Fáskrúðsfjörður Explained

Fáskrúðsfjörður
Settlement Type:Town
Pushpin Map:Iceland
Pushpin Label Position:left
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in Iceland
Pushpin Mapsize:280
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Type1:Constituency
Subdivision Name1:Northeast Constituency
Subdivision Type2:Region
Subdivision Name2:Eastern Region
Subdivision Type3:Municipality
Subdivision Name3: Fjarðabyggð
Population As Of:2011
Population Total:662
Timezone:GMT
Utc Offset:+0
Coordinates:64.9294°N -14.0104°W

Fáskrúðsfjörður (pronounced as /is/; previously named also Búðir[1] in Icelandic pronounced as /ˈpuːðɪr̥/) is a village (þorp) in eastern Iceland.

It has a population of 662 (as of 2011) and constitutes one of the villages composing the municipality of Fjarðabyggð.

Geography

Fáskrúðsfjörður, located on the same-named fjord, lies between Reyðarfjörður and Stöðvarfjörður. It is one of the easternmost settlements of Iceland.

The other neighbouring villages which compose the municipality of Fjarðabyggð are: Eskifjörður (1,043 inh.), Mjóifjörður (35 inh.), Neskaupstaður (1,437 inh.),[2] Reyðarfjörður (1,102 inh.) and Stöðvarfjörður (203 inh.).[3]

History and culture

Fáskrúðsfjörður was home to a hospital founded to serve French fishermen working here until 1935. The former hospital building dating from 1903 has now been restored as a hotel.[4] Even nowadays there are bilingual signs in town indicating the street names in Icelandic and in French. The French cemetery with 49 graves of fishermen from France and Belgium is another tourist attraction. The cross was erected in 2009.[5]

The village is now a centre for visitors viewing the Northern Lights.

Attractions

There are tour operators offering trips by boat to the small uninhabited island Skrúður which is famous for its large variety of sea birds, especially for its puffins.[6] In the east of Fáskrúðsfjörður, on the farm Kolfreyjustaður a church (Kolfreyjustaðakirkja) was built of driftwood in 1878, which is famous for its wall paintings dating from 1957 and for its retable painted by the Danish artist Niels Anker Lund (1840–1922).[7] Vattarnesviti is an orange lighthouse on the peninsula of Vattarnes in the northeast of Fáskrúðsfjörður built in 1957.[8]

Twin towns

External links

64.9294°N -14.0104°W

Notes and References

  1. Parnell, Fran; O'Carroll, Etain (2007). Iceland. 6th ed. Footscray (Vic.); Oakland (CA): Lonely Planet. pp. 269–270.
  2. Most likely located in the Norðfjörður
  3. Infos on Fjarðabyggð municipal website
  4. Web site: A French Hospital turned into a Hotel in Fáskrúðsfjörður. Iceland magazine. 2017-07-15. 2016-08-09. https://web.archive.org/web/20160809093909/http://icelandmag.visir.is/article/a-french-hospital-turned-a-hotel-faskrudsfjordur. dead.
  5. Web site: Voyage en Islande - Fáskrúðsfjörður et les pêcheurs d'Islande . https://archive.today/20121225111423/http://voyageenislande.free.fr/guide/est/faskrudsfjordur.htm . 25 December 2012 . dead.
  6. Barbara and Jörg-Thomas Titz: Island, p. 442. Bielefeld 2005
  7. Web site: Kolfreyjustaðarkirkja - NAT ferðavísir. 20 July 2020.
  8. Web site: Vattarnesviti.