Klaksvík

Klaksvík
Town

Klaksvík

Location of Klaksvík within Klaksvík municipality in the Faroe Islands
Klaksvík

Location of Klaksvík village in the Faroe Islands

Coordinates: 62°13′26″N 6°34′43″W / 62.22389°N 6.57861°W / 62.22389; -6.57861Coordinates: 62°13′26″N 6°34′43″W / 62.22389°N 6.57861°W / 62.22389; -6.57861
State  Kingdom of Denmark
Constituent country  Faroe Islands
Island Borðoy
Municipality Klaksvík
Area
 • Total 72 km2 (28 sq mi)
Population (2015)
 • Total 4,615
 • Density 64/km2 (170/sq mi)
Time zone GMT
 • Summer (DST) EST (UTC+1)
Postal code FO 700
Climate Cfc
Website www.klaksvik.fo

Klaksvík is the second largest town of the Faroe Islands. The town is located on Borðoy, which is one of the northernmost islands (the Norðoyar). It is the administrative centre of Klaksvík municipality.[1]

History

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

Klaksvík 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 Klaksvík is now. In time, they grew into four villages: Vágur, Myrkjanoyri, Gerðar and Uppsalir; which 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 gained a physical link 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, built in 1963, is the first one in Scandinavia to be built in Old Norse style. The roof construction is the same as that found in the Viking halls, and which has survived in Faroese smoke rooms (kitchens) and village churches. This open roof construction has proved to be especially suitable for church buildings, as the acoustics in this church are better than in others of a similar size. The church is dedicated to the memory of the sailors who lost their lives during World War II. Hanging from the ceiling is an old 8-man rowing-boat, from Viðareiði, it was used to transport the priest between villages.[2]

Transport

Klaksvík used to be an isolated town until 2006 when the Norðoyatunnilin opened. A frequent bus service now links the town to Tórshavn, while smaller services operate to Fuglafjørður, Kunoy and Viðareiði. Also it has remained the ferry port for Kalsoy. Since 2014, a city bus (Bussleiðin) connects the outlying parts with the city center, and taxis offer additional services. The bus services and the ferry to Kalsoy are operated by Strandfaraskip Landsins, the public transport company of the Faroe Islands. There is a heliport (ICAO: EKKV) which mainly has flights to isolated islands like Kirkja and Svínoy.

Twin towns - Sister cities

Klaksvik is twinned with:

Former twin towns

Sports

These are some of the sporting associations in Klaksvík The local football club is KÍ. The local gymnastics club is Klaksvíkar Fimleikafelag. In handball there are two clubs, one for men and another for women. Women's handball club is Stjørnan. Men's Handball club is Team Klaksvík.

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.klaksvik.fo/Index.asp?pID=41A7429E-7B67-464C-9E53-963F6BC62D57
  2. ↑ "Christianskirkjan". The Folk Church.
  3. ↑ Danjal av Rana (19 August 2015). "Vinarbýur hartar Klaksvík fyri grindadráp" (in Faroese).
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Klaksvík.
Look up Klaksvík in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/9/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.