Saaremaa
Location within Baltic Sea region | |
Geography | |
---|---|
Location | Baltic Sea |
Coordinates | 58°25′N 22°30′E / 58.417°N 22.500°E |
Archipelago | West Estonian archipelago |
Area | 2,673 km2 (1,032 sq mi) |
Administration | |
County | Saare County |
Demographics | |
Population | 31,435 (January 2020) |
Pop. density | 11.7/km2 (30.3/sq mi) |
Saaremaa (/ˈsɑːrəmɑː/ SAR-ə-MAH, Estonian: [ˈsɑːremɑː]) (lit. island land) is the largest and most populous island in Estonia. Measuring 2,673 km2 (1,032 sq mi),[1] its population is 31,435 (as of January 2020).[2] The main island of the West Estonian archipelago (Moonsund archipelago), it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hiiumaa island and northwest of the Gulf of Riga. The administrative centre of the island, and of the Saare County, is the town of Kuressaare, which in January 2018 had 13,276 inhabitants.[3]
Etymology
In old Scandinavian sources, Saaremaa is called Eysysla and in the Icelandic Sagas Eysýsla (Old Norse: [ˈœyˌsyːslɑ]), meaning "the district (land) of island". The island is called Saaremaa in Estonian, and in Finnish Saarenmaa—literally "isle land" or "island land",[4] i.e. the same as the Scandinavian name for the island.
From the 13th century until the first half of the 20th century, the island of Saaremaa was known in most of the world by variants of its other historical name Ösel. The old Scandinavian name is also the origin of the island's name in
History
According to
Probably around 1000, Gunnar Hámundarson from Iceland took part in a Viking raid at Eysýsla (Saaremaa). There he obtained his famous atgeir, by taking it from a man named Hallgrímur. Njáls saga tells the following:
Thence they held on south to Denmark and thence east to Smálönd and had victory wherever they went. They did not come back in autumn. The next summer they held on to Rafala (Tallinn) and fell in there with sea-rovers, and fought at once, and won the fight. After that they steered east to Eysýsla (Saaremaa) and lay there somewhile under a ness. There they saw a man coming down from the ness above them; Gunnar went on shore to meet the man, and they had a talk. Gunnar asked him his name, and he said it was Tófi. Gunnar asked again what he wanted. "Thee I want to see," says the man. "Two warships lie on the other side under the ness, and I will tell thee who command them: two brothers are the captains—one's name is Hallgrímur, and the other's Kolskeggur. I know them to be mighty men of war; and I know too that they have such good weapons that the like are not to be had. Hallgrímur has an atgeir which he had made by seething-spells; and this is what the spells say, that no weapon shall give him his death-blow save that atgeir. That thing follows it too that it is known at once when a man is to be slain with that atgeir, for something sings in it so loudly that it may be heard a long way off—such a strong nature has that atgeir in it.
The
Perhaps the most renowned raid by the inhabitants of Saaremaa occurred in 1187, with the attack on the Swedish town of Sigtuna (other candidates as raiders are Karelians and Curonians). Among the casualties of this raid was the Swedish archbishop Johannes. Archaeological excavations have not verified the traditions of destruction of the town. Normal life in Sigtuna continued until town started to slowly lose its importance during 13th century due to navigability problems caused by post-glacial rebound.[10]
In 1227, Saaremaa was conquered by the
During the 14th–16th centuries, and possibly earlier, inhabitants of Saaremaa started to resettle into areas surrounding the Baltic Sea and, for example, to establish villages on the
Most of Saaremaa was ruled directly by the Bishopric of Ösel–Wiek, while some parts were enfeoffed to the Livonian Order. In 1559, the bishopric and Saaremaa were sold to Denmark, becoming part of
In 1645, Saaremaa was ceded from Denmark to
In 1840, the first spa opened in Kuressaare (then known as Arensburg), and the town experienced renaissance and became a popular seaside resort.
During World War I, the West Estonian Archipelago was conquered by
Geography
The island forms the main barrier between the
Nature
More than 10,000 years ago the first parts of Saaremaa arose from the
Because of its mild maritime climate and a variety of soils, Saaremaa has a rich flora, illustrated by the fact that 80% of the plant species found in Estonia are represented here. Altogether 1200 species of vascular plants can be found in Saaremaa. About 120 of the local plant species are rare ones that have received special protection status. The most famous endemic species is Rhinanthus osiliensis, a rare little flower growing mostly in spring fens. Rare and beautiful flowers are widespread; out of the 36 species found in Estonia, 35 of them are found on Saaremaa and its adjacent islands.
Over 40% of Saaremaa is covered with forests, most of which are mixed forests, but in some areas, one can find broad-leaved (deciduous) trees, which are relicts of plant communities of former milder climatic periods. Wooded meadows were common in Saaremaa before World War II, but many of these unique natural complexes have gradually become overgrown and thus converted into the ordinary forest. The same is true for alvars (limestone areas covered with thin soil and stunted vegetation). Once a typical and exclusive landscape element in Saaremaa alvars are now in decline. Nature conservation planning for Saaremaa now includes protection of the largest and most unusual alvar areas.
Saaremaa has a wide variety of rare wildlife species, ranging from insects to seals. The smallest protected wildlife species in terms of size include the
The coastal areas of Saaremaa are well-known seal habitats; in fact, the indigenous
The islands lie in the
Kaali Meteorite
Kaali is a small group of nine unique meteorite craters on Saaremaa. The largest of the craters measures 110 m (360 ft) in diameter and contains a small lake, known as Kaali järv ("Lake Kaali"). The meteor cluster had an impact velocity of 10–20 km/s (6–12 mi/s) and a mass of 20–80 metric tons (20–79 long tons; 22–88 short tons). At the altitude of 5–10 km (3–6 mi) the meteor broke into pieces. The largest fragment produced the main crater with a depth of 22 m (72 ft).
Eight smaller craters with diameters ranging from 12 to 40 m (39 to 131 ft) and depths varying from 1 to 4 m (3 to 13 ft) are all within 1 kilometer (0.62 mi) of the main crater. The age estimates of the crater vary, with 4000 ± 1000
Resources
Characteristics
The majority of the island's population is
Transportation
Saaremaa is reached by
There are regular bus services from Tallinn, Pärnu and Tartu on the mainland, which use the ferry from Virtsu to Muhu.
Kuressaare Airport offers regular flights to Tallinn operated by NyxAir. There are regular services to Ruhnu and Pärnu operated by Diamond Sky.
Historically there was a Soviet air base at Aste Airfield during the Cold War. Plans to connect Saaremaa to the mainland by either bridge or tunnel are being studied.
Sport
FC Kuressaare competes in the first tier of Estonian football, the Meistriliiga. Saaremaa has been competing in the biannual Island Games since 1991.
There are three main international traditional sport events in Saaremaa:
Saaremaa Rally takes place every year in October and attracts thousands of rally fans. The first rally was an amateur competition and it took place in 1974. The first professional competition took place in 1975 and from 1993 the rally has been international.[16]
Saaremaa Velotuur is a group race of road cyclists that is oldest in the Nordic countries (held since 1957) and the only international one in the Baltic states.[17]
Saaremaa three-day running marathon takes place on the roads around Kuressaare town and Sõrve peninsula. The main race consists of three different runs, which are held on three sequential days (10+16,195+16=42,195 km). The first marathon was held in 1974.[18]
Notable people
- Hannibal Sehested (1609–1666), Dano-Norwegian statesman and son-in-law of King Christian IV.[19]
- Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen (1778–1852), leader of the second expedition to successfully cross the Antarctic Circle.
- Louis Isadore Kahn(1901–1974), one of the most influential architects of mid-20th century.
