which has been very popular ever since its opening in 1999. The surface is suitable for bikers, prams, and wheelchairs.
- Breivika is situated on the road between Sørland and Nordland, and here you find the beach Skarsursanden. From the main road there is a signposted path going up Breivikdalen.
- Heia offers a magnificent view of the island. It can be reached via a step path called Bjørka, or by following the tarred road up Rømdalen. About halfway up you pass by an old eagle trapping site.
- Eagle trapping is a tradition peculiar to the Værøy islanders. They caught eagles with their bare hands. Ancient sites can still be seen, at Rømdalen, for instance.
- Gjerdeheia forms a vast and completely flat plateau on top. It can be reached from Breiviksdalen by turning left at the end of the valley or following the path going up Rømdalen and turning right before passing Hornet.
- Nordlandsnupen is Værøy's highest mountain. One must reach it by walking up Breiviksdalen and turning right at the end of the valley.
- Mollbakken in Nordland consists of smoothly ground round stones. Here, many burial sites from the Viking Age have been found.
- Old Værøy Church in North Værøy is the oldest church in Lofoten, built around 1740. The altarpiece dates back to about 1714 and features alabaster figures made in England in 1430.
- Nordlandshagen - the Garden of Nordland - is a popular area for the outdoor life. The midnight sun can be seen here from May 30 to July 13.
- Mostad is located in the south. The mountainside more or less hangs right over the old, derelict village of Mostad. This is where the puffin dog originated. Often people will walk from Nordlandshagen.
- Norwegian Lundehund or Puffin dog is one of Norway's seven species of dogs, and the rarest one. It has an extra toe, is small, and very agile. Puffin dogs were used solely for the puffin hunt and because the hunt was of such great importance to the islanders, this race of dogs managed to survive in Værøy.
- Sanden is a beach with a 400-metre tall wall of rock towers over the spot, making it incredibly warm on fine summer days. Access is only by boat.
[edit] Climate
The weather in Værøy can be very changeable. Sunshine, rain, wind, and mist may interchange rapidly. The winter climate is mild and the temperature seldom drops below 0 °C (32 °F). This makes conditions for stockfish exceptionally good.
Røst and Værøy are rather famous with meteorologists, as it is the most northern location in the world where there is no meteorological winter, as the average temperature is mostly above freezing all winter. The winter temperatures in southern Lofoten represent the highest temperature anomaly in the world relative to latitude due to the Gulf Stream from the Caribbean Sea. However the winter weather is rather windy and damp, so it does not feel so mild.
[edit] Transportation
Helicopter transport is available from Bodø, although the airport is closed for airplane traffic after the Værøy accident in 1990, due to difficult winds, in which five people lost their lives.[3] Ferry service is also available from Bodø and Moskenes.
[edit] In literature
The island of "Vurrgh" in Edgar Allan Poe's story A Descent into the Maelström (1841) is Værøy. [4]
[edit] References
- ^ "Personnemningar til stadnamn i Noreg" (in Norwegian). Språkrådet. http://www.sprakrad.no/Sprakhjelp/Rettskriving_Ordboeker/Innbyggjarnamn.
- ^ Norske Kommunevåpen (1990). "Nye kommunevåbener i Norden". http://www.ngw.nl/int/nor/v/vaeroy.htm. Retrieved 2008-11-30.
- ^ "Accident description". http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19900412-0. Retrieved 2008-11-30.
- ^ Benjamin F. Fisher (editor), The Essential Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe, Spark Educational Publishing, 2004, ISBN 1593080646, p.231
[edit] External links
Media related to Værøy at Wikimedia Commons- [1]Lofoten Sjokolade
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