Varangerfjord

Varangerfjord

The Varangerfjord (Russian: Варяжский залив, Russian: Варангер-фъорд, Finnish: Varanginvuono) in the county of Finnmark, is the easternmost fjord in Norway. It is approximately 100 kilometres (60 mi) long. In a strict sense, it is a false fjord, as it does not have the hallmarks of a fjord carved by glaciers.

Its mouth, between the city of Vardø in the north and Grense Jakobselv in the south, is about 70 kilometres (40 mi) wide. The fjord stretches westwards inland to Varangerbotn in the municipality of Nesseby.

History

The Kven residents of Varangerfjord are largely descendants of Finnish immigrants who arrived to the area during the 19th century from Finland and northern Sweden.

In the first half of the 19th century, the possibility of Russia demanding the cession of a stretch of coast along the Varangerfjord was for some time on the European diplomatic agenda, inducing King Oscar I of Sweden and Norway to conclude an alliance with Britain and France in order to forestall this possibility.

References

• This article is based on a translation of the corresponding article in the Norwegian Wikipedia, accessed 27 April 2005.