- Paul F. Saagpakk (1910–1996), author of the largest Estonian-English dictionary (published in 1982).
- Ott Tänak (born 1987), rally driver currently competing for Hyundai at the World Rally Championship, 2019 world drivers' champion
Gallery
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The cliffs near the village of Panga on the north coast of Saaremaa
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Women in traditional Saaremaa dress performing a folk dance
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Kuressaare Castle in winter
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Historic buildings near the center of Kuressaare
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Saaremaa countryside
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Farmhouse in Järveküla
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Tagalaht Bay panorama
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Karja Church in the village of Linnaka
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Angla windmills in Leisi Parish
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Lighthouse atSõrve Peninsula
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Kaarma ring fort
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Odalätsi springs
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Red deer in winter near Leisi
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Nasva Club
See also
- 4163 Saaremaa, asteroid
- List of islands in the Baltic Sea
- List of islands of Estonia
- Œsel – Œsel (Œselia), ancient Estonian independent eldership in the present territory of Saare County
- Saare County
Notes
References
- ^ "Official Web page of Saaremaa".
- ^ ""Eesti elanike arv KOV-ide lõikes seisuga 01.01.2020"" (PDF). Ministry of the Interior Official Website. Ministry of the Interior. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
- ^ ""Eesti elanike arv KOV-ide lõikes seisuga 01.01.2020"" (PDF). Ministry of the Interior Official Website. Ministry of the Interior. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
- ^ Toomse, Liine. "10 Estonian Islands You Should Visit." http://www.traveller.ee/blog/tallinn/10-estonian-islands-you-should-visit. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
- ^ Tamsalu, Piia (October 16, 2015). "Raamat: Saaremaa ongi Ultima Thule".
- ^ ERR, Margus Muld (December 12, 2015). "Saaremaal arutati, kuidas Ultima Thule müüti turundamisel ära kasutada". ERR.
- S2CID 55496802.
- JSTOR 44912445.
- ^ "Saaremaa esimesed asukad | Histrodamus.ee". www.eestiajalugu.ee.
- ^ Enn Tarvel (2007). [1] Archived 2017-10-11 at the Wayback Machine Sigtuna hukkumine. Haridus, 2007 (7-8), p 38–41
- ^ http://www.saaremaa.ee/eng/general/default.htm Archived 2008-03-14 at the Wayback Machine
Saaremaa County – nature - ^ "Kaalijärv". Earth Impact Database. Planetary and Space Science Centre University of New Brunswick Fredericton. Retrieved 2008-12-30.
- ^ .
- ^ http://www.saaremaa.ee/eng/general/default.htm Archived 2008-03-14 at the Wayback Machine
Saaremaa County – resources - ^ http://www.saaremaa.ee/eng/general/default.htm Archived 2008-03-14 at the Wayback Machine
Saaremaa County – population - ^ Saaremaa Rally homepage http://www.saaremaarally.eu/
- ^ Saaremaa Velotuur homepage http://www.saaremaavelotuur.ee/
- ^ Saaremaa 3-day running marathon homepage http://www.saaremaajooks.ee/
- ^ Bain, Robert Nisbet (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 24 (11th ed.). p. 586.
Further reading
- Taylor, N. with Karin T (2008). Saaremaa: A History and Travel Guide. Tallinn: OÜ Greif. ISBN 978-9985-3-1606-1.
- Geotourism highlights of the Saaremaa and Hiiumaa islands (2009; 23 Mb PDF)
External links
- Saaremaa at Curlie
- VisitSaaremaa – Official Tourism page of Saaremaa and Muhu
- Saaremaa
- Saaremaa.org – #1 Saaremaa info portal
- Saaremaa for tourists. Photos and stories.
- Neomobile provide local bus services across the island
- Estonian Air fly between Tallinn and Kuressaare
- Watch Saaremaa online via webcam Archived 2017-08-12 at the Wayback Machine
- Saaremaa Estonica