Nólsoy

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Nólsoy
Nolsoy.1.jpg
Waters Atlantic Ocean
Archipelago Faroe Islands
Geographical location 61 ° 59 '4 "  N , 6 ° 39' 2"  W Coordinates: 61 ° 59 '4 "  N , 6 ° 39' 2"  W.
Location of Nólsoy
surface 10.3 km²
Highest elevation Eggjarklettur
372  m
Residents 252 (January 1, 2007)
24 inhabitants / km²
Map of Nolsoy
Map of Nolsoy
Aerial view of Nólsoy on a postage stamp (view from the south).
Steffan Danielsen's "Vetrarskýming" (Winter Twilight) in Nólsoy 1959, 164 × 84 cm. Postage stamp from 1985
Only a half-hour ferry ride from the capital Tórshavn, you will encounter the original Faroese village life on a small, almost car-free island.

Nólsoy [ ˈnœlsɪ ] ( Danish Nolsø, literally probably needle island ) is a small island in the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic , and the fishing village of the same name is also located there. Nolsøe is a derived Faroese family name. According to legend, Nól was the name of the man who first settled on the island, so Nólsoy would mean the island of Nól . The island is home to the world's largest colony of storm petrel (hydro pelagicus).

geography

Nólsoy is five kilometers from the bay of the capital Tórshavn . The strait between the capital and the island is called Nólsoyarfjørður .

The island extends for nine kilometers from south-southeast to north-northwest. At the southern tip is the large Borðan lighthouse .

From Tórshavn, if you have a view of the sea, you always have a view of Nólsoy. The Ternan ferry ( Strandfaraskip Landsins ) runs several times a day , and there are almost no cars on the one-place island.

The village of Nólsoy is located on an isthmus that separates the mountain in the south from the flat terrain in the north (Stongin) . This isthmus can be washed over by the surf during particularly violent easterly storms . At the same time, the island is an important breakwater in such cases, which, in the opinion of many locals, made the capital Tórshavn in its relatively unfavorable bay possible in the first place. There are four peaks in total on the island.

Because of its relatively remote location, Nólsoy was always considered the "outer island" (see Útoyggjar ). Since the incorporation into the municipality of Tórshavn on January 1, 2005, this special status and the associated funding has ceased to exist.

Life

In the village you can experience the contrast between the nearby island metropolis and a picturesque fishing village. A portal made of sperm whale jawbones adorns the entrance to the harbor . The small boat houses with their Faroe boats are characteristic .

The Nólsoy community is relatively vital. It is the most populous of the outer islands, each of which has only one location. This is due to the proximity to the capital and the jobs there. Accordingly, the residents commute back and forth daily with their own boat or the Ternan ferry . However, in 1970 the zenith of 350 inhabitants was long passed.

The local football club is the NÍF Nólsoy .

tourism

Nólsoy is ideal for hiking on the old hiking trail over the summit of Eggjarklettur to the lighthouse. However, the mountain is often shrouded in fog, which makes it necessary to hold out at the lighthouse.

The most famous of the sights of Nólsoy is undoubtedly the white whale bone gate that was erected at the port. Passing several well-preserved old houses, you will soon reach the church built in 1863 from here. It replaces a previous building from the 17th century, which was demolished in 1862.

Also worth seeing are the ruins of the medieval settlement Korndalur, which are about a kilometer south of the village on both sides of the hiking trail to Eggjarklettur. The name means Korntal and could be a reference to earlier grain cultivation on Nólsoy. Korndalur was the first place on Nólsoy where people settled permanently and is said to have originally consisted of 18 houses. The first church on Nólsoy was not here, but in an area called "Eggjagerði" in the northeast of the island. From the 15th century Korndalur was gradually abandoned by its inhabitants, as more and more people moved to the area where the village of Nólsoy is now. The first house that was built there was named Nýggjastova, which means new room . For about 200 years, the villages of Korndalur and Nólsoy coexisted. In the 17th century, however, Korndalur was depopulated and fell into disrepair. The foundations and walls of ten buildings of different sizes, some of them round and some of them square, can still be seen today. They are noticeably close together. The largest of them, next to which a rune stone is said to have stood in the past, is called "Prinsessutoftir", because according to legend, a Scottish princess lived here at times.

In the village there is the Café Nólsoy (Kaffistovan í Nólsoy) as the only gastronomic establishment that is also a simple hotel. There is a campsite here for those on a budget.

A special attraction is the annual Ovastevna in early / mid-August, a folk festival in honor of Ove Joensen . The proceeds go towards building the local swimming pool.

The Danish ornithologist Jens Kjeld Jensen, who lives here, not only stuffs birds, but also organizes night hikes to the famous petrel colony (see web links). The storm petrel is called drunnhviti in Faroese and is the smallest seabird in the world. At the same time, nowhere else on earth breed as many petrels as on Nólsoy.

But also many other representatives of the Faroese bird world can be found here, such as the puffin . From Tórshavn it is the next bird rock and for that reason alone is worth a day trip. However, an overnight stay is required to observe the nocturnal petrels.

Personalities

literature

  • Nanna Hermansson: Nólsoy. En färöisk bygd i omvandling. Liber Läromedel / Gleerup, Lund 1976, ISBN 91-40-04389-4 , ( Etnologiska sällskapet i Lund Skrifter 6), (131 pages with English summary: Nólsoy - Changing village life in the Faroes. Pp. 107-112).

Web links

Commons : Nólsoy  - collection of images, videos and audio files