Fuglafjørður


Fuglafjørður is a village on Eysturoy's east coast in the Faroe Islands. Its name means "fjord of birds".
The village is at the edge of a bay and expands into the surrounding steep hills.
The town centre is located close to the harbour and contains most of the shops and services. The harbour in Fuglafjørður is busy, as the town's economy is based on the processing of fish and fish meal. There is fishing-industry, a slip, production of trawl and also oil-depots.
In the past years Fuglafjørður has also become famous for its newly established cultural centre in the town centre that has become one of the main cultural attractions in Eysturoy.

History and development

Where the Gjógvará stream meets the sea in the village, archaeologists have discovered the remains of a Viking longhouse, seventeen metres in length, with walls thick. It was found by removing four or five more recent layers of ruins, showing a continuity of habitation for many centuries.
In the 1840s the small village Hellur in north of Fuglafjørður was established. However this village never grew large and now only approximately 30 of the municipality's inhabitants live there.
In the 1980s the suburb of Kambsdalur was established, where around 180 people live. In Kambsdalur there is also a large industrial cluster, the educational centre of the northeastern Faroes and the regional sportscentre used mainly for handball, volleyball and indoor football.

Sports

The local football team is ÍF Fuglafjørður.

Business

Fuglafjørður is home of many major business in the Faroe Islands. These include:
  • Vónin, global provider of fishing gear such as trawls
  • Framherji, operator of fishing ships
  • Pelagos, one of the most advanced pelagic plants in the North Atlantic
  • Sandgrevstur, owner and operator of cargo vessels
  • KJ Hydralik, marine services
  • JT Electric, one of the leading company in the world, producing and selling underwater lamps and cameras for the aquaculture
  • Havsbrún, producer of fish feed

    Notable people

Notable people that were born or lived in Fuglafjørður include:
  • Eilif Samuelsen, teacher and politician
  • Trygvi Samuelsen, lawyer
  • Jógan á Lakjuni, teacher, politician and composer
  • Bartal Eliasen, footballer
  • Abraham Løkin, footballer
  • Høgni Zachariasen, footballer

    Twin towns – sister cities

Fuglafjørður is twinned with: