Vesterålen

Coordinates: 68°50′11″N 14°32′29″E / 68.8364°N 14.5414°E / 68.8364; 14.5414
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Vesterålen
Vesterålen is located in Norway
Vesterålen
Vesterålen
location in Norway
Vesterålen is located in Nordland
Vesterålen
Vesterålen
Vesterålen (Nordland)
Geography
Coordinates68°50′11″N 14°32′29″E / 68.8364°N 14.5414°E / 68.8364; 14.5414
ArchipelagoVesterålen archipelago
Major islandsLangøya, Hinnøya, Andøya, Hadseløya
Area2,511 km2 (970 sq mi)
Administration
Norway
Demographics
Population30,419

Vesterålen (/ˈvɛstərɔːlən/ VEST-ər-aw-lən,[1] Norwegian: [ˈvɛ̂stəroːɫn̩])[2] is a district and archipelago in Nordland county, Norway. It is located just north of Lofoten and west of Harstad. It is the northernmost part of Nordland county. Sortland is the largest town, situated near the center of the archipelago. Vesterålen includes the municipalities of Andøy, Bø, Hadsel, Sortland, and Øksnes.[3]

Name

The Old Norse forms of the name were Vestráll and Vestrálar (plural). The first element is vestr which means "west" and the last element is áll which means "(deep and narrow) sound" or "strait". The name describes the seaway west of the island of Hinnøya. The old name of the seaway east of Hinnøya (now called Tjeldsundet) might have been Austráll (meaning "the eastern sound/strait").

Geography

Vesterålen consists of the municipalities of

Austvågøya
and several smaller islands.

The landscape is mountainous, but the mountains have a more rounded shape compared to the mountains in Lofoten. The towns and villages are situated on the coastal brim (Strandflaten) between the mountains and the fjords. There are also several lakes, such as

maritime, with mild winters considering this archipelago is well north of the Arctic Circle. Bø
is the northernmost location in Norway with daily mean above 0 °C (32 °F) in all winter months.

Transportation

Vesterålen is connected to the mainland and

Lofast
road in December 2007, Lofoten can also be reached by road.

The coastal steamer

Andenes Airport
on Andøya.

Economy

The population in Vesterålen as of 1 January 2004 was 30,648 according to

Andøya Rocket Range is also located at Andøya. The Norwegian Coast Guard has its northern base at Sortland
(Kystvaktskvadron Nord).

Fishing, in particular cod fisheries, has always been important in Vesterålen. There is also fish farming, and some agriculture in Vesterålen.

Media gallery

  • The high school for agriculture at Kleiva, Sortland municipality
    The high school for agriculture at Kleiva, Sortland municipality
  • Nyksund (1 August 2004)
    Nyksund (1 August 2004)
  • View towards Ræka, Sortland
    View towards Ræka, Sortland
  • The Aurora Borealis is visible in all of Vesterålen. Andøy, October 2007.
    The
    Aurora Borealis
    is visible in all of Vesterålen. Andøy, October 2007.
  • The village of Bleik in Andøy, with the long beach and a sea bird colony on the small island Bleiksøya. The deep ocean is very close to shore here, and sperm whales feed in this area.
    The village of Bleik in Andøy, with the long beach and a sea bird colony on the small island Bleiksøya. The deep ocean is very close to shore here, and sperm whales feed in this area.

References

  1. ISBN 9780191727665
    .
  2. ^ "Lofoten and Vesterålen". Collins English Dictionary. HarperCollins. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
  3. Store norske leksikon. "Vesterålen"
    (in Norwegian). Retrieved 2012-07-22.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vesterålen.
